Additional “Hobby”/Irregular Income for ARC Holder/Future APRC Applicant

Legal Visa & Residency
1

(Regular user of the site under another account, posting under a second account due to presence of personal information.)

Hi all. I have a somewhat complex situation I’m seeking advice on. I’ve used the search function multiple times and read a ton of posts on here but I’m still quite confused regarding the options (if any). Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Basic situation:
Me: European citizen. Intending to apply for Employment Gold Card for open work rights, whereupon I would initially work as a freelancer on a contract basis, supplying a specialized/technical service mostly to foreign companies/clients and possibly Taiwanese ones. Further intend within the short-to-medium term (next 1–2 years, say) to establish a small business providing the same service within Taiwan and elsewhere in Asia. The business itself wouldn’t really have any major capital requirements to set up as it’s essentially me providing a consulting service (which I have previous experience with). The company probably wouldn’t meet the capital requirements (500,000 TWD at start and 3 million TWD revenue later) for sponsoring an ARC/work permit, although I would already have this via the gold card.

Girlfriend: Vietnamese citizen, studied/lived/worked in Taiwan for about 9 years. Would very much like to apply for an APRC within the next 2–3 years. Currently working with an ARC at an office job she hates (fairly stressful work environment, lots of deadlines, massive amounts of unpaid overtime – she’s at work ca. 12–15 hours a day most days Mon–Fri and is expected to work at home weekends and holidays etc., sleeps maybe 4–5 hours a night), but which has the potential to meet the APRC salary requirement in the future.

Meeting the salary requirement is basically the only reason she’s keeping this job, and it’s taking quite a large toll on her mood/health and our relationship. Has the goal of working in clothing/fashion design, which is her passion but unlikely to meet the APRC salary requirement in the near future, and ultimately starting her own company/brand along these lines in the future. This company would also not likely meet the capital requirements for sponsoring an ARC/work permit (for her) at first.

Problem/questions:
My feeling is that she should find an easier/less stressful job that gives her some time to focus on what she really wants to do and figure out the things she needs to work on to turn that into a business. The problem here is that she’s quite insistent on eventually getting an APRC (or, at least, being in a “safe” situation where she doesn’t need to return to Vietnam – we would both be comfortable leaving Taiwan at some point in the future), and the kind of regular job that is available to her is unlikely to give her a sufficiently high salary.

The two options I’ve thought about so far are as follows:
(i) “Employing” her part-time in some capacity through my eventual company to make up the salary difference. This wouldn’t just be on paper and I feel it could be justified on the basis of selling my services in Vietnam/ASEAN. The problem I see here would be the work permit (the company probably wouldn’t meet the capital requirement to issue one, at least initially) and whether there are any exceptions, e.g., for part-time/irregular/non-salaried work, or income under a certain threshold. I would like to do things legitimately here, pay the appropriate taxes etc., and will presumably eventually need to get an accountant to organize things anyway.

(ii) Her/us trying to sell clothing she’s made online, either within Taiwan or abroad, while she learns the ropes, and declaring this additional income for tax/APRC purposes. I’ve read about other people declaring additional income to make up a shortfall during their APRC application and it being fine as long as they pay the tax on it, but I’m not sure about the legality/viability of that strategy? There could also be the option to do something convoluted like send the things to her sister in Vietnam to sell online and declare it as overseas income, if that might help. So my question there would be whether there’s any exception/threshold for something like “hobby income” below a certain threshold? Or is all additional work/income while on an ARC completely forbidden?

Thanks to anyone who managed to read this far. As I said at the start, I’m quite confused by all of this but trying to find some possible solution. I’m completely open to any criticism/corrections about anything I wrote above, as well as any other suggestions.

2

Your situation is somewhat similar to mine: my wife has an online business and we are planning to move to Taiwan where I can get a Gold Card ARC and the open work permit, but my wife technically cannot work.

Our plan (and hopefully this sheds some light on your situation) is that we will put the company 100% in my name, and keep it as a Sole Proprietorship. My wife gets an ARC through me, but cannot work. All income comes through me, and in that it is an online business, technically, I am running it.

Now, in your situation, she does not need an ARC through you, but as long as you set up the company overseas she could be an employee if you set up a “representative office” . I am not sure if someone can be a representative for a rep office and work for another company on an ARC though. Regardless, look into the rep office and what is required - there are some hoops to jump through, but it is possible, and it looks to me like it could be the solution you are looking for.

3

iirc, for most of jobs that can give a work permit, the salary should be more than NT$47,971, and this is enough to apply for APRC.

iiuc, she needs a work permit for the job, and the company and she should meet the requirements to get a work permit for the job.

marriage cannot be an option to solve the situation?

4

Thanks for your answer. This is actually something I’ve considered as well - to have a single company doing both my thing and her thing and running everything through that. Although I do remember reading somewhere that companies here are restricted to doing business in whatever defined category/categories they selected upon opening, and I’m not sure whether it’s possible to choose multiple categories - that’s something I still need to check.

I suppose this would mean I’d still be running the business almost legally, at least tax-wise, although the fact that she would be making the stuff being sold would mean I’m technically employing her illegally and/or she’s working without permission (even though it would be at our own home, so difficult to track). And it wouldn’t solve the income issue for her APRC application.

The rep office might be an idea, I’ll need to look into that. I’ve read a bit about this but still need to do a lot more research to decide the best option. Thanks again.

5

Thanks for your answer. You might be right…for most jobs? I’m not sure about the rules because I’ve never been employed here, but presumably there are some exceptions for people from Southeast Asia?

She has a master’s degree, but I know her previous salary in a call center was in the 34k range, and she definitely had a work permit for that. Her formal salary “on paper” in her current job is about 48k as you say but…well, better not say too much about that. The working conditions are pretty terrible for her though - I doubt she can keep this up for another 2.5 years, even for the APRC.

It’s not out of the question, but we would need to work on some things first. :wink: I’m actually not sure though that it would make things that much easier? She wouldn’t have open work rights under my gold card as far as I’m aware, and would still need to get a job to sponsor her work permit…

6

Another option is showing $5M on deposit in any Taiwanese bank or investment fund. Or any fixed property will work too. Skips the monthly income requirements.

7

Question is: could YOU get a gold card?
I think you can not, even a normal ARC out of the question with that situation.

If you could get a gold card/APRC, marriage making everything easier.
If you could get ARC, marriage also makes everything easier.
If not, she needs to maintain her ARC and apply APRC after 5 years.

8

Yes, according to the rules published by the government, I could. Why is that the question? :thinking:

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9

if she graduated from a taiwanese school, she can be exempted from the salary requirement. It is not because she is from SEA.

Did you already check this site?
https://ezworktaiwan.wda.gov.tw/en/

10

Wasn’t it supposed to be 3M USD?

11

Yes you can.

The issue isn’t whether or not she has an ARC but whether or not she has permission (or is exempt from requiring permission) to work i.e. whether or not she has (or has no need of) a work permit.

One notable exception (thanks again @tando) is explained here:

I suppose you could set up one company locally and another overseas. Do check with a lawyer first though, to make sure it won’t be taken for an elaborate con.

12

Nope, 5M NTD

13

you are right, but at least she can stay in Taiwan as your dependant so doesn’t need to return to Vietnam.

Spouse of a foreign professional can do part-time specialized or technical work.

14

If you can gt gold card, thn why worry?
GF could get JFRV when married. Otherwise stay at it is, using her normal ARC.

15

Because…I explained it already in my original post, no? I’m not looking for a way for her to get a JFRV (and no work rights) tied to my gold card (which would only last for 3 years), if we eventually get married. Or for the obvious suggestion that she could just continue at the job she’s incredibly unhappy with solely for the higher salary so she can get an APRC later. I asked about the possibility/legality of supplemental income alongside a lower-paying job to determine whether she can both do a career she wants and eventually get an APRC, both of which are quite important to her. I’m not quite sure what your point has been in this thread.

Thanks to everyone else who contributed useful advice - it’s much appreciated.

16

Please keep us updated on how things go- I am very curious in that it is close to my situation with my wife.

17

To tell u the truth…

APRC must minimum 48K shown on paper and tax receipt.
With current situation, unlikely GF could get it.

Without APRC, no legal side job.

18

Unless you have open work permit via JFRV

19

iiuc, that is why the OP is asking if she is able to hold two jobs with a work permit for each.

20

2 ARC? Never heard of that could happen.
Even your old ARC have the same number, up until you change to APRC. No new numbers.