Foreign teachers at national universities
in Taiwan are not permitted to take the
monthly payout of pension that Taiwanese
are given; they must take a lump sum
that is a FRACTION of what Taiwanese will
eventually receive.
For example, a foreigner teaching at a
national university may receive a lump
sum of US$100,000 or so after 20-25 years
of service whereas a retired Taiwanese
of the same rank will receive an annual
payout of 80% of salary FOR THE REST OF HIS/
HER LIFE, an amount equal to several times
what the foreigner will receive, depending
on how long the Taiwanese prof lives after
retirement.
Moreover, ANYONE who retires before 60 years
of age with less than 25 years of service
gets NOTHING (other than the refund of
the amount deducted from monthly salary for
retirement—about NT$25000 per year.)
For U.S. citizens, this knife cuts another
way (also bad): while in Taiwan, we can’t
pay into U.S. Social Security which will
result in smaller payments (if any) when
we eventually return to the U.S. and apply
for SS benefits.
If enough of us can get together on this
maybe we can get the MOE to offer us a
reasonable (and EQUAL) retirement package.
The above applies only to national universities as far as I know. If any of it is incorrect, please let me know; if it IS
correct, let’s DO something about it!
Bill Rubens
Dept. of Foreign Languages & Lit.
National Cheng Kung University
Tainan
If you succeed in anything, it will probably be killing the golden goose for your Taiwanese colleagues. From Australia and New Zealand experience, it was long ago realized that unfunded superanuation schemes for public servants were an excessive drain on the public purse, and if the potential payout was taken into account, in a commercial manner, the countries would be technically bankrupt. Such unfunded schemes are now reserved exclusively for members of parliment (I guess you may call them legislators)
Jeff Geer offers the following comments: There is no “totalization agreement” between Taiwan and the USA for Social Security issues. (Even the South Koreans have been reluctant to ever negotiate this.)
What is the public pension status of ARC holders? I don’t even think the ROC has much of a social security system, do they? The more traditional pension system is called “kids” especially boys.
Moderator’s Note - - - - -
As of 05-08-2002, no one has provided any copies of the relevant laws and regulations. Hence, it would appear that no one is seriously interested in moving forward with the agenda of trying to solve this problem.
Perhaps I’m wrong, but I thought that American citizens living abroad can in fact put funds into Social Security. Also, as long as we submit US tax forms indicating that we’re earning income, we should also put up to US$2000 into a Roth IRA account, which accumulates interest/earnings tax free.
However, I too am confused as to how to do this from abroad…
Mr Hartzell, here is the link for current regulations governing pensions for university faculty in Taiwan. You will see that nationality is a key factor in whether a faculty member will receive a lump-sum pension or the monthly payout. My university personnel officer advised me to consider changing to ROC nationality. law.moj.gov.tw/Eng/LawClass/LawA … e=H0150004
Thanks for posting this link. That’s the first time I’ve seen the details of this (notorious!) law. Ah, Article 20–the grief you cause…
The retirement of the foreign teacher who serves in any public middle schools or above in the R.O.C. may be subject to this Statute. The pension to the same shall be made in lump sum payment.
These rules are not exactly new and anyone considering a university position as a foreigner should make himself aware of the pension packages offered (or not offered). One can always naturalize, but I don’t see why Taiwan should be paying socialized pension to foreign citizens who may not even be living in Taiwan anymore contributing to the economy with their spending. It is wrong to assume that the monthly premiums plus interest could generate the payments pensioners receive.
What should be changed is the status of foreign professors married to ROC citizens as that directly benefits Taiwanese families.
And what is different about retired Taiwanese professors (some who may be dual nationals) who may move overseas or stick their money in a bank account or send their money overseas to their kids.
[quote=“headhonchoII”]And what is different about retired Taiwanese professors (some who may be dual nationals) who may move overseas or stick their money in a bank account or send their money overseas to their kids.
As usual it’s a load of hot air from you.[/quote]
It is not unreasonable to assume that the average ROC national who is a professor remains in Taiwan whereas out of foreigners who are university professors the vast majority does not stay in Taiwan.
Also you are obviously unaware that there are already restrictions in place for dual nationals: they may not serve as deans and presidents of universities. This is not so much a pension payout restriction but limits their career development in the same way foreigners are limited.
I agree with headhoncho: It’s no one’s business what anyone does with her pension money, and for all that, a retired foreign prof, here for 25 years or more, with a home and health insurance, is likely to stay, anyway. But the issue is equal benefits for equal service. Being a foreigner didn’t exempt me from paying taxes all these years, OR from following every other rule my colleagues have to follow. Why am I suddenly special at the end of my career?
The pension system on Taiwan is cross-financed through tax revenue and government debt and cannot be compared to the pension plan your local bank offers. The reason why you are “special” is because you are not a ROC national and hence do not enjoy the same protections, making you a good item to save costs. Taiwanese who for some reason give up their ROC nationality in this situation lose their pension altogether and do not even receive a cash payout. Seriously, did you expect solidarity from a foreign government?
Hsinhai–the eternal apologist for Taiwan’s discriminatory policies. He takes special pleasure in the unequal treatment of taxpaying foreigners for some reason. Taiwan can’t compete internationally for academic talent because pay is so low. The pay might be somewhat more attractive if foreign academics could enjoy the same levels of deferred compensation that Taiwanese faculty does and this would be one of the few politically feasible ways to increase faculty compensation given Taiwan’s foolish commitment to equal pay for everyone in academia. This policy compounds that stupidity and helps ensure that Taiwanese higher education remains third rate even at its best institutions.
But all those costs are worth it to Hsinhai since the policies stick it to the foreigners. Way to go Mr. ROC. Keeping Taiwan mediocre!