Working in Taiwan

What the employer must have

• The Taiwanese employer applies to the Ministry of Labor for the work permit before you can get a resident visa — the worker cannot self-apply.
• Employment of migrant workers is governed by the Regulations on the Permission and Administration of the Employment of Foreign Workers, which set the employer's duties and the permitted job categories.
• To hire a Filipino it must also be accredited with a DMW-licensed Philippine agency and its job order approved by the DMW.

What you must do before you leave

1. Go through a DMW-licensed recruitment agency. Direct hiring is banned by Article 18 of the Labor Code — only the narrow categories listed in POEA Memorandum Circular 08-2018 are exempt — and you can check any agency's licence on dmw.gov.ph before you pay or sign anything.
2. Your employment contract must be verified by the Migrant Workers Office (MWO, formerly POLO) at the Philippine post covering your destination before you can be deployed.
3. Complete the Pre-Employment Orientation Seminar (PEOS) and the Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS) and keep both certificates — they are part of the documentary requirements.
4. Get your Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC) before you leave. Every departing OFW needs one, it exempts you from travel tax and the airport terminal fee, and it is valid for 60 days from the date it is issued.
5. After the Ministry of Labor permit is issued you apply for a resident visa at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in the Philippines — your agency should show you the permit, not just promise it.

Things to watch

• If you are hired as a household service worker you must NOT be charged a placement fee at all — Republic Act 10361 sec. 13 puts the recruitment cost on the employer, and collecting a fee from a domestic worker is a ground for cancelling the agency's licence. For every other job the placement fee is capped at one month's basic salary and may only be collected once you have a signed contract.
• A job order on the DMW approved list means the government approved the employer's demand and the agency's licence. It does not mean you have been hired, and an order stops being real once its approved slots are filled.
• Taiwan brokers have historically charged migrant workers monthly service fees on top of Philippine charges. Philippine law still forbids charging a household service worker any placement fee, and any brokerage deduction must be written in the contract you signed.

Official sources

• Taiwan Ministry of Justice — Regulations on the Employment of Foreign Workers (English)
• Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in the Philippines — contract-worker visa
• DMW — Licensed recruitment agencies (check your agency before you pay)
• DMW — Approved job orders

Jobs in Taiwan right now