Key facts at a glance

What is a Taiwan APRC?

An Alien Permanent Resident Certificate (APRC) is permanent residency status for foreign nationals in Taiwan, issued by the National Immigration Agency under Article 25 of the Immigration Act. Unlike an Alien Resident Certificate (ARC), which is tied to a specific employer or family relationship and must be renewed periodically, an APRC does not expire on a fixed schedule.

Foreign nationals who also hold ROC citizenship are not eligible to apply.

Who can apply for an APRC?

There are three main routes, each with a different residence requirement.

All applicants must also:

1. Be aged 18 or above
2. Have no criminal record, verified by police criminal record certificates
3. Have sufficient assets or skills to be self-supporting
4. Serve the national interests of the ROC

Important exemption: requirement 3 does not apply to spouses of ROC nationals who hold household registration in the Taiwan Area.

Separately, foreign nationals who made special contributions to the ROC, senior professionals needed by Taiwan, and investment immigrants apply under the Plum Blossom Card route, which has no 183-days-per-year requirement at the application stage.

How many days a year do I need to be in Taiwan?

This is the single most misunderstood rule, and the answer differs by route.

• General applicants must have resided in Taiwan for at least 183 days in every one of the five years. A single year below the threshold breaks the count.
• Foreign professionals and special foreign professionals need an average of 183 days per year across the qualifying period. A short year can be offset by a longer one.

Certain periods do not count toward the residence requirement, including time spent in Taiwan as a student, and time worked under Subparagraphs 8 to 10 of Article 46 of the Employment Service Act. Dependants residing on the basis of those categories are likewise excluded.

Foreign professionals who hold a master's degree or higher from a university in Taiwan may use it to offset part of the continuous residence requirement, under Article 14 of the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals. The original Chinese diploma must be presented for verification.

What is the income requirement for an APRC in 2026?

You must prove you can support yourself. The NIA accepts any one of the following:

1. Average monthly income above twice the minimum wage announced by the Ministry of Labor, over the past year — meaning either the twelve months before your application month, or January to December of the preceding year
2. Personal property and real estate in Taiwan totalling more than NT$5,000,000
3. Professional or technical certification at higher-education level or above, or a Grade B or above skill certification issued by an ROC government agency
4. Other documents accepted by the NIA

Doing the calculation

Taiwan's monthly minimum wage rose to NT$29,500 on January 1, 2026, up from NT$28,590 in 2025.

Which figure applies to you depends on the period your income documents cover. The NIA's stated rule: where withholding tax or tax payment certificates span multiple years, the calculation uses the most recent year's minimum wage; where the calculation is based on the period preceding the application date, the minimum wage announced for the previous year is used as the standard.

Because this determination is made case by case, confirm the applicable figure with your local NIA service centre before assembling your documents.

Accepted proof of income includes the Individual Income Tax Return for Foreign Residents, a Statement of Individual Income Tax, tax certificates showing income types, or salary withholding statements issued by your employer.

What documents do I need?

Required from all applicants:

• Application for Permanent Residence by Foreign Nationals
• One colour photograph, National ID Card specification
• Original and photocopy of current and previous passports
• Original and photocopy of your ARC
• Health examination certificate, using Form B as announced by the Ministry of Health and Welfare
• Proof of assets or skills (see above)
• Police criminal record certificate from your home country covering the past five years, with Chinese translation and authentication. US citizens need an FBI criminal record certificate, valid one year from issue
• ROC police criminal record certificate covering the past five years, valid within three months of issue

Two exemptions worth knowing: applicants who spent less than three months abroad per trip during their qualifying residence period are exempt from both the health examination certificate and the home-country police record.

Additional documents by category: dependants need proof of family relationship; employment applicants need a work approval letter and proof of employment issued within one month — though Employment Gold Card holders and those in a job-search period are exempt from both.

How much does an APRC cost and how long does it take?

• Fee: NT$10,000
• Stated review period: 14 days

The NIA notes that the 14-day period excludes time spent transferring applications between municipal or county service centres and the agency, time for submitting supplementary documents, interviews, and inter-agency document checks. Real-world timelines are therefore commonly longer.

Changing your foreign nationality while holding an APRC carries a separate processing fee of NT$1,000.

You must apply within two years of completing the required residence period.

Can I lose my APRC?

Yes. This is the rule most APRC holders get wrong.

If your average annual residence falls below 183 days across the most recent five years, your permanent residency can be revoked and your APRC cancelled.

The count begins on January 1 of the year following the issuance of your APRC. The test is an average across five years, not a pass/fail on each individual year.

Exceptions apply to individuals covered by Article 19 of the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals, and to those specifically authorised by the NIA.

If your APRC is revoked but you remain eligible for ordinary residency, you may apply for an ARC within 30 days of the revocation.

APRC vs. Gold Card vs. Plum Blossom Card

Note that Gold Card holders reach permanent residency in three years rather than five, provided they average 183 days a year in Taiwan.

How does investment immigration to Taiwan work?

Two thresholds qualify a foreign national for a Plum Blossom Card:

1. Invest more than NT$15,000,000 in a profit-making business in Taiwan and create employment for five or more ROC nationals for three years
2. Invest in central government bonds with a face value exceeding NT$30,000,000, held for three years

Investment applicants must supply an approval and reference letter from the Department of Investment Review of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Science Parks or Export Processing Zones; a company change registration form; certificates of tax compliance and financial statements for the past three years; and employee rosters covering the past three to four years, including labour insurance enrolment.

Plum Blossom Card holders are not subject to the 183-days-per-year requirement when applying. However, the five-year average residence rule for keeping permanent residency still applies once the card is issued.

Where do I apply?

Applications are made in person, by an authorised representative, or through an immigration service organisation, at the NIA service centre in your place of residence.

Applicants outside Taiwan apply through ROC overseas missions; applicants in Hong Kong or Macau through the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office; applicants in mainland China through the institutions designated under the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area.

The Foreigners in Taiwan hotline is 1990 domestically, or +886-800-001990 from overseas.

Sources

• National Immigration Agency, 0903 Guidelines for Foreign Nationals Applying for Permanent Residency (updated April 11, 2024) — immigration.gov.tw
• National Immigration Agency, 0917 Guidelines for Foreigners Applying for Alien Permanent Resident Certificate (Plum Blossom Card) (updated April 10, 2024) — immigration.gov.tw
• Ministry of Labor, Taiwan Labor E-Newsletter No. 84 (December 18, 2025), minimum wage effective January 1, 2026 — english.mol.gov.tw

This guide summarises published government requirements and is not legal advice. Individual circumstances vary and the NIA decides each case. Verify current requirements with the NIA before applying.

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