POSTERN

Taiwan

Employment Gold Card. Taiwan has no retirement or digital-nomad visa, but the Gold Card bundles an open work permit and residence card for qualified professionals, freelancers, or high earners.

Free · The law behind every answer · Checked Sep 24, 2026

Employment Gold Card

A combined open work permit, resident visa, and residence card (ARC) for 1 to 3 years, chosen by the applicant; holder may freelance or start a business freely. Spouse and minor children get dependant ARCs, and since a 2026 amendment the spouse also gets an open work permit.

Who qualifies

  • Average monthly pre-tax salary of at least NT$160,000 (about $5,000), shown on an official tax document from any of the past 3 years earned anywhere, or a future Taiwan-based contract starting more than a month out.
    How do I meet the salary requirements of the Gold Card application?
  • Alternatively, meet the professional criteria for one of the Gold Card’s fields (science and technology, economy, education, culture and arts, sports, finance, law, architecture, national defence, digital, biotechnology, or environment) — generally a relevant degree plus 4–5 or more years of experience, or comparable achievements.
    Gold Card qualification criteria

You keep your U.S. citizenship.

1

Does it fit your family?

One question, from the program’s own rules.

Steady monthly income, from any source?

Not legal advice.

2

What it takes.

Income
At least $5,000 a month, steady and documented.
Time
About 4–8 weeks.
Cost
NT$3,600 (1-year card) to NT$5,100 (3-year card), about $110–160, plus NT$1,000 per dependant; a consultant is optional and typically $500–2,500 if used.
The hard part
Without a tax-documented NT$160,000-a-month salary, the field-specific professional criteria involve a subjective, documentation-heavy review.

Dollar figures are converted from the local currency at the rate the program’s research used; the official figure is in the local currency.

3

Citizens by 2033.

If your first permit is issued in 2027 and you keep living there, this is the road.

  1. 2027
    First residence permit

    3 years, renewable for 3 years at a time.

  2. 2030
    Permanent residence

    Five consecutive years of legal residence with at least 183 days in Taiwan each year, good conduct, and income above twice the minimum wage or enough assets. Student time does not count. Foreign professionals can apply after 3 years, and after 1 year with NT$6 million income.

  3. 2032
    Apply for citizenship

    With a language test and a civics test.

  4. 2033
    Citizenship
Language
Basic proficiency in the national language, tested with the knowledge test below.
Civics
A basic test of language and of the rights and duties of citizens.
Time away
Legal residence of more than 183 days in each of at least five consecutive years.
Two passports
It depends on the rules at the time and on your home country.
  • Permanent residence after three years with 183 days a year in Taiwan; citizenship after five, and only a ministry-recommended high-level professional can skip giving up the old passport.
  • Proof of giving up the old citizenship is due within a year of approval; high-level professionals recommended by a ministry, and people with special contributions, are exempt. Holding a Gold Card does not by itself make you one.
  • A shorter two-year clock for high-level professionals was reported in search summaries but not confirmed in the text read today.
  • No official decision time found.
  • How long the decision takes isn’t published; we allow a year.
  • Whether you can keep your current citizenship depends on the rules at the time and your home country.
The law behind these dates
4

Living there.

Time you must spend there
The program sets no minimum number of days. Renewal still expects it to be your home.
Tax
183 or more days a year makes you a Taiwan tax resident; a first-3-years incentive excludes half of income above NT$3,000,000 a year, subject to conditions.

We never file a tax return. We tell you what applies and brief the professional who does.

5

Start today.

  1. Apply for the Employment Gold Card.Open goldcard.nat.gov.tw ↗
  2. Round up the papers.
    • Proof of steady income: at least $5,000 a month
    • Request your FBI Identity History Summary
    • Health cover for the move
6

Or let us run it.

$900for your first year as a founding member. Then $399 a year, automatically.Standard first year: $1,200. Everyone renews at $399.One membership, the whole family. Accounts and activation included.

18 steps, from the first paper to the passport. You do 4 of them: send what we ask for, sign, and show up. We run the rest, and keep every permit renewed on time. Accounts and activation are included, whether you move now or keep the plan ready. Accounts depend on provider availability. Government, record and approved third-party charges are extra.

Run it for my family →
7
ISSUED TO

YOUR FAMILY

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