The Employment Gold Card Super-Thread

Legal Visa & Residency
1514

I think those are just the general minimum-wage requirements for employees, not something that actually restricts what you can do under the gold card. You can also be self-employed, work for multiple employers, work part time, etc. So I wouldn’t worry about it at all - no one is going to stop you from taking several months off when you arrive.

This does raise an interesting question for the gold card experts, though. @fifieldt What would happen if a gold card holder agreed to do “specialized or technical work” for less than NT$47,971 per month? As there’s no need to get a work permit under the gold card, there would be no possibility for a work permit to be reviewed or rejected on the basis of this salary requirement. Does it just mean that it would go unnoticed, but the employer would be breaking the law and at risk of being fined if it ever came to the attention of the Labor Bureau? :thinking:

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1515

Is simply not working also allowed? That’s one thing I’m considering doing, just taking vacation for an indefinite period of time (maybe more than a year) on the Gold Card.

1516

Musings on this from another thread: Stopping employment while on gold card - #23 by fifieldt

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1517

Not a lawyer, but my vague understanding is that as this is a statutory limit, a clause like that in an employment contract would be invalid (or, depending on how the contract is worded, make the whole thing invalid). In essence, it’s a legal right you can’t waive? There are ample opportunities for review when the company submits the employee details for health insurance, occupational accident insurance, salary withholding payments, and of course when the employee files their tax return. So, yes, probably fines for the employer and back pay for the employee. The employee could probably bring it up up to 7 years later and expect to get paid out, too - so quite a risk for the employer even if there is a mutual understanding.

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1518

my understanding is the 47k is a condition to get a work permit based on employment, so when you can work without a work permit, it is not binding.

Added:
Checked the page, and if you get more than 48k in total, it it clear the requirement, isn’t it?

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1519

I don’t have the law at hand, but at least the NDC has communicated using their official social media accounts that they consider this a minimum wage. Will check :slight_smile:

Edit: here’s the regulation https://www.wda.gov.tw/News_Content.aspx?n=74963F5F05BDB4FB&sms=5A0BB383D955741C&s=1A87172F2FFFD6FC

and looking at that, it certainly looks like it’s a minimum wage irrespective of work permit. I couldn’t find a direct English translation of the order, but the gist of it is here.

The order is to

Announce the minimum average monthly salary per person for foreigners hired for specialized and technical work, and foreigners hired for work specified in paragraphs 1 to 6 of Article 46 of the Employment Service Act.

and that reference to the Employment Service Act means that the minimum wage covers:

1.Specialized or technical work.
2.Director/manager/executive of a business invested in or set up by overseas Chinese or foreigner(s) with the authorization of the Government of the Republic of China.
3.Teacher at the following schools:
(1)Teacher at a public or registered private college/university or school established especially for foreign residents.
(2)Approved teacher teaching course(s) on foreign language(s) at a public or registered private primary or high school.
(3)Teacher teaching course(s) at a public or registered private experimental high school’s bilingual department or at bilingual school(s).
4.Full-time teacher at a short-term class registered for supplementary schooling in accordance with the Supplementary Education Act.
5.Sports coach and athlete.
6.Religious, artistic, and show business work.

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1520

my understanding is it is when the requirements or restrictions of Employment Service Act are applied to the employed foreigners. It is exempted when foreigners have open work permit or work right.

The 48k is set based on 「外國人從事就業服務法第四十六條第一項第一款至第六款工作資格及審查標準」 Qualifications and Criteria Standards for foreigners undertaking the jobs specified under Article 46.1.1 to 46.1.6 of the Employment Service Act, which is a standard to give a work permit to a foreigner.

1521

Very happy to be wrong, as I often am, and definitely not an expert in this area (or a lawyer!), but is there a source for this? Here’s my best attempt:

Article 8 in the Qualifications and Criteria Standards is the probably one that sets up the authority for the regulation I posted above (勞動發管字第10605154981號) that states the 47k as a minimum wage. The Qualifications and Criteria Standards is itself set up in the Employment Service Act Article 46, paragraph 12.

The Employment Service Act does have some exemptions from certain requirements for specific cases. What we’re interested in is exemptions from Article 46 1-6, which is what kicks in the minimum wage requirements based on the type of work as defined there and elaborated on in the Qualifications and Criteria Standards.

There are exemptions in Article 48 and Article 51.

Article 48 exempts researchers, foreign spouses of nationals, and university lecturers from applying for a work permit, but as far as I can tell, the provisions of Article 46 related to minimum wage still apply.

Article 51 is a bit more inclusive. If you are a refugee, have been continuously employed and are in good standing for >5 consecutive years, a relative of a Taiwanese national or a permanent resident, then you are exempt from Article 46 paragraph 1 (specialised and technical work) & 3 (teaching).

None of those exemptions apply to gold card holders (though how interesting is it that you are exempt just by being here for 5 years?), so digging further. Let’s see if the Foreign Talent Act overrides any of this.

Unsurprisingly, there are many references to Article 46 of the Employment Service Act in the Foreign Talent Act. It defines “professional work” as basically Article 46 Article 1-6, plus some teaching things. The special treatment of teachers continues - the Foreign Talent Act reverts control of permitting regulations and exemptions to Ministry of Education. Including unexempting the exemption for getting a permit for foreign spouses of Taiwanese nationals. So, to find out more about teachers have to check another law.

But for other professionals… Article 6 of the Foreign Talent Act says that it’s up to Article 46 Para 1-6 of the Employment Service Act. Article 7 overrides the Employment Service Act to extend the length of the permit to up to 5 years. Article 17 exempts kids from Article 46 of the Employment Service act.

… and that’s it. So, I can’t find any exemption for gold card holders other than those already mentioned in the Employment Service Act.

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1522

My thinking was that if I applied for the Gold Card now, my “most recent” monthly salary as of the date of my application would be over 160k, but by the time I get my ARC, I will have a new “most recent” monthly salary below 160k. But maybe I’m overthinking things and they won’t ask about my soon-to-start salary in Taiwan.

UPDATE: I applied for the Gold Card after recently entering Taiwan on a special entry permit. I have not yet applied for my ARC. My application got rejected after about two days. They said I need to apply for my ARC first because my special entry permit requires me to apply for an ARC within 30 days. I guess they are not willing to run both applications concurrently. Hopefully I won’t have to pay the fee again, but nobody seemed to know if I would have to.

Also I received verbal confirmation that the 160k salary requirement can be met by a job you had in 2019, even if your job in 2020 doesn’t meet the threshold.

1523

Hi

@qwert_zuiop, thanks for the information!

In May I wrote an email to the office in Frankfurt with some questions on the gold card, but they told me that they are not responsible for this if I’m applying by myself, without already having a work contract in Taiwan. Since you apparently will be working remotely for a German company in Germany as a freelancer, I guess the information I received is not correct?

Maybe you can also answer some of my questions I sent back then:

  1. Is it correct that prior to making the payment, basically only 2 documents are required - the passport and a proof of income (when I apply based on the income criterion)?

  2. My passport and my proof of income are written in German. Since only English or Mandarin are accepted languages, can I just translate them myself into English? A Taiwanese friend of mine would also translate them into Mandarin - or is it necessary to have this done by an accredited translator? Will the translations need to be in a specific format (e.g. resemble a similar format like the original document)?

  3. Are there any restrictions regarding the issuance of the gold card due to the ongoing pandemic?

Thanks and regards,
Fabian

1524

I think they haven’t had too many Gold Card applications yet. I only contacted them after I had already received the passport verification note. So don’t really expect them to know about the application process.

You have to make a payment before they will take a look at your documents.

That’s what I did. I also attached the original document and tried to match the layout as closely as possible (using many tables and text boxes in Word…).

In the end, I submitted a translation of my Lohnsteuerjahresbescheinigung (Basically a salary tax certificate issued by the employer) and an additional table (which I created myself based on the payslips) showing how much I earned each month.

Also, I attached a Steuerbescheid (government tax certificate) - but not sure if they actually looked at that one or not.

1525

This regulates the wage of “受聘僱從事專門性技術性工作之外國人”, which means foreigners who are on ARC based on employment for “professional work” defined by basically Article 46 Article 1-6, and gold card holders are in a different category as well as APRC holders with open work permit, student work permit holders, working holiday visa holders, foreigners on marriage based ARC etc., iiuc.

Though, I’m not a lawyer too, so it is very possible I’m understanding wrongly.

1526

Did anyone else get the email about the field trip on Sept 11 for gold card holders? Who is going? :smile:

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1527

I was thinking about it, but I’m not sure yet.

(Not too keen about the starting time of 7:30 a.m. - I didn’t get a gold card so I can wake up at the crack of dawn like the rest of the working stiffs :roll_eyes: :sweat_smile:)

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1528

I like how they reached out to us to plan a day trip, whereas the only time I hope to hear from the US government or US immigrations is never (it means I’m in serious trouble)

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1529

I got the email and would love to go, 730 and all, but family visas are going slowly. Hopefully by the next one.

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1531

Picked up the card today.

However, I was told that when entering Taiwan, I definitely need to show a negative COVID-19 test. Only gold card / ARC holders with a residence address in Taiwan are exempt from this regulation according to the embassy. As I do not have a residential address in Taiwan, I need to show a negative test.

1532

Sounds fair enough, and almost certinly the airline will require a negative test certificate anyhow

1533

I just signed up - Mos burger breakfast and all! First stop is the whisky distillery :tumbler_glass: so all will be well :yum:

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1534

I’m really surprised by this since in TECO’s FAQ they never mentioned the address requirement.
https://www.roc-taiwan.org/usnyc_en/post/5165.html

Q12. Do foreign nationals holding a valid Alien Resident Certificate need to submit for inspection a COVID-19 RT-PCR negative test report obtained within the past three working days before boarding and upon arrival in Taiwan?

A:
No. However, foreign nationals holding a valid ARC are still required to process a 14-day home quarantine after entry.

Same info on NIA’s website:
https://www.immigration.gov.tw/media/58083/regulations-of-entering-taiwan-3.pdf
Gold card is specifically listed under “holder of ARC” and has no negative PCR test requirements.

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