Taiwan to attract foreign professionals by offering various inducements

The government of Taiwan is pondering offering Work Permits, health insurance, residence and incentives on taxes with intent to draw foreign talent and retain them in the Republic of China.

 

This was stated by an Executive Yuan spokesman, Hsu Kuo-yung, on 6 April. He announced this after Lin Chuan, the Taiwanese Premier, met the legislators from the ruling DPP (Democratic Progressive Party) to discuss a draft bill on hiring foreign professionals from countries other than China.

 

Hsu was quoted by Focus Taiwan as saying that constraints on work permits and the duration for which foreign professionals can reside in Taiwan will be eased as per the draft bill.

 

These workers would also get a ‘four-in-one card’ which gives them work permit, re-entry permit, alien residency permit and residence visa.

 

The spouses and dependent children of foreign workers who obtain Permanent Residency will also be eligible to apply for staying in Taiwan. They can after a fixed period apply for a permanent residency.

 

Apart from that, as per the provisions of the bill overseas workers, their spouses and dependent children will be granted immediate right to avail the national health insurance program without needing to wait for six months as they do have to currently.

 

The government of the Southeast Asian country is also looking at creating a visa exclusively for foreigners seeking jobs in Taiwan, validity for which will be six months at a time.

 

Hsu said that if they cannot find perfect jobs, they would be allowed to stay in Taiwan for the six-month duration, which would only benefit the country and not harm it.

 

Tax incentives will be provided for in the draft bill for foreign workers who earn an annual salary of over $65,486 for a period not exceeding three years.

 

Covered also in the bill would be private sector internships for students who are graduates from one of the world's top 500 Universities, but with a clause that salaries must be at least $1,566 so the job opportunities are not taken away from Taiwanese.

 

If you are looking to migrate to Taiwan, get in touch with Y-Axis, one of the leading immigration consultancy companies, to apply for a visa from one of its several worldwide offices.