Should Taiwan implement a points-based system for permanent residency?

Discussion Open Forum
1

Right now, Taiwan’s pathway to APRC is pretty simple: live here long enough, meet the basic requirements, and you’re in.

But should that be enough?

Countries like Canada and Australia don’t just hand out permanent residency based on time. They use a points-based system, your skills, education, income, and what you actually bring to the country all matter.

So here’s the uncomfortable question:

Should Taiwan move to a points-based system too?

Because under the current system:

  • Someone can live in Taiwan for 5 years with minimal contribution and still qualify

  • Eligibility doesn’t become harder with old age or easier with young age.

  • Current system favors elderly PHD holders and mid to old age professionals and is worthless for their young counterparts.

  • Some people are committing visa fraud by hiring their elderly parents in their firms and firing them once they have an APRC

That’s a strange mismatch for a country dealing with:

  • Brain drain

  • Low birth rates

  • Increasing global competition

A points-based system would mean:

  • PR goes to people who contribute the most

  • Taiwan actively attracts global talent

  • Immigration aligns with economic needs

2

honesty, I don’t think Taiwan attracts talent from around the world, and there aren’t enough immigrants from APRC to worry about who should or shouldn’t live here.

3

A points-based system doesn’t need to be more difficult. It could actually make it easier to immigrate.

For example, English teachers tend to earn above median Taiwan salary. They should have a slightly easier time to get APRC than a stay-at-home Vietnamese wife who doesn’t work at all.

To reward the stay-at-home wife’s contributions, you can give bonus APRC points for giving birth in Taiwan with a Taiwanese husband.

Also gold card holders who do nothing productive in Taiwan – if they don’t pay Taiwanese income tax, then who cares if they stayed in Taiwan for 183 days/year. Tourist-style spending? Renting above-market rent apartments? Not sure that deserves APRC.

Give bonus APRC points if anyone establishes a Taiwanese company and hires Taiwanese employees. Southeast asian or American, doesn’t matter. Reward these people with shorter time to APRC rather than a digital nomad “global elite” earning NT$6 million through a fake taiwanese company with zero Taiwanese employees.

Yes.

But Taiwan likes to keep blue-collar workers on a different immigration track than white-collar professionals. So NIA would inevitably have points based on job type / salary, which I guess is fine.

I think more importantly, even without a points-based system, APRC applicants should be required to pass a Chinese reading/speaking/listening test. Integration is important for social stability (good example: Singapore, bad example: France, Canada). Doesn’t need to be as difficult as the naturalization exam. None of the government/civics questions. Maybe B1 level?

If you can’t read/speak sentences like below, I’m not sure how integrated you are:

我覺得學騎機車比學開車容易，可是在台北騎機車有點危險。
I think learning to ride a scooter is easier than learning to drive, but riding a scooter in Taipei is a bit dangerous.

這個週末有颱風要來，所以很多活動都取消了。
There’s a typhoon coming this weekend, so a lot of events have been canceled.

這家餐廳的牛肉麵很有名，所以我們最好早一點到。
This restaurant’s beef noodles are famous, so we’d better get there a bit early.

4

OMG. I only read 80pct with gaps

5

Taiwan has a points based system for white collar professionals. It’s done on the work permit issuance. This is before you get APRC.

Canada’s points based system is for Express Entry a system for immediate permanent residency.

The equivalent system in Taiwan is the Plum Blossom Card so it’s much tougher.

6

80% character-level recognition is pretty good.

If it was a written or spoken test, you’d definitely understand what’s going on, and ask clarification questions if needed

Probably only need like 50% recognition rate for minimum pass + some lucky guessing

7

Impressive how clear and well designed the work permit point system is. Compared to taiwan’s spaghetti of ARC/APRC paths. Need 70 points out of 200. Bachelors/masters/phd is 10/20/30 points, etc.

They consider my chinese example sentences above as “intermediate” B1 level. Provides 20 points.

Seems like the Workforce Development Agency (Ministry of Labor) is on top of their game.

NIA and the Ministry of Interior are more visible to voters (immigration). Perhaps explains their aversion to change.

I wouldn’t say Plum Blossom Card is a point system. It’s more of a “does the government like you” kind of thing.

But then again, I don’t know the inner workings of NSTC, MODA, FSC..

8

Australia mainly utilises a points based system for direct to PR applications. Australia has a number of PR pathways from temporary and provisional visas where the PR visa doesn’t require points. These pathways are more similar to Taiwan, as they require a certain number of years on the temporary or provisional visa.

Points systems aren’t that great a filter or indicator… a whole industry of points accumulation has developed, community language tests, English language tests, fraudulent experience points, Australian study points etc. It is nonsense.

If you want to increase fraud and the expense of processing applications, points based systems are the way the go.

9

Why is it often people who have either acquired permanent residency (or have naturalized) under the current rules who call for stricter immigration control…?

Also known as fhe “pulling-up-the-lader-behind-you-effect” :whistle:

10

I disagree. For citizenship, yes definitely needs Chinese language skills but not for APRC. It’s just a permanent residency. If someone is getting by without Chinese and is not complaining about it or bothering locals then why force them to learn it?

Besides no matter how much fluent Chinese u speak, taiwanese would never see u as part of society anyway. You will forever be a foreigner to them and you will be treated like one.

11

No. But it’s Taiwan’s only immediate permanent residence programme.

12

What eef you got taiwan id???

13

The wife should not be treated the same as a working professional . You might say she’s all in

14

Very true I’m born in Taiwan to a Taiwanese mother and my closest Taiwanese friends even consider me foreign !!

15

Time to take it to the supreme court!!!

16

Still no. In Taiwan how your face looks is how people judge you on. It’s asia. It’s all about appearance of things.

17

I don’t know, seems to me those ladies have one of the worst jobs on the island!

18

Cause deep down inside, they know they wouldn’t have let themselves in, so the bar is way too low

19

Maybe. A stay at home Vietnamese wife is more likely to have an affinity and loyalty to the country and potentially helps the baby crisis compared to an English teacher more than likely there for a relatively shorter timeframe, and really not contributing all that much if the poor English learning results mentioned on this site are to be believed.

What if they spend significantly more than said English teacher? Who’s contributing more? :man_shrugging:

Don’t just points based systems do that? There’s a inherent judgement in what benefit you bring.

The history of complaints about this in the US suggests this is overblown as an issue.

20

Taiwan ROC needs to make it easier for foreigners to naturalize…or maybe deep down they don’t want to have their political system corrupted by foreigners?

at this point though with their demographic issue it might be too late.

Or maybe they’re pulling a Japan and just saying “F this we won’t give up our Han ethnicity for nobody even if it means shrinking.”