TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan will require 400,000 skilled, foreign workers by 2032 to fill the gap caused by its declining birthrate and aging population, according to the National Development Council.
To attract a wide range of overseas talent and boost its global competitiveness, Taiwan introduced the Gold Card in 2018, which grants qualified foreigners a three-year resident visa and open work permit. It is Taiwan’s most flexible visa yet, as unlike most work visas, which require an employer sponsor, Gold Card holders can live in Taiwan without being tied to an employer.
Taiwan News was joined by Jonathan Liao, managing director of the Taiwan Employment Gold Card Office, and Alan McIvor, a headhunter and practice leader at Paul Wright Group in Taipei, to discuss issues incoming professionals might find helpful when coming to Taiwan.
According to Liao, the Gold Card is a “fast-track,” allowing foreigners to apply for permanent residency after only three years in Taiwan. Professionals with special expertise in one of the following 10 fields are eligible to apply: architecture, arts and culture, digital, economy, education, finance, national defense, science and technology, law, and sports.
Changing Landscape
According to McIvor, there were not a lot of foreigners in the market 30 years ago. “A lot of those foreigners were the expat-like bosses, where you are sent from a foreign country, the company pays you an exorbitant salary, your house is in Tianmu, you have a driver, and your kids go to Taipei European School (TES) or Taipei American School (TAS),” he said.
“That type of foreigner is much less common than it once was. The foreign working community is very different now,” McIvor said. “It doesn’t feel like either ‘expat or English teacher’ anymore. There’s much more variety.”
He said, “Taiwan attracts a lot of interesting characters because it’s off the beaten path. It’s not Japan, China, Hong Kong, or Singapore. They enjoy doing something that’s a bit less regular.”
When asked how conflict with China affects foreigners’ decision to stay in Taiwan, McIvor responded, “I think people from the West assume that we are under the threat of war the whole time. But in Taiwan, the looming threat of China is not something we talk about on a day-to-day basis.”
Employment
According to McIvor, the best chance of employment for foreigners is in larger Taiwanese companies. Companies targeting the global market can use foreigners to sell into other countries, so there are a lot of roles available, he said.
Ultimately, companies would still prefer to hire a Taiwanese person to do overseas sales and marketing, McIvor said. However, “We’re seeing the big Taiwanese companies be a lot more open-minded about diversity within their own staff,” he said.
He said that sectors and companies, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), are open to foreign talent in R&D positions. Liao added that startups are relatively innovative and flexible, and willing to hire foreigners across the board, including as developers, people in marketing, and even CEOs.
Each year, the government is continuing to revise regulations to make it easier for foreigners to immigrate to Taiwan. One of the good things about Taiwan’s government is that it listens, and can be responsive to needs arising from the community, Liao and McIvor both agreed.
Teaching English is perhaps the easiest way to make a living in Taiwan, where there is a massive market for foreign teachers, especially from Western countries, McIvor said. However, for those looking to transition from education into the business world, he suggested simultaneously networking, or studying for an MBA.
Furthermore, regarding foreign professionals who are senior in their careers, “Those coming back from Shanghai, Singapore, or Hong Kong are negotiating a 50% pay cut to work in Taiwan,” McIvor said. Government policies can be limited, so McIvor said that private corporations must give enough room and incentives to retain workers.
Language and Cultural Differences
When asked about the biggest difficulty when matching job candidates in Taiwan, McIvor pointed to language, as the working language of big companies is Mandarin. However, McIvor added that lots of senior level executives tend to be bilingual, and according to Liao, lots of Taiwanese understand English but are just shy about using it.
In addition, cultural practices can be an issue. “Foreigners tend to be a bit more opinionated, and to be a bit louder when sharing their opinions than Taiwanese are. Sometimes that can cause friction,” McIvor said.
He advised, “Learn the cultural nuances as quickly as you can. If you are from a culture, like say American, that is used to being loud and opinionated, that will go down quite badly.”
To achieve the government’s workforce goal, the corporate world must undergo changes. “In Taiwan, they work a lot of overtime. There’s not a lot of room for creative thinking or opinions to be shared. There’s a lot of top-down management style,” McIvor said.
He suggested, “Maybe we meet in the middle? The foreigners have to adapt to be successful here, but maybe these big companies could modernize their way of managing employees and listening to staff.” Small changes could be implemented, such as additional rest days or allowing for remote or hybrid work models.
There were over 8,900 Gold Cards approved by the end of 2023, according to Liao. If one does not qualify for a Gold Card, Liao said there are over 50 different visas in Taiwan, from an entrepreneurship visa and a freelance artist work permit to a working holiday visa.
More information can be found on the website.
