I’ve been working in Taiwan since September 2017 and my employer deducts 18% of my monthly salary each month for tax. I don’t receive any confirmation papers of this by the way, but I assume it is in fact going towards the government as I’m an ARC holder with a work permit.
My question is: When can I get back some the tax I’ve paid? Also, how do I go about doing that? I’ve read somewhere that I’m only able to claim back tax for the months I’ve worked in 2018, since it’s a new tax year. Can anyone confirm or deny this?
You file anytime from May 1 to May 31.
On May 1, your income data from 2017 automatically gets downloaded into the tax bureau system. Your firm should give you a 2017 statement a month or 2 beforehand.
You can ask your school.
The tax bureau then sends any refund to your Taiwan bank account sometime in mid/late-August.
Any refunds must of course be filed for–just to make that clear! Happily, in Taiwan, this is a piece of cake.
And in Taipei City at least, the refunds I’ve received show up in my bank account on August 1, on the dot.
But the most important thing to know for newbies is the 183 day rule. You do not need to be working in Taiwan for those many days in a calendar year, but you need to be present and residing that many days in a calendar year to escape the dreaded 18%.
I heard that we’re supposed to get two taxes the following year, in case we’ve been through the 18% rule–one in July (c/o my employer) and one in August (c/o the tax bureau if there’s any refund). Is this true?
To avoid confusion, we should just say you need to be present. Time spent in Taiwan on a visitor (tourist) visa or visa-free also counts.
Silver lining: if in any month you earn a low amount (1.5x the Basic Wage), your tax rate for that month is only 6%. The BW is currently 22k, so the threshold is 33k.
yes, and even if you have multiple part time jobs, this is the case. This amount is right around 30,000 NT, (at least 2 years ago, could be a little higher now). Say yo u had a job that averaged 45,000 K a month you’d get taxed the higher rate, but the other part time job was under 30, you’d get taxed at 6% for that one, even though you are making over the 1.5 X basic wage overall.
If I stayed less than 183 days but over 90 days, I am still taxed at 18%, correct?
Can I then (more than 90, less than 183 days) least file for and claim deductions (i.e. dependents) and get a return in this way? Or is this only possible for stays over 183 days?
However it’s been more than a decade since I was in that unhappy position! So so check with the tax office in your city of residence. They will be glad to help (and even, in the case of the Taipei office, correct your calculations in your favour!).