Jobs in Taiwan

Recruitment fees and your documents

• Private employment agencies and their staff are barred from working without a written contract, from unlawfully holding a job seeker's identity documents, from keeping personal belongings or demanding a bond for a job referral, and from excessive fees or other unfair financial practices.

  Taiwan Employment Service Act, Article 40 (English text, Laws & Regulations Database, amended 20 January 2025; the Chinese text prevails). Read 8 October 2026

• A private employment agency in Taiwan, including each branch, needs an operation permit from the authorities before it can work, and the permit must be renewed periodically. Ask for the permit and check it before you pay anything.

  Taiwan Employment Service Act, Article 34 (English text, amended 20 January 2025; the Chinese text prevails). Read 8 October 2026

• An agency may charge fees for placement, recruitment on commission, career counselling and similar services, but only the items and amounts the central labour authority sets by regulation. Anyone who asks for, agrees to receive later, or takes fees or interest above the standard is fined 10 to 20 times the excess. Working without a permit is punished the same way.

  Taiwan Employment Service Act, Articles 35 and 66 (English text, amended 20 January 2025). Read 8 October 2026

• For foreigners who use an agency to find work in the factory, construction, home-care and similar categories (Employment Service Act, Article 46, subparagraphs 8 to 10), an agency may charge only a monthly service fee: up to NT$1,800 a month in the first year, NT$1,700 in the second and NT$1,500 from the third year. It may not be charged in advance, and it is capped at NT$1,500 a month if you have worked over two years or return to the same employer after leaving the country.

  Taiwan Standards for Fee-charging Items and Amounts of the Private Employment Services Institution, Article 6 (English text, amended 6 April 2017; the Chinese text prevails). Read 8 October 2026

• For foreigners placed in professional, technical and similar jobs (Article 46, subparagraphs 1 to 7 and 11), registration and placement fees together may not exceed the worker's first month's salary, unless the worker agrees the recruitment conditions are special. A services fee may be up to NT$2,000 a year. A non-profit agency may charge at most 80 percent of these amounts.

  Taiwan Standards for Fee-charging Items and Amounts of the Private Employment Services Institution, Articles 5 and 7 (English text, amended 6 April 2017). Read 8 October 2026

• Fees an agency charges the employer are capped too: registration and placement fees together may not exceed the recruited worker's first month's salary where that is below the national average salary, or four months' salary where it is above, plus a services fee of up to NT$2,000 per employee a year. If a recruiter asks you for more than these amounts, that is a breach of the fee standards.

  Taiwan Standards for Fee-charging Items and Amounts of the Private Employment Services Institution, Article 3 (English text, amended 6 April 2017). Read 8 October 2026

• The authority may suspend an agency for up to a year if it holds a job applicant's belongings or demands a deposit or bond, excessively charges fees, or offers unjust benefits, and may order the permit annulled in the cases Article 70 lists.

  Taiwan Employment Service Act, Articles 40, 69 and 70 (English text, amended 20 January 2025). Read 8 October 2026

• An employer may not illegally withhold a foreign worker's passport or residence certificate, take their belongings, or use threats or illegal means to force them to work against their will.

  Taiwan Employment Service Act, Article 57 (English text, amended 20 January 2025). Read 8 October 2026

Contract and pay

• Taiwan's Labor Standards Act covers agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining, manufacturing, construction, utilities, transport, communications and media, plus other businesses the labour ministry designates. It can exempt some businesses or workers if applying it would cause real hardship. Check that your own employer and job type are covered before you rely on the rules below.

  Taiwan Labor Standards Act, Article 3 (English text, amended 31 July 2024; the Chinese text prevails). Read 8 October 2026

• Wages must be paid in legal currency, in full and directly to the worker unless the law or both sides agree otherwise, and at least twice a month unless agreed or paid monthly in advance. The employer must give the details of how wages were calculated and keep a payroll roster for at least five years. No employer may force a worker to work by coercion, detention or other illegal means.

  Taiwan Labor Standards Act, Articles 5, 22 and 23 (English text, amended 31 July 2024). Read 8 October 2026

• An employer may not assign a foreign worker to work outside the scope of the permit, or have them work for a third party while employed in the employer's name. A new employer must apply for a permit before a worker transfers.

  Taiwan Employment Service Act, Articles 53 and 57 (English text, amended 20 January 2025). Read 8 October 2026

• Workers in factory, construction and similar categories (Article 46, items 8 to 11) may not change employer or work type unless the central authority allows it in the cases the Act lists. Ask before you sign what those cases are.

  Taiwan Employment Service Act, Article 53, paragraph 4 (English text, amended 20 January 2025). Read 8 October 2026

Hours, rest and leave

• Regular working time may not exceed 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week. Overtime needs the consent of a labour union or a labour-management conference, and is capped at 46 hours a month (54 hours a month and 138 hours over three months with that consent). Overtime pay is at least one-third extra on the hourly rate for the first two hours and two-thirds extra for hours beyond that, up to four.

  Taiwan Labor Standards Act, Articles 24, 30 and 32 (English text, amended 31 July 2024). Read 8 October 2026

• A worker gets two days off in every seven, one regular leave day and one rest day, with the exceptions the Act lists for adjusted working hours. Paid annual leave starts at 3 days after six months, 7 days after one year and 10 days after two years, rising to 14 days after three years and 15 days after five years.

  Taiwan Labor Standards Act, Articles 36 and 38 (English text, amended 31 July 2024). Read 8 October 2026

If something goes wrong

• The free 1955 hotline is a 24-hour consultation and protection line for foreign workers, set up on 1 July 2009, with multilingual service.

  Taiwan Ministry of Labor: foreign workers' rights and consultation

• 22 Foreign Workers Consultation Service Centers across Taiwan help with labour disputes and with retrieving salaries, placement fees, savings funds and tax refunds that an employer has taken illegally.

  Taiwan Ministry of Labor: foreign workers' rights and consultation

• County and city labour authorities resolve disputes between workers and employers, and arrange alternatives if an employer mistreats a worker or goes out of business.

  Taiwan Ministry of Labor: foreign workers' rights and consultation

Checked against the linked pages on 2026-10-08. This is general information, not legal advice.