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Pathway

Taiwan Gold Card for Skilled Professionals

Taiwan Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

Eligible professionals can live in Taiwan and work for different employers or start a business without employer sponsorship. You must meet an official requirement in one professional field.

Job offer required?
Not required; no employer sponsorship is needed
Qualification
Meet one published requirement in a chosen professional field
Salary option
TWD 160,000 a month applies to some criteria, not every applicant

Summary

Taiwan’s Employment Gold Card lets eligible professionals live in Taiwan, change employers, hold more than one job, or start a business. It combines residence and open work permission for one to three years. You do not need an employer to sponsor the card.

To qualify, you must meet a published requirement in one professional field. Some fields accept monthly salary of at least TWD 160,000; others use achievements, qualifications, or experience. That salary threshold does not apply to everyone.

Applying for a Taiwan Employment Gold Card
  1. Choose a professional field Read the exact qualification requirements and choose one your records support.
  2. Prepare matching evidence Use the achievements, qualifications, experience, or salary proof that requirement accepts.
  3. Complete both reviews The responsible ministry reviews qualifications, and the NIA reviews immigration eligibility.

No employer sponsorship is required. The salary option is only one possible way to qualify, and approval is still required.

Could this pathway work for you?

Eligibility

Match your record to one official requirement

Choose a professional field and identify at least one of its exact requirements that you can prove. The evidence might include tax or salary records, employment letters, degrees, licenses, patents, publications, awards, grants, leadership experience, or government and industry recommendations.

You also need a consistent résumé and employment history, a valid foreign passport with at least six months remaining when the instructions require it, and no nationality, immigration, public-security, or document issue that prevents approval.

The responsible ministry reviews your professional qualifications. The National Immigration Agency (NIA) handles the immigration review.

If you are using the salary option

Current guidance allows an annual tax statement from one of the three years before applying. The reviewing authority divides the accepted annual income by 12. You also need employment proof and a résumé.

A future Taiwan employment contract may be accepted in certain situations, but its terms and start date must meet the official guidance. Savings, business revenue, and an investment portfolio do not count as salary evidence.

Applying online

Choose one field, upload the evidence, and pay the application fee. You may be asked for more records or a passport inspection.

If you apply abroad, after approval you download a resident authorization certificate for entry and collect the Gold Card at an NIA service center in Taiwan. The card itself is collected in Taiwan.

What This Route Allows

Work, residence, and family

The card gives you open work permission: you can change jobs, work for different employers, or operate a business without tying your immigration status to one employer. Separate professional licenses and industry rules still apply.

You can live in Taiwan and leave and return during the card’s one-, two-, or three-year term. A spouse and eligible children may apply for family residence. Parents and grandparents may have extended visitor options, which are different from family residence.

Health insurance

If you work for a Taiwan employer, or enroll as an employer or eligible self-employed person, health insurance generally comes through that activity. Without one of those enrollment options, you ordinarily need to complete the applicable six-month residence period first.

Family members’ timing depends on your enrollment and their status. Check the National Health Insurance Administration rules before assuming coverage starts immediately.

Possible permanent residence later

A qualifying foreign special professional may apply after three continuous qualifying years with an average of at least 183 days in Taiwan per year. You must also meet the adulthood, conduct, assets or skills, and national-interest requirements.

A separate option allows an application after one year with more than 183 days in Taiwan if your Taiwan salary and professional-practice income in the latest year total at least TWD 6 million. Some Taiwan degrees can reduce the usual required residence period.

These require separate applications; they are not automatic conversions. Hong Kong and Macao residents follow different legislation.

What This Route Is Not

A degree, job offer, or high salary alone does not necessarily qualify. You must meet the exact Gold Card requirement for your chosen field, using the evidence it accepts.

The card does not give permanent residence or citizenship, and renewal is not guaranteed. You must still meet a Gold Card requirement. Current guidance allows an extension application in the four months before expiry, but not during the final month.

If you no longer qualify, you may need an employer-sponsored permit or another residence option. A job-seeking extension does not permit work. Family members also do not automatically receive Gold Cards of their own.

This is not the right route if you already hold Republic of China (Taiwan) nationality. Acquiring or restoring that nationality can cause the NIA to revoke a Gold Card. Resolve any possible nationality or household-registration questions before applying.

Next Steps

  1. Use the official qualification checker and read the requirements for the field that matches your documented experience.
  2. Prepare a concise résumé and a list showing which document proves each requirement. For salary applications, check the accepted evidence, currency conversion, and three-year window.
  3. Check passport validity and make sure names and dates match across your records.
  4. Apply through the Foreign Professionals Online Application Platform and respond to additional-document requests by their deadlines.
  5. If applying abroad, download the authorization certificate after approval, enter Taiwan, and collect your card at the selected NIA center.
  6. Register your Taiwan address on time and arrange health insurance based on your actual work situation.
  7. Track days in Taiwan if you may seek permanent residence, and plan renewal before the final month of the card’s validity.

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Sources