就業金卡(Employment Gold Card) 申請資訊

外國專業人才延攬及僱用法

為強化延攬外國專業人才，簡化申請工作、居留之程序，增加渠等長期留臺誘因，並完備其家庭團聚及社會保障需求，國發會協同相關部會推動「外國專業人才延攬及僱用法」（以下簡稱外國人才專法），該法於106年11月22日制定公布，自107年2月8日施行。為進一步強化攬才力道，國發會積極推動外國人才專法修法作業，並於立法院110年6月18日三讀修正通過、總統同年7月7日公布，行政院業核定自同年10月25日正式施行。

外國人才專法重點如下：
一、工作許可相關規定
(一)外國專業人才：
1. 教育部核定招收「外國人才子女專班」得聘僱外籍學科教師。（第4條）
2. 將已開放之實驗教育工作者，納入本法適用對象。（第4條）
3. 短期補習班得聘僱外國語文教師及具專門知識或技術之教師。（第4條）
4. 學校教師及實驗教育工作者向教育部申請工作許可。（第5條）
5. 教育部公告世界頂尖大學之畢業生在我國從事專門性或技術性工作無須具備2年工作經驗。（第6條）
6. 外國自由藝術工作者得不經雇主申請，逕向勞動部申請許可。（第10條）
7. 針對擬來臺從事專業工作、須長期尋職之外國專業人才，核發「尋職簽證」，總停留期間最長6個月。(第11條)
(二)外國特定專業人才：
1. 外國特定專業人才：指外國專業人才具有中央目的事業主管機關公告之我國所需科技、經濟、教育、文化藝術、體育、金融、法律、建築設計、國防及其他領域之特殊專長，或經主管機關會商相關中央目的事業主管機關認定具有特殊專長者。（第4條）
2. 雇主聘僱外國特定專業人才從事專業工作，其工作許可期間最長為5年，期滿得申請延期。（第8條）
3. 外國特定專業人才得向內政部移民署申請核發具工作許可、居留簽證、外僑居留證及重入國許可四證合一之「就業金卡」(個人工作許可)，有效期間為1至3年，提供自由尋職、就職及轉換工作之便利性。符合一定條件者，得於有效期間屆滿前得申請延期。（第9條）
(三)外國專業人才、外國特定專業人才及外國高級專業人才之眷屬：
1. 外國專業人才、外國特定專業人才及外國高級專業人才，其本人、配偶、未成年子女及因身心障礙無法自理生活之成年子女，經許可永久居留者，無需申請工作許可。（第7條）
2. 取得永久居留之外國專業人才、外國特定專業人才及外國高級專業人才，其成年子女符合一定居留條件者，得申請個人工作許可。（第15條）

二、本人及其親屬之簽證與居留相關規定
1. 以免簽證或持停留簽證入國，經許可或免經許可在我國從事專業工作者，得免申請居留簽證，逕向內政部移民署申請居留證，其依親親屬亦同。（第12條）
2. 外國專業人才及外國特定專業人才於居留效期或就業金卡有效期間屆滿前，得申請延期居留6+6個月，其依親親屬亦同。（第13條）
3. 將外國特定專業人才申請永久居留之在臺連續居留期間由5年縮短為3年，且取得我國博士學位者，得再折抵1年。另外國專業人才申請永久居留，在臺連續居留期間維持5年，惟取得我國碩、博士學位者，則得分別折抵1、2年。（第14條）
4. 外國專業人才／外國特定專業人才取得永久居留後，其配偶、未成年子女及身心障礙無法自理生活之成年子女於合法連續居留5年／3年後，得申請永久居留，無須財力證明。（第16條）
5. 外國高級專業人才之依親親屬得隨同申請永久居留。（第17條）
6. 外國特定專業人才、高級專業人才及其配偶之直系尊親屬得申請探親停留簽證，總停留最長為1年。（第18條）
7. 經許可永久居留者，出國5年以上未曾入國，始註銷其外僑永久居留證。（第19條）

三、社會保障及租稅優惠措施
1. 外國特定專業人才首次核准來臺工作，且薪資所得超過300萬元起5年內，享有超過部分折半課稅，以及海外所得免計入基本所得額課徵基本稅額之優惠。（第20條）
2. 受聘僱從事專業工作之外國專業人才、屬雇主及自營業主身分之外國特定及高級專業人才，其本人及依親親屬可直接加入全民健保，不受健保6個月等待期限制。（第21條）
3. 外國專業人才及外國特定專業人才經許可永久居留者，適用勞退新制。（第22條）
4. 外國人擔任我國公立學校現職編制內專任合格有給之教師，及政府機關及其所屬學術研究機關(構)之研究人員，其退休事項準用公立學校教師之退休規定且經許可永久居留者，得擇一支領一次退休金或月退休金。（第23條）

四、其他
1. 香港或澳門居民在臺灣地區從事專業工作或尋職，準用本法部分條文。（第24條）
2. 歸化我國國籍者，其親屬得準用部分條文規定（包括申請永久居留、成年子女個人工作許可，以及尊親屬探親停留簽證等）。（第26條）

Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals

The Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (hereafter referred to as “the Foreign Professionals Act”) was formulated by the National Development Council (NDC) in collaboration with related central government agencies, for the purposes of strengthening the recruitment of foreign professional talent, simplifying work and residency application procedures, increasing incentives for the long-term stay of those targeted, keeping their families together and meeting their social security needs. The Act was promulgated on November 22, 2017, and went into effect on February 8, 2018.

To bolster the dynamics of talent recruitment, the NDC actively set to work on promoting the Foreign Professionals Act’s amendment, which passed its third reading in the Legislative Yuan on June 18, 2021, was promulgated by the President on July 7 the same year, and was approved by the Executive Yuan to take effect from October 25 the same year.

The main points of the Foreign Professionals Act are as follows:
1. Regulations Pertaining to Work Permits
(1) Foreign professionals：
A.   Allows the hiring of foreign subject teachers to teach “special classes for the children of foreign talent” as approved by the Ministry of Education. (Article 4)
B.   Brings experimental education workers within the application of the Act, in line with the previous easing of restrictions on such employment. (Article 4)
C.   Allows short-term tutorial schools (buxibans) to employ foreign teachers who possess specialized knowledge or skills as well as to teach foreign languages. (Article 4)
D.   Provides for foreign school teachers and experimental education workers to submit work permit applications to the Ministry of Education. (Article 5)
E.   Stipulates that graduates of the world’s top universities as announced by the Ministry of Education may engage in professional or technical work in Taiwan without being required to have two years’ work experience. (Article 6)
F.   Provides for freelance arts sector workers to submit a work permit application directly to the Ministry of Labor without being required to apply through an employer. (Article 10)
G.   Provides for foreign professionals who plan to come to Taiwan to engage in professional work and who need a lengthy period of time to seek employment, to be issued with an employment-seeking visa, allowing them to stay for a total of up to six months. (Article 11)

(2) Foreign special professionals:
A.   Defines foreign special professionals as those who possess special expertise needed by Taiwan in science & technology, the economy, education, culture & the arts, sports, finance, law, architectural design, national defense, and other fields, matching the eligibility conditions announced by the respective central competent authorities, or whom the NDC, in consultation with the relevant central competent authorities, recognizes as possessing special expertise. (Article 4)
B.   Provides that a work permit for an employer to hire a foreign special professional to engage in professional work shall have a duration of up to five years, extendable at expiration. (Article 8)
C.   Provides for foreign special professionals to apply to the NIA for a four-in-one Employment Gold Card (personal work permit) that combines work permit, resident visa, Alien Resident Certificate and re-entry permit, valid for a period of one to three years, giving holders the convenience of freely seeking, taking up, and changing employment. Those who meet specified conditions may apply for an extension of the card before its period of validity expires. (Article 9)

(3) Family dependents of foreign professionals, foreign special professionals and foreign senior professionals:
A. Provides that foreign professionals, foreign special professionals and foreign senior professionals, plus their spouses, children under the age of majority, and children over the age of majority who are unable to live independently due to physical or mental disability, having been granted permanent residency, do not need to apply for work permits. (Article 7)
B. Provides that the adult children of permanent resident foreign professionals, foreign special professionals and foreign senior professionals may apply for personal work permits upon meeting specified conditions as to their length of residence in Taiwan. (Article 15)

2. Regulations Pertaining to Visas and Residence of Family Members
(1) Provides that foreign professionals and special professionals who enter Taiwan with a visa exemption or holding a visitor visa, and who have obtained a work permit or are exempted from obtaining a work permit to engage in professional work in Taiwan, may apply direct to the NIA for an ARC without needing to apply for a resident visa, and the same applies to their dependent relatives. (Article 12)

(2) Provides that foreign professionals and special professionals may apply for 6+6-month extensions of residency before the validity period of their residency or Employment Gold Card expires, and the same applies to their dependent relatives. (Article 13)

(3) Shortens from five years to three years the period for which special foreign professionals must continuously reside in Taiwan before becoming eligible to apply for permanent residency, and allows one more year to be deducted from that period for those who have obtained a doctoral degree in Taiwan. Also, while (ordinary) foreign professionals are still required to continuously reside in Taiwan for five years before becoming eligible to apply for permanent residency, that period can be reduced by one year for those who have obtained a master’s degree in Taiwan or by two years for those who have obtained a doctoral degree in Taiwan. (Article 14)

(4) Provides that after a foreign professional or foreign special professional has obtained permanent residency, their spouse, children under the age of majority, and children over the age of majority who are unable to live independently due to physical or mental disability, having legally and continuously resided in Taiwan for five years (as dependents of a foreign professional) or three years (as dependents of a foreign special professional) may apply for permanent residency without needing to show proof of ability to be self-supporting. (Article 16)

(5) Provides that the dependent relatives of a foreign senior professional may apply for permanent residency together with the foreign senior professional. (Article 17)

(6) Provides that the lineal ascendants of foreign special and senior professionals and their spouses may apply for a visitor visa for visiting relatives, permitting them to stay for a total period of up to one year. (Article 18)

(7) Stipulates that a permanent resident may leave and not re-enter Taiwan for up to five years before their APRC will be canceled. (Article 19)

3. Social Security and Tax Preference Measures
(1) Provides preferential tax treatment for foreign special professionals who are approved to work in Taiwan for the first time, with income tax to be assessed on only half of such part of their salary as exceeds NT$3 million within their first five years in Taiwan, and also their overseas income to be excluded from the assessment of income basic tax. (Article 20)。

(2) Provides that foreign professionals who are employed to engage in professional work, foreign special and senior professionals who are employers or self-employed business owners, and their dependent relatives, can directly join the National Health Insurance system without having to wait six months for inclusion. (Article 21)

(3) Provides for foreign professionals and foreign special professionals to be included in the retirement pension system under the Labor Pension Act once they have been granted permanent residency. (Article 22)

(4) Provides that foreign professionals (all types) who are employed as full-time teachers in public schools or as full-time researchers in government institutions (including subsidiary academic research institutes) shall have their retirement governed, mutatis mutandis, by the regulations applicable to public school teachers, and that those who have been granted permanent residency may opt for either a one-time lump-sum pension payment or a monthly pension. (Article 23)

4. Others
(1) Specifies the provisions of the Act that apply mutatis mutandis to residents of Hong Kong or Macau who engage in professional work or seek employment in the Taiwan Area. (Article 24)

(2) Specifies the provisions of the Act that apply mutatis mutandis to the dependent relatives of foreign professionals (all types) who naturalize as ROC nationals (including applications for permanent residency, adult children’s personal work permits, and lineal ascendants’ visitor visas).