Send employees safely to Taiwan

Social security compliance

When working remotely abroad, your employees may become subject to the social security scheme of the destination country, which means you, as an employer, would need to pay social security premiums accordingly. Taiwan has not entered into bilateral social security (totalisation) agreements with other countries to prevent the payment of double social security premiums.

This means foreign employees temporarily working in Taiwan may face double social security contributions, there is no Certificate of Coverage (CoC) mechanism available for Taiwan. We recommend informing your compliance department before sending employees. Discover our solution for efficient social security risk mitigation here.

For employees on assignment: Assignees with a valid work permit are subject to mandatory enrollment in both Labor Insurance (LI) and National Health Insurance (NHI) from their first day of employment. Due to the absence of any bilateral social security agreement, both the home country's social security regime and Taiwan's LI/NHI contributions apply simultaneously - creating a dual-contribution burden. Employers should factor these costs into assignment planning. Note that the Labor Pension Programme (LPP) does not apply to non-permanent residents, meaning most assignees will not accrue LPP entitlements.

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Tax compliance

Taiwan has signed comprehensive Income Tax Agreements with 35 countries that specify the steps to take to avoid double taxation, available here. These treaties generally follow international standards and provide guidelines for various types of income, including employment income.

Despite the existence of many tax treaties, the issue of Permanent Establishment remains a significant compliance concern for employers with employees temporarily working in Taiwan, whether for a workation or a business trip. If a traveling employee is deemed to constitute a Permanent Establishment in Taiwan, the employer may be required to register the company locally, allocate profits to the local business (branch), and file corporate taxes, leading to substantial administrative burdens.

To avoid this scenario, here are some key strategies:

If your employees are traveling for a workation, they should refrain from negotiating or signing sales contracts during the trip. Additionally, they should avoid visiting clients or any office, including the employer's local office in Taiwan. Following these guidelines will help mitigate the important compliance risk for the employer related to permanent establishment.

If your employees travel for business, it may be impossible to refrain from the activities above. In this case, please make sure to inform your (tax) compliance department of this matter. If you and your organization are a WorkFlex user, this topic is covered through the WorkFlex platform.

For employees on assignment: Assignees remaining in Taiwan for 183 days or more in a calendar year become tax residentsand are subject to progressive individual income tax rates (5–40%) on Taiwan-sourced income. Where the employee remains on home-country payroll, a shadow payroll arrangement in Taiwan is typically necessary to meet withholding obligations. The applicable DTA between Taiwan and the home country should be reviewed to determine foreign tax credit eligibility and prevent double taxation on employment income. Note that assignments under 183 days may still create withholding obligations if the employee's costs are borne by a Taiwan-registered entity.

Regarding Permanent Establishment for assignees: Employers must carefully assess whether the assignment structure creates a fixed place of business or dependent agent PE for the sending entity - particularly where the assignee manages local operations or concludes contracts on behalf of the home-country employer. Locally-employed assignees (local payroll, local contract) do not typically trigger PE for the sending entity. Split-payroll or dual-employer arrangements require dedicated legal review.

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Overriding local employment provisions

Employees traveling to Taiwan are expected to comply with some basic local employment provisions that may be qualified as overriding, such as minimum salary standards. Effective 1 January 2026, the monthly minimum wage is NT$29,500 and the hourly minimum wage is NT$196. See the most recent information on minimum wage in Taiwan here.

For employees on assignment: Assignees locally employed in Taiwan are subject to the full scope of the Labor Standards Act, including minimum wage, maximum working hours, statutory leave entitlements, and severance rules. Where assignment terms are more favourable than local minimums, the more favourable standard applies. Employers must ensure assignment contracts explicitly address Taiwan statutory entitlements to avoid disputes at assignment end. All foreign employees on assignment require a valid work permit from the Ministry of Labor prior to commencing employment activities.

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When traveling to the Taiwan for work—whether for a short business trip or an extended workation—it's essential to have comprehensive health insurance coverage to ensure access to medical care.

For business trips, the employer typically arranges the employee's travel health insurance. However, for workations, these responsibilities can be less clear. WorkFlex takes care of travel health insurance for trips worldwide to ensure there are no costly consequences for either the employee or the employer if accidents occur while working abroad.

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For travelers using WorkFlex‍

If you’re traveling with WorkFlex, comprehensive health insurance is automatically included if your employer has activated this feature. For more details, please refer to your trip request on the WorkFlex platform.

For other travelers

Ensure you have travel health insurance with worldwide coverage, whether for a workation or business trip, so that you can receive adequate medical treatment in case of an emergency.

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