I easily qualify for a gold card right now as a software engineer from the US based on salary, and I am hoping to retire in Taiwan at some point in the near future.
I’ve been doing a ton of research and been browsing on this site for quite a while as well.
I’m wondering if this is feasible. Retire → Get Gold Card for 3 years, then apply for a 6 month job seeking ARC and apply for APRC during those 6 months. I understand that I need some sort of legal status right after my 3 years in order to apply for APRC. Would I run into any hiccups if I go down this route?
Or I could continue working remotely while in Taiwan, instead of retiring right away. But my W2 employer will probably convert me into a contractor if I were to leave the US. My point is, either way, I don’t think I’ll be able to maintain the salary requirement after my gold card 3 years down the line. Since my understanding from research is that only W2 sourced income counts, 1099 contractor income doesn’t qualify you for the Gold card.
Finding a local job will allow me to earn a salary, but my impression is that it is rather difficult to find a local software engineering job that would pay over $160000NTD a month. And I would rather continue working for a US based company in any case. Language isn’t a problem, as I’m perfectly fluent in Mandarin. But I have heard not too pleasant stories about Taiwanese work culture.
1- You can show assets north of IIRC 5mil
2- Certainly you can find a SE job offering more than 160k. A junior job at top tier companies already pay more. I’d assume you’re at staff level if you’re retiring. That should be idk but maybe 600-700k NTD a month at FAANG adjacent?
Ok, maybe I was looking at outdated glassdoor info on salary. I never seriously considered working in Taiwan due to the work culture, but I’ll do more research on this front if it helps me to get the APRC.
I’m a senior software engineer, by the way, around 40 years old, double income no kids.
Yeah, I easily have over 5 mil NTD worth of assets. But my understanding is that requirement is for actually applying for APRC itself. But during the time I am applying for the APRC, I need to either get another gold card or some other ARC in order to continue to stay in Taiwan.
Others can confirm but I believe the job seeking ARC is fine for APRC application. And for senior, Google and similar companies pay about 4-5 million here.
Is there any terms and conditions applying for the Job seeking ARC after the gold card has expired? Other than the obvious one, that I must be unemployed in order to get one.
You actually apply before the Gold Card expires. The online application portal allows you to do it 15 days prior, though I’ve heard stories of people going to NIA in-person earlier than that to apply.
If your working then you will file tax in Taiwan and NIA will accept foreign income (tax code 5F as I recall) for Gold Card holders which that certificate can be used to apply for APRC, otherwise you can bring NT$5 million into a Taiwan bank account (it can be kept in foreign currency).
I see. The job seeking ARC is pretty much guaranteed to get accepted right? Even if I was unemployed on the GC for the past 3 years? Or are there terms and conditions, like proving that I am actively looking for a job to qualify?
Yeah it’s routinely approved and although it’s referred to as a job-seeking ARC it’s technically just a 6 month ARC extension in the law for having the need to still reside in Taiwan. You don’t need to submit anything showing what you intend to do during the extension.
Where a foreign professional who engages in professional work in the State, or a foreign specialist professional who has obtained an Alien Resident Certificate under paragraph 2 of Article 8 or an Employment Gold Card under Article 9, before the term of their residency or Employment Gold Card expires, still has a need to reside, they and their spouse, minor children, or children having reached the age of majority or above who lack self-care ability due to physical or mental disability, may apply to the NIA for an extension of residency.
Where an application for extension of residency as referred to in the preceding paragraph is approved, and an Alien Resident Certificate issued, the Alien Resident Certificate shall be for a term of six months starting from the next day following the expiry of the original Alien Resident Certificate or Employment Gold Card; if needed, before the extension expires, they may apply again for one further extension, for a total extension of residency up to a maximum of one year. Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals - Article Search/Content Search Result - Laws & Regulations Database of The Republic of China (Taiwan)
On second thought, I just realized as a software engineer, I should be able to apply under “Digital” category using the >8 year work experience criteria. That means I should be able to find a sub <160K/Mth job as well in taiwan and still renew my gold card. I don’t mind working as long as WLB is OK. Money at this point is of secondary concern.
Plum blossom card might be a possibility, depending on how you want to deploy your assets?
Question for everyone regarding the investment path option - “invested at NT$30,000,000 in Taiwan central government bonds for three years” - where do I get info on these bonds? Any particular bonds these need to be? How much do they pay out?
Hello everyone, I’m hoping someone can help clarify this situation.
As of January 1, a new rule allows Gold Card holders to apply for an APRC after one year of residence in Taiwan, provided they meet the NTD 6 million annual income requirement. I’ve lived in Taiwan for a little over two years, so the residency requirement is met.
I own two companies in the United States and do not have an employer or registered company in Taiwan. My income is earned overseas, but I do pay taxes in Taiwan on that income.
From what I understand, under the new rules the NTD 6 million income must either:
Be earned in Taiwan, or
Be proven through a Taiwan tax return after filing (typically in May).
I contacted Kaohsiung NIA (SC1), and they told me the income needs to be earned in Taiwan, and they were unsure how overseas income applies in this case. I’m mostly satisfied with that response, but still a bit uncertain.
I’ve seen some people mention that they applied for an APRC using overseas salary pay stubs or other documentation, which is why I’m confused.
My question is:
If I already meet the income requirement and paid Taiwan taxes on that income last year, do I still need to wait until I file my next tax return in May before applying? Or is there another accepted way to prove eligibility using overseas income?
If anyone has direct experience with this or recent guidance, I’d really appreciate hearing about it. Thank you!
so, when I applied for my APRC last year in May after my 3 yrs GC stint (and reapplied successfully for a second GC to be safe while waiting to get all docs set to apply for the APRC), I couldn’t apply to APRC with my overseas salary (albeit paid into HSBC TW account and all properly declared as salary for the foreign remittance reason and declared at tax declaration).
I brought to the NIA here in Taipei my tax certificate for 2024 (the latest available), and they said it was too old to be accepted, and all my CPA certified salary slips (mind, in Chinese and with proper company stamp as my employer is from Hong Kong) couldn’t be accepted as they were foreign.
So, had to use the spouse of TW national route to be exempted from the salary or wealth requirement. A copy front and back of my wife’s national ID sufficed, they didn’t even want to see the marriage certificate from our HHRO.
You can use the tax certificate in a super narrow window, basically the month of issuance (best to ask the NTB in person for immediate issuance to apply for APRC), otherwise no success.
As always, different officers at NIA will interpret and do differently, this is the biggest problem of TW, no standard application of the regulations…
I think the tax can be filed early if its overseas income and after 3 years on a Gold Card NIA accept the tax certificate showing the income. If earning over NT$6 million its also worth noting the 5 year tax benefit could be lost if move off a Gold Card early.
At least the Taipei tax bureau is quite clear that salary earned for work performed in Taiwan counts as “domestic salary”:
Based on Item 3, Paragraph 1, Article 8 of the Income Tax Law of the ROC, if an alien stays in the Republic of China for more than 90 days during a taxable year, the remuneration he/she receives from his/her employer(s) outside of the ROC for services rendered within the territory of the ROC shall be considered as ROC-sourced income and he/she is required to file such income received in the ROC with the relevant tax authority-in-charge within the ROC and pay tax thereon.
Yeah… Of course, NIA could have a different interpretation…