I am wanting to start a company with the home base here in Taiwan. I have read the post about setting up as a “representative office.” This seems like a good plan, but when I contacted one of the companies to help, they said I should budget for about 100k. When I wrote them back and said I can fly out every month for much less than that, I didn’t hear back
I could certainly do all of this myself and I’m considering it. However, I’m wondering if it’s easier to have a friend (whom I trust 100%) start the company as a Taiwanese company and then hire me. Does anyone have any suggestions about what is easier? Are there any options I am missing?
The company is completely legit. Just looking for a way to set up a base here in Taiwan, hopefully in an economical way and with as little hassle as possible.
I have been flying to HK every month, and it’s getting old…fast.
I’ve been quoted a lot less from these guys jusregal.com/English.htm
Like NT$8k plus NT$15k (for the ARC).
To get hired by a Taiwanese company, they need to have a turn over of NT$10 million to be allowed to hire a foreigner, which might foil that idea…
Thanks, that helps! 23k sounds much better than 100k.
Does anyone have any tips for moving the process along? I am currently in Taiwan on a landing visa. This means I will have to register my company in the US, wait for the forms, get them notarized here, send them to the Taiwan office in the US, wait again, and then go to the accountant…I assume. This could take a while! I’m not in a huge rush, but I would like to see things move along faster.
Actually if I were doing this I’d use a UK company and skip the representative office. I’m from the UK and UK passport holders get 90 day visa free entry, and it can apparently be extended to 180 days, so there’s not really a need for a representative office anymore.
Your salary would be paid from the UK company, and you just declare it for tax here, the UK company doesn’t need to interact with the Taiwanese system.
That sounds off, I have heard it is pretty easy to set up the company and HK bank account. There are a few freelancers who operate this way in Taiwan (mother company in HK, sometimes they will book the revenue there too to avoid tax). It’s not easy to give yourself the ARC whatever you do…
HK companies are about as easy to set up as UK companies - that is, very easy. I posted a few links in my rep. office post to companies who will do all the setup for you online, mail you the necessary documents and even send you an electronic company certificate by PDF in the meantime. Google brings up hundreds of agents who do the same for HK startups. Just don’t forget that it’s a criminal offense not to send in your Company Return and Company Accounts each year.
KingZog: this only applies to UK passport holders and if you are working for your rep. office or doing any other work on a landing visa then you are working illegally.
South China Morning post advertises company set ups for less than HK$2K, I noticed it this morning. Not my paper so can’t send you the details but US$3K is too much for sure.
FYI I worked in Taiwan for 2 years with no work permit, just flew back to HK regularly. Illegal or not it never caused me a problem.
Assuming I have open work rights (well, will have sometime later this year), and do a lot of business out of Taiwan, would it make more sense for me to set up a company through HK or Taiwan? Any opinions either way? The company at first probably wouldn’t be pulling in a lot of dollars, but within 1-2 years should be generating enough for it to become profitable (a lot of the equipment investments have already been made).
For tax purposes it seems like the company tax is lower in HK, eat least according to what I’ve read.
Apart from that, I guess the initial investment there is lower as well and they don’t seem to have the requirement that you need to have a turnover of 5x the investment in the first year.
Maybe there’s more to it, I dunno, but that’s what I’ve noticed.
Depends where your customers are…do you need to issue tong yi bian hao to local customers…if not HK or foreign reg’d might be better. If you are manufacturing in Taiwan there are probably other considerations too…
Thanks. Customers can be anywhere, but Europe seems to be the main source. I haven’t really tried to get into the Taiwan marketplace yet, but that’s changing at the moment. No manufacturing involved, it’s just photography and related media.
[quote=“llary”]
KingZog: this only applies to UK passport holders and if you are working for your rep. office or doing any other work on a landing visa then you are working illegally.[/quote]
So if someone comes in on a 30 day(UK90 day) visa exempt or ‘landing visa’ and they are conducting business, aren’t they working illegally?
There must be hundreds of people a day doing that.
I had a small business in Taiwan before, at the time I was legally able to operate my business but be here on a student visa at the same time (the bank officials didn’t blink an eyelid looking at my ARC, funny). As long as I didn’t pay myself through a salary structure and my company paid company taxes I was okay. I was the company chairman, I think company directors are allowed to do this.
Of course somebody else here might be clearer on this.
[quote=“headhonchoII”]I had a small business in Taiwan before, at the time I was legally able to operate my business but be here on a student visa at the same time (the bank officials didn’t blink an eyed looking at my ARC, funny). As long as I didn’t pay myself through a salary structure and my company paid company taxes I was okay. I was the company chairman, I think company directors are allowed to do this.
Of course somebody else here might be clearer on this.[/quote]
In most countries it’s perfectly legal to establish a company no matter what your resident status is. It’s illegal to do any actual work for the company without permission.
I remember I asked my accountant about this and as far as I recall I could organise my business and company affairs perfectly legally (which was SOHO) and that didn’t count as work especially as I wasn’t drawing down a salary…the definition of work is loose.
