Hi! I’m Taiwanese but came back a few years ago, so pretty much half foreigner, and my Chinese is very bad. I’m looking for a new flat and am currently looking for a job.
I heard that Taiwanese can apply for 租屋補助 - Government Rental Subsidies. Although everything is in Chinese and stresses me out. Has anyone experienced this?
Would love to hear your experience and knowledge about it!
Thanks!
Only properties that are apart of 社會住宅 can apply for the 租屋補助. They will say if they are on the listing (591 etc). I don’t really understand the 戶口 part exactly since I’m not Taiwanese, but basically it sounds like if anyone in your 戶口 owns a home or has an income above a certain threshold then you won’t be able to rent. If you don’t have a 戶口 then you can’t rent in the first place.
Thank you!
I have been digging so I got some info, just jotting here so anyone looks up for it can find.
This is the info for 2025 租屋補助, there’s a video below instructing on how to apply
Depending on your case: single person (I heard can get the highest subsidy), couple, family, etc.
Applicants will need to be Taiwanese with a TW ID card 身分證. And family - meaning his/her spouse and children - don’t own a property. As if your parents own a property, it won’t affect you to apply for the subsidy.
Usually, the steps are to confirm with your landlord first. Some landlords will charge you extra (1,000- 2,000NTD/month) to agree to this. And after signing the lease contract, you can then apply.
This is so far as I know as an individual (single) applicant.
I’ll jot in my experience after I go thru the process!
My impression - not based on specific sources, just what I’ve heard - is that you can get the subsidy if you report the tax, and fulfill some other requirements like age and income. IME landlords really, really don’t want you to report that you’re renting on your taxes. A friend told me that because of this, something like 90% of rentals in Taiwan are unreported / technically “less than fully legal” rentals.
I believe the 社會住宅 is separate, these are subsidized housing that are only available for certain people to rent. Last time I was renting I was told that to be eligible for a 社會住宅 in Taipei your family 戶口 can’t be anywhere in the north (Taipei, Xinbei, Taoyuan).
I’m kind of late reading this one.
Landlord is asking for increase/monthly his alibi was due to his tax will increase if my brother will apply for this subsidy. Just knowing today that landlord can also benefit from this rental subsidy from tenants once they became public lessor they can enjoy lower tax rate 
.
It’s not a tax cut if they didn’t pay any tax before… 
lower tax rate (much better)
I’ve applied for this and fortunately, got approved and have been the recipient for a couple of years now. It’s a pretty straight forward process where you must meet some qualifications to get approved. More information can be found here:
租金補貼 (use google translation if you’re having problem understanding)
This is not true. Any legal rental unit can be used to apply for the subsidy. A “社會住宅”, simply put, is just any regular apartment owned by a regular Taiwanese…the only difference is the Govt. will act as an agent between you and your landlord/landlady. The Govt. will appoint a real estate agent to act on your behalf. You will sign a contract with the agent, transfer the monthly rent to the agent’s account and if there is any problem, you just talk to the agent and they will relay it to the landord. You will also need to sign a “real” court approved and stamped rental contract (which costs about NT$4500 which the Govt. pays for fully). 社會住宅 is usually reserved for Low income families which get first priority to rent. I’m currently renting a 社會住宅.
Not true. I’m renting a 社會住宅 in Xinbei and my 戶口 is in Xinbei.
Hi Good news, I have successfully applied for a subsidy, and it takes three months for the application to go through and receive the first settlement. The progress is pretty easy. I went onto their website and just Google translate everything and filled in. You will need a housing contract, although with this step, you will need to talk to your landlord first, and when you guys both agree about this, you can go ahead to apply. You don’t have to go through your landlord or need anything from them, but you do need to have a contract, though.
And then you need to have a lower income. For myself it will be lower than I would say 40k something per month to get that amount. I think you can look online because the amount is different from different group of people and different year to year. So yeah the process is pretty good and easy. I was very worried at first because everything’s gonna be in Chinese but in the end, everything’s online. It’s easy to translate and do it yourself so good luck with anyone who’s looking to apply for it.
Congrats! Did your landlord also let you “入戶籍”?