F.A.Q

Depending on your nationality, it could be visa-exempt or a landing visa. It may also be necessary to obtain an appropriate visitor visa before leaving your home country.

A work permit will be required. In addition, if the stay period is longer than six months, resident visas and a ARC (Alien Resident Certificate with multiple re-entry permit) will also be required.

A new work permit must be applied for and your ARC shall be amended with the new company’s name.

Business trips only apply to the expatriate who arrives in Taiwan to attend meetings and conferences or visit clients but does not perform any work duties. Work permits are required for any expatriate who will be performing work duties in Taiwan, no matter whether the period is short or long.

It takes around ten working days for a work permit to be approved and 22 working days for the approval of a resident visa and ARC (with multiple re-entry permit). It is recommended that you allow 4 weeks for a work permit application to be processed.

It is not a work visa but work permit that is issued in Taiwan. The work permit can be valid for up to three years depending on the assignment period/employment contract. Further a resident visa and ARC (with multiple re-entry permit) would be issued, which would expire at the same time as the work permit’s validation expiration date.
In order to apply for a work permit, various documents from the applicant and from the employer will be required. As a base requirement, the applicant would have the minimum requirement of a bachelor’s degree or at least five years working experience.

A spouse residing in Taiwan on a dependent visa cannot work in Taiwan. All foreigners in Taiwan must obtain a work permit in order to work in Taiwan.

Personal domestic helpers can accompany the family to Taiwan, under the condition that both the family and the helper can meet the government criteria.

The issuing of a dependent visa will be subject to the provision of a valid marriage record / license that is recognized by the Taiwan government. Therefore, a partner will not be able to obtain a dependent visa. As an alternative, your partner may be able to stay in Taiwan by securing a job with a Taiwan company and thus stay in Taiwan for employment reasons.
The above will apply to same-sex partners.

Please refer to Question 9.

For foreigner who are nationality & married from of one of 26 counties (Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Columbia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, part of Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, part of the United Kingdom, the United States and Uruguay), they can apply for dependent visa.

Children under the age of 20 years old can still obtain a dependent visa. Student visas may be obtained for children over 20 years old, who intend to study in Taiwan.

Yes. You can apply for a dependent visa for your adopted children provided that you can provide valid documentation to support your adoption.

Depending on the status change, the related authority must be notified and application for amendments should be made.

The following nationalities require additional documents and include different regulations in regards to applying for a work permit: China, Hong Kong and Macau.
The following nationalities require a local sponsor in Taiwan for visa application: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bhutan, Cambodia, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Laos, Somalia, Syria, Bangladesh, Ghana, Burma, Nigeria, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Cameroon and Senegal.

As the time approaches for your renewal you will be notified to fill in the appropriate application form and provide documents to support your continued employment.
Work permits can be renewed up to four months prior to expiry and a ARC can be renewed up to 30 days prior to expiry.

Yes, there are no restrictions on exit.

No.

As contract processing takes around 3-4 weeks after you have selected your property, it is generally best to aim to come for your home finding tour around 4-6 weeks before your assignment start date. If you come any earlier than this, rent payments may have to start before your actual relocation occurs, as owners usually won’t wait any more than 1-1.5 months from the application date to begin receiving rental payments.

This depends on how many areas you will be looking at and how much time you want to spend at each property, but generally a full day tour will allow you to view anywhere between 8-10 properties in up to 2-3 different areas. We do recommend not too many per day as they blend together.

Yes. In most cases the landlord will be require you to have a valid visa. However, majority of cases the contract will be in the company’s name and as they will be signing on your behalf.

Bringing pets with you will limit the rentals options, however there are some landlords willing to accept pets. Negotiations will be required, and it’s not uncommon for the landlord to request photos of the pet and/or meet them.

For major appliance most properties in Taiwan will be unfurnished, however furniture may or may not be included. Some cases a furniture allowance can be negotiated into the rent. Window treatments are normally included with the rental. Having them done in Taiwan will is also considered relatively expensive.