Forward Taiwan: Latest NDC Proposals on Liberalization of Laws related to Foreigners

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National Development Council’s Plan to Create an Environment for Retention of Talent in Taiwan
FORWARD TAIWAN 。 向前台灣·MONDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2016

Introduction
This note translates the various proposals made by the National Development Council to the Executive Yuan on September 1 2016. It is divided into an introduction followed by translations of the proposals themselves with comments and explanations from Forward Taiwan. We look forward to your feedback and any corrections.
Plan not approved

It is important to note as a preliminary matter that the Council's plan has not been approved by the cabinet. For this reason, the Chinese-language presentation on the Executive Yuan's site characterizes the plan's proposals as draft proposals.
Premier Lin's response and current status

In response to the presentation of the proposals, Premier Lin noted the importance of deepening Taiwan's pool of human capital to Taiwan's economic development, stressed the importance of retaining talent to his government, and asked the Council to submit more specific proposals based on societal consensus to the cabinet for approval.

This means that the clock has not yet begun to run on the deadlines stated below.
Overview of Proposals

In total, the Council made 27 proposals that it have divided into seven major areas:
Visa reform
Employment reform
Residence reform
Banking services reform
Insurance and pension reform
Tax reform
Reform of life in Taiwan for international residents.

Each proposal has one of three possible deadlines for implementation:
'Immediate' means that there is already consensus on the proposal and that the Executive Yuan has draft legislation ready to be sent to the Legislative Yuan for consideration. We note that it could take a year or more for the Legislature to vote on such a bill and that in the case of the Nationality Act, competing bills have been introduced by legislators.

'One year' means that the proposal is urgent and that executive branch agencies can implement the proposal by merely amending executive orders or developing and submitting an implementation plan.
'2-3 years' means that study and deliberation is still required and that the Council will be responsible for tracking its progress.

Comments on key words

'Study and deliberation' usually suggests that there is a lack of consensus about the proposal within or between agencies. It can also mean that opposition from various sectors of Taiwanese society is expected. In Taiwanese government culture, consensus is usually required before an agency will act unless the highest levels of government such as the premier and the president are willing to expend political capital to push a measure through.

Proposals that begin with the words 'help' or 'coordinate' mean that the Council or the government will rely on moral suasion rather than legal requirements to implement the proposal. It can also mean that the executive branch simply lacks the power to act on its own. For example, the executive branch cannot eliminate the renunciation requirement for naturalization without legislative action. Another example is the stated inability of the Financial Supervisory Commission to compel banks to issue credit cards to foreign nationals.

General comments and criticism

In general, the proposals show that that the National Development Council has identified most of the issues important to the international community. One exception is a lack of proposals related to employment. The Council should have made proposals to expand the kinds of work foreigners can do, eliminate or lower employer capital and revenue requirements, and eliminate the two year work experience requirement once and for all. Otherwise the proposals are generally steps in the right direction although lacking in detail. It appears however that these proposals will be implemented very slowly and in ways that will have limited impact as has been the case for so many previous 'liberalizations' such as the Plum Blossom Card and the Entrepreneur Visa Program.

Please also see the comments by Forward Taiwan on the specific proposals below.
The Proposals

Visa Reform

Simplify visa applications

Proposal 1: Accept English-language documentation and eliminate Chinese translation requirements for authentication/legalization of documents required when applying for visas.

Agencies: Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: Forward Taiwan supports this common-sense proposal to simplify visa applications.

Proposal 2: Create a one-stop online platform for foreign professionals [to obtain visas, ARCs, and work permits].

Agencies: Ministry of the Interior, Ministry of Labor, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: Forward Taiwan supports this common-sense proposal to simplify visa applications.

Issue intern visas to recent graduates of foreign universities

Proposal: Study and deliberate issuing six-month intern visas to graduates of foreign universities with at least an undergraduate degree. Intern visas should be extendable for a maximum stay of one year.

Agencies: National Development Council, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Interior

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years.

Comment: Forward Taiwan strongly support this proposal but recommends expressly stating that internship may be paid or unpaid. Interns who complete one year of work should be automatically exempted from the two year work experience requirement if they decide to continue to work in Taiwan. Any minimum salary should be no higher than the minimum salary applicable to foreign graduates of Taiwanese universities. To prevent claims that employers are in fact hiring 'fake foreign professionals' to work as migrant workers, it may be prudent to limit interns to OECD countries at least at first. Taiwan should also consider relaxing the employer qualifications (minimum capital/revenue) requirements for these internships.

Issue visas to high level international professionals to seek employment in Taiwan

Proposal: Study and deliberate issuing visas to high level foreign professionals with stays of up to six months for the purpose of seeking employment.

Agencies: National Development Council, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of the Interior

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years.

Comment: This proposal seems unnecessary since most 'high level' professionals are already eligible for three-month visa free entry and can probably afford a quick trip to Hong Kong if they need to stay another three months.

Issue visas to international investors to seek investment opportunities in Taiwan

Proposal: Study and deliberate issuing long-term visitor visas to investors.

Agencies: Ministry of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, National Development Council

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years.

Comment: This is also unnecessary.
Employment Reform

Issue Personal Employment Passes to high level foreign professionals

Proposal 1: Lengthen ARC extensions to find new employment

Agencies: Ministry of the Interior

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: Forward Taiwan supports this proposal but recommends giving the foreign professional open work rights with respect to professional work with no minimum salary or employer qualification so that during the job search, the foreign professional can work part time or on a freelance basis.

Proposal 2: Study and deliberate issuing Personal Employment Passes to high level foreign professionals (emphasis added)

Agencies: Ministry of Labor, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, National Development Council

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Comment: Clarification of Personal Employment Passes is needed. What is the definition of a high-level professional. Forward Taiwan notes that foreign professionals extraordinary ability in sciences, arts, education, business or athletics have been permitted to apply for permanent residence ('Plum Blossom Cards') since at least 2006 but that only 45 Plum Blossom Cards have been issued as of early January 2015. Forward Taiwan further notes that for tax purposes 'high level' foreign professionals must arean at least NT$100,000 per month. If these or similar criteria are used, the number of Personal Employment Passes issued will be very low and this proposal will result in another failure like the Plum Blossom Card and the Enterpreneur Visa programs. Any definition of 'high level; professional needs to be reasonable in view of the realities of the Taiwan job market.
Enable independent artists to work in Taiwan

Proposal 1: Review and recommend independent artists who plan to apply to come to Taiwan; Study and deliberate qualifications to stay in Taiwan

Agency: Ministry of Culture

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Comment: Forward Taiwan is pleased to see that one of its core proposals is being considered. We recommend that the Ministry of Culture study Berlin's program of freelance and artist visas closely as a model for Taiwan and adopt similar documentary requirements and procedures for evaluating applicants. We further recommend that the Ministry of Culture devolve the work of reviewing and recommending international artists to committees of local Taiwanese artists who will be able to draw on their personal networks to recruit artists to come to Taiwan. There should be channels for artists to recommend themselves and the scope of artists should be broad (i.e include writers, music producers, DJs, and those working in non-traditional arts).

Proposal 2: Study and deliberate issuing Personal Employment Passes to independent artists.

Agency: Ministry of Labor

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Comment: Forward Taiwan strongly supports this proposal. Artists need to be able to take on part time or non-traditional freelance work to support themselves. Foreign artists should also be permitted to teach master classes, give paid lectures, and hold paid seminars.

Study and deliberate liberalizing work permits for spouses of foreign nationals

Proposal: Study having employers produce evidence of qualifications for job and professional qualifications and permitting foreign spouses to engage in full-time or part-time work.

Agency: Ministry of Labor

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: Forward Taiwan strongly supports this long overdue proposal. Foreign spouses should include the foreign spouses of permanent residents. Minor children should also be permitted to work part time with rules that are similar to those that apply to foreign students. Minimum salaries should be eliminated or relaxed along with minimum employer qualifications (capital/revenue) to ensure that spouses and minor children are able to find work especially and central and southern Taiwan. Permitting spouses to work is a key factor in retaining talent and permitting minors to work enables better integration in Taiwanese society.

Amend Employment Service Act to permit foreign nationals to teach skills at short-term private schools (Buxibans)

Proposal: Amend the Employment Service Act appropriately to ease restrictions on foreign nationals teaching skills at short-term private schools (Buxibans).

Agencies: Ministry of Labor Affairs, Ministry of Education

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Comment: Forward Taiwan believes that the Ministry of Labor already has the power to permit foreign nationals to teach skills by simply issuing letters of interpretation expanding the definition of A.15 Technical and Professional work as was done in the case of the Cordon Bleu school in Kaohsiung. Amending the Employment Service Act is unnecessary. Consequently the deadline for implementation should be reduced to one year.

Improve job placement and counseling services for foreign nationals

Proposal: Improve promotion Contact Taiwan website and timely review the site’s effectiveness

Agency: Ministry of Economic Affairs, National Development Council

Deadline for implementation: one year
Comment: Forward Taiwan recommends that Contact Taiwan hire a growth manager to enhance its presence on social media. In addition, parts of the site need to be rewritten into a more attractive style. The section on Why Taiwan needs to be rewritten by a professional copywriter rather than translated from the Chinese. In addition, Contact Taiwan needs to directly address the issue of low salaries in Taiwan with further information about the low cost and high quality of living. Links to cost of living comparisons like those on Numbeo.com are very helpful in countering the shock that most established professionals feel when first seeing salary figure in Taiwan. For example, rent prices in San Francisco, CA are 473.88% higher than in Taipei. Local Purchasing Power in Hong Kong is 27.65% lower than in Taipei. Taiwan's strong performance in the HSBC Expat Explorer Survey should also be mentioned with its high score for experience noted.

Residence Reform

Help resolve the problem of different ARC number and ID number formats

Proposal 1: Create a platform to resolve the various problems foreign nationals have in using their Alien Resident Certificates (ARCs)

Agency: Ministry of Interior

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: Forward Taiwan is disappointed not to see stronger action on this longstanding issue that is the source of deep frustration for members of the international community and a growing concern as more and more services move online. We note that in December 2o13, the Executive Yuan decided to maintain the current distinct and incompatible formats of Taiwanese citizen ID numbers and ARC numbers.

The Ministry of the Interior has opposed a unified format for citizen ID numbers and ARC numbers on three grounds: concerns from countries that grant Taiwanese citizens visa-exempt entry, the risk of confusion between ID numbers and ARC numbers, and "impact on the rights and interests of Taiwanese citizens with household registration.

Forward Taiwan strongly urges that the Ministry of the Interior be requested to publicly document which countries have expressed concerns and precisely what those concerns are. Forward Taiwan believes that the clear differences in IDs and ARC will prevent any confusion caused by consistent number formats.

The Interior Ministry should also be asked explain exactly what rights and interests of Taiwanese citizens would be infringed by unifying ID and ARC number formats.

We further note that the government's approach since 2013 to the ARC number issue has been to "compel public agencies [to accept ARC numbers] and to communicate with private businesses." This approach is clearly inadequate since the problem continues to exist in late 2016. Private businesses that do not accept ARC numbers should be fined after a warning and publicly named and shamed. Small rewards could be offered for reporting businesses that persist in this behavior.

Nonetheless, an online platform to report public and private websites that do not accept ARCs is a useful although inadequate step. Any such online platform must be carefully reviewed for ease of use and should be publicly searchable.

We commend the government for its efforts that have resulted in 90% of government websites accepting ARC numbers. The real problem is in the private sector though.

Proposal 2: Comprehensive review and amendment of laws and regulations to ensure that ARCs serve as identification documents equivalent to passports

Agency: Ministry of Interior

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: See above.
Help resolve the issue of reluctance of foreign nationals to naturalize due to renunciation of original nationality requirement

Proposal 1: Remove renunciation requirement for high level professionals and conditionally permit dual nationality(emphasis added)

Agency: Ministry of Interior

Deadline for implementation: immediate

Comment: Forward Taiwan notes that the the Executive Yuan has introduced a bill to amend the Nationality Act (院總第940號; 政府提案第15538號 「國籍法部分條文修正草案」).

Among other things, the bill would create an new exception to the renunciation requirement in Article 9: "[Renunciation of nationality is not required for a foreign national applying for naturalization if a central government agency recommends that foreign national as high level professional with [exceptional] talent in the fields technology, the economy, education, culture, the arts, sports or other fields and a committee composed of impartial members of society, concerned agencies, and the Ministry of the Interior jointly approve the recommendation."

In other words, only foreigners eligible for Plum Blossom Cards on the basis of "extraordinary ability in sciences, arts, education, business or athletics" (Immigration Act §2(2)(ii)) will be eligible. We note again that as of January 2016 just 45 Plum Cards have been issued to 'high level' foreign professionals since 2006.

For this reason, Forward Taiwan finds the current proposal wholly inadequate and urges members of the Taiwanese public to support bill No. 904-1846 (總第904號; 委員提案1846號 now pending before the Legislature. This bill was introduced by DPP Legislators Hsiao Bi-khim, Chiu Yi-ying, Lee Kun-tse, Huang Kuo-shu, Chung Chia-Pin and NPP legislator Lim, Tshiong-Tso (Freddie). Their bill would completely eliminate the renunciation requirement for naturalization under Article nine of the Nationality Act.

Proposal 2: Study feasibility of allowing foreign teachers who are permanent residents to receive monthly pension payments on retirement under the Statute Governing the Retirement of School Faculty and Staff.

Agency: Ministry of Education

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: This proposal is long overdue and should not only better serve existing foreign faculty but also attract new international faculty. Note that this will require an amendment to existing law by the Legislature and thus is unlikely to take effect within one year. The one year deadline here refers to how long it will take the Ministry of Education to draft the necessary legislation and have it approved by the Executive Yuan before it is sent to the Legislature.

Help relax 183-day residence requirement for permanent residents and resolve residence problems for spouses and minor children of permanent residents

Proposal 1: Relax 183-day residence requirement for permanent residents

Agency: Ministry of Interior

Deadline for implementation: immediate

Comment: Current law permits permanent residents to apply for 'leaves of absence' from Taiwan and such leaves are invariably granted.

Proposal 2: Amend the Immigration Act to permit spouses and minor children of applicants for permanent residence to apply for permanent residence simultaneously.

Agency: Ministry of Interior

Deadline for implementation: immediate

Comment: Again this proposal is likely to apply only to 'high level' foreign professionals base on draft legislation already prepared by the Ministry of the Interior. In addition, the spouse and children would lose permanent residence if the sponsoring permanent resident loses his or her status as a permanent residence.
Reform of Banking Services

Recommend or designate banks to assist in resolving problems in applying for credit cards.

Proposal: Request the Bankers Association to immediately call a meeting of credit card-issuing public and private banks to study foreigner-friendly credit card application procedures.

Agency: Financial Supervisory Commission

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: Forward Taiwan believes that moral suasion in this case is likely to fail. In the past, the Financial Supervisory Commission has taken the position that banks must be left alone to make credit decisions. Forward Taiwan urges the drafting and introduction of legislation banning credit discrimination on the basis of national origin and allowing class action remedies against banks that discriminate. The US Equal Credit Opportunity Act is a model.

Study and deliberate solutions to enable startups to apply for loans.

Proposal 1: Study having the Small and Medium Enterprise Credit Guarantee Fund of Taiwan provide security (guarantors)

Agencies: Ministry of Economic Affairs, Financial Supervisory Commission

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Comment: Forward Taiwan supports this proposal.

Proposal 2: Study and draft a Business Assets Security Act to provide startups with multiple financing options.

Agencies: National Development Council, Financial Supervisory Commission, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Justice

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Comment: Forward Taiwan supports this proposal.
Improve internet banking user interfaces, functionality, and English language support

Proposal 1: Improve internet banking user interfaces and functions

Agency: Financial Supervisory Commission

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: Forward Taiwan supports this proposal but doubts that moral suasion will be effective. Instead, the Financial Supervisory Commission should require EN 15038 certification for all banking interfaces (online and ATM) and paper documents. Banks are unlikely to devote the resources required to do this correctly.

Proposal 2: Improve internet banking English support.

Agency: Financial Supervisory Commission

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: See comment above.
Tax Reform

Study and deliberate internationally competitive tax policies to attract and retain talent to Taiwan

Proposal 1: Study and deliberate a three year preferential income tax rate for international talent

Agency: Ministry of Finance

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Comment: Forward Taiwan believes that this proposal is probably politically infeasible given Taiwan strong egalitarian culture. There is already commentary around the Taiwanese internet arguing that tax preferences for foreign professionals are unfair to Taiwanese professionals working overseas.

Proposal 2: Study and deliberate provision of time-limited tax breaks to R&D centers that employ talent

Agency: Ministry of Finance

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Comment: Only likely to benefit large multinationals and big Taiwanese tech companies.
Complete Taiwan’s network of tax treaties to avoid double taxation

Proposal: Pro-actively reach out to other countries to reach and sign tax agreements to make Taiwan more attractive for foreign investment.

Agency: Ministry of Finance

Deadline for implementation: one year

Comment: Forward Taiwan supports this proposal but would like to see figures on how many individuals take advantage of existing tax agreements.
Study and deliberate allowing foreign nationals to itemize educational expenses for their children as income tax deductions

Proposal: Study and deliberate making educational expenses for children an itemized income tax deduction for foreign nationals or publicize and explain existing tax preferences that permit business to expense certain benefits for foreign professionals [emphasis added]

Agency: Ministry of Finance

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Comment: This proposal appears to hint that the Ministry of Finance will fall back on its existing tax preferences from 2008 that allow businesses that hire foreign professionals to expense certain benefits in excess of a monthly salary of NT$100,000.
Insurance [and Pension] Reform

Relax restrictions on enrollment of infants in National Health Insurance plan.

Proposal: Relax the six month waiting period to enrollment of infants in National Health Insurance plan.

Agency: Ministry of Health and Welfare

Deadline for implementation: one year
Study and deliberate relaxing six month waiting period to enroll in National Health Insurance for international students, foreign employers, and spouses and minor children of employed foreign nationals

Proposal 1: Study and deliberate relaxing six month waiting period for international students

Agency: Ministry of Health and Welfare

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years
Proposal 2: Study and deliberate relaxing six month waiting period for foreign employers

Agency: Ministry of Health and Welfare

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Proposal 3: Study and deliberate relaxing six month waiting period for spouses and minor children of employed foreign nationals

Agency: Ministry of Health and Welfare

Deadline for implementation: 2-3 years

Amend the Labor Pension Act to omprove retirement benefits for foreign nationals

Proposal: Study and deliberate coverage for permanent residents by the New Pension Scheme [of 2006].

Agency: Ministry of Labor

Deadline for implementation: one year
Reform of Life in Taiwan for International Residents

Help resolve gaps in educational needs of children of international talent and problem of educational track continuity

Proposal 1: Study and deliberate opening bilingual classes and departments at schools in cities and counties where foreign talent is clustered

Agency: Ministry of Education

Deadline for implementation: one year

Proposal 2: Study and deliberate liberalization of rules permitting international universities to establish branches in Taiwan.

Agency: Ministry of Education

Deadline for implementation: one year

Proposal 3: Encourage teaching classes in English and provide scholarships

Agency: Ministry of Education

Deadline for implementation: one year
Coordinate adoption of romanization system meeting international standards for road signs, signals, and maps in all localities

Proposal 1: Continue implementation of Hanyu Pinyin romanization on all national freeways

Agencies: Ministry of Transportation and Communications, Ministry of Interior

Deadline for implementation: one year

Proposal 2: Coordinate with local governments to complete adoption of a romanization system consistent with international standards for use on local roadways and transportation

Agencies: Ministry of Transportation and Communications, Ministry of Interior

Deadline for implementation: one year

Proposal 3: Liberalize rules governing driver license tests and renewals for foreign nationals

Agency: Ministry of Transportation and Communications

Deadline for implementation: one year

Proposal 4: Revise written driver license examination and translate relevant laws and regulations into English.

Agency: Ministry of Transportation and Communications

Deadline for implementation: one year
Liberalize rules governing driver license testing and conversion of driver licenses for foreign nationals

Proposal 1: Liberalize rules governing driver license tests and renewals for foreign nationals

Agency: Ministry of Transportation and Communications

Deadline for implementation: one year

Proposal 2: Revise written driver license examination and translate relevant laws and regulations into English.

Agency: Ministry of Transportation and Communications

Deadline for implementation: one year
Provide foreigner-friendly telecommunications services

Proposal: Coordinate with telecommunication service providers to provide foreign nationals with equal treatment.

Agency: National Communications Council

Deadline for implementation: one year
Provide complete medical services in foreign languages

Proposal: Coordinate with hospitals to provide services and consulting in foreign language

Agency: Ministry of Health and Welfare

Deadline for implementation: one year
Promote various measures to create a friendly environment for international residents

Proposal 1: Encourage production and broadcast of international news programming

Agency: National Communications Council

Deadline for implementation: one year

Proposal 2: Encourage house rental websites to provide information in English

Agency: Ministry of Interior

Deadline for implementation: one year

Proposal 3: Review and test government English language websites

Agency: National Development Council

Deadline for implementation: one year

Proposal 4: Improve English skills of frontline staff at government agencies

Agency: Directorate-General of Personnel Administration

Proposal 5: Create an English-friendly environment

Agency: National Development Council

Deadline for implementation: one year

Proposal 6: Assist value-added businesses to deploy traffic information apps in English

Agency: Ministry of Transportation and Communications

Deadline for implementation: one year

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