I’ll be visiting Taiwan next month and I’m hoping to have a few job interviews at various offices while I’m there. Do you think I should shave my beard off before I go or is it enough for it to just be tidy? I’m sure it would be okay to keep it at the international companies, but I’m thinking of the local companies too.
If you always have a beard or facial hair, just keep it tidy.
The real question is, will it be neutral, add or detract?
Not having a beard will be the norm so that’s the baseline. Having a beard will depend on company and position. And it could be neutral or add or detract. Hard to predict.
Is there any way can do some advanced intelligence collection and see what other people are sporting around at those places? And if those people are new or been around awhile
I suggest getting a Wo ai Taiwan tattoo.
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On the forehead to match other foreigners in Taiwan.
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Yes, no self respecting foreigner here sports facial hair.
Better shave your chest and get the old meat & two veg Brazilianed whilst you’re at it.
You don’t have to, but it’d probably help to be honest.
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Keep the beard & shave your head!
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Thanks for the replies, the serious ones and otherwise! 
It sounds like it’s probably not a big deal, but shaving it off is probably the safer route. Not the response I was hoping for, but the one I was basically expecting.
If you want to make it through Taiwan’s summers, you’re probably going to want to shave that thing off anyway. And yeah, trim the shrubbery while you’re at it.
I’ll be frank on this point. Shave it. 1) I’ve seen a foreign teacher demanded to be clean shaven or be fired. 2) It’s a culturally complex issue here. Most people don’t try to grow beards until after their father has died. 3) I’ve had a goatee for about six months. One little kid (around three years old, not one of my students for the record) cried every time he saw me. I shaved it, for the reasons that only hot and humid summers can bring. First time he saw me after I shaved the beard, the little kid ran up and hugged me and said 「謝謝，我愛你」。 Hard to believe, but true. There’s a taboo against facial hair here. Locals and more long timers can feel free to disagree. 4) TW dudes can’t grow beards worth $%#@, so expect some jealousy on that front.
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An important caveat: facial hair is accepted for people involved in the arts, or what they call the “culture industry.” In fact, it’s almost a standard part of the uniform. If you’re a painter or calligrapher, extra points for long hair growing out of a facial mole.
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True, true. Very true. I’ve a mole on my cheek. After growing it out an inch or so, I couldn’t stand it and have to cut it. Same thing with my pinky fingernail. Tried to be a gangster. Half an inch and that bugger had to be trimmed. I got sideways looks from people I respected. Still get shivers up my spine remembering dudes cleaning their ear wax with those long-ass nails. Nasty, but YMMV. Everyone knows keys are for cleaning ear wax, 哈哈哈哈！
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Want a job best be a comformist, non comformists have it harder.
Beards won’t help you get the job, it could help you NOT get it, therefore…buzz that sucker off.
You mean like this? Also goes into the category of whack things in Taiwan.
Yes. This guy is obviously an accomplished artist…or qigong master.
Another vote for shaving it off. I had a goatee for the first 5 months until my then-gf asked me to shave. So I did and all of my coworkers thought I was 10 years younger. I took that as a positive.
Just like tats on girls times are changing. Right across the arts and the creative industries, advertising, PR etc. etc. Taiwanese guys are trying out facial hair. The taboo is gone. For sure these aren’t Brian Blessed type beards but facial hair is definitely a thing.
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When I first arrived in TW in 2015, I was told Taiwanese will think you slept under a bridge if you didn’t shave.
I shave once a week and my beard grows quick. I don’t think they give a shit where I work to be honest.
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I sport a beard sometimes. And when I do, I have one friend will not look at me, will not come close to me and will not talk to me except to say specifically get rid of it.
Unfortunately, it’s not a friend I can just dump even though I probably should.