I am so confused - Taiwan Taxes

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1. Labor and health insurance are very beneficial to you. Medical care here is top notch, cheap, quick. We have private insurance for extras like your own 24/7 nurse and stuff like that.

2. Please factor in the cost of living is going to be a lot lower than Oz. With that salary, you'll be saving a lot. Especially if you get corporate to pay housing.

3. The tax thing seems complicated, but it is not. The bosses cover their back deducting the law requirement, but then at the end you get a very nice refund from the Tax Office. It is not as bad as US or Europe.

4. There are much "worse" places to be than Taiwan, and I don't mean tax-wise. Taiwan is really safe, it has decent nightlife, food. I mean, in terms of choosing posts abroad, there are places where you can't go out without telling your bodyguards ahead of time, like the day before, where you cannot make friends with the locals, where you have to give up your favorite Internet sites or TV programs due to restrictions. So "taking one for the team", career-wise, in Taiwan, is not as bad as it seems, compared to other options, as per my expat acquaintances who have been set in other parts of Asia. In the end, it depends on you and what you want.

[misterpoh]

Thanks for all the replies.

The ultimate goal is for me to earn at similar capacity as I still have a home loan to service.

I am generally worried that I will be earning less and having the inability to keep up with repayments.

Does anyone have any information on superannuation in Taiwan?

[tommy525]

Even if they kept your salary the same you should end up with more in the bank by being in Taiwan. Its not Japan.

And on that note, its funny that one time i ran into a young guy who was an accountant for a major Japanese corporation. They doubled his 180,000 us dollar salary when they posted him to the USA for two years for the "trouble" and extra hardship. Apparently US taxes were more then Japanese taxes.

wow, id like to work for that sort of company.

And he wasn't even 30 years old.

He sure knew how to count his beans.

[misterpoh]

Even if they kept your salary the same you should end up with more in the bank by being in Taiwan. Its not Japan.

And on that note, its funny that one time i ran into a young guy who was an accountant for a major Japanese corporation. They doubled his 180,000 us dollar salary when they posted him to the USA for two years for the "trouble" and extra hardship. Apparently US taxes were more then Japanese taxes.

wow, id like to work for that sort of company.

And he wasn't even 30 years old.

He sure knew how to count his beans.

Wow.. That's a substantial jump! I sure wouldn't mind cruising on a $180K salary - USD of course!

Do you know much about superannuation in Taiwan or would you advise I invest in this separately in Australia?

[misterpoh]

1. Labor and health insurance are very beneficial to you. Medical care here is top notch, cheap, quick. We have private insurance for extras like your own 24/7 nurse and stuff like that.

2. Please factor in the cost of living is going to be a lot lower than Oz. With that salary, you'll be saving a lot. Especially if you get corporate to pay housing.

3. The tax thing seems complicated, but it is not. The bosses cover their back deducting the law requirement, but then at the end you get a very nice refund from the Tax Office. It is not as bad as US or Europe.

4. There are much "worse" places to be than Taiwan, and I don't mean tax-wise. Taiwan is really safe, it has decent nightlife, food. I mean, in terms of choosing posts abroad, there are places where you can't go out without telling your bodyguards ahead of time, like the day before, where you cannot make friends with the locals, where you have to give up your favorite Internet sites or TV programs due to restrictions. So "taking one for the team", career-wise, in Taiwan, is not as bad as it seems, compared to other options, as per my expat acquaintances who have been set in other parts of Asia. In the end, it depends on you and what you want.

Thank you for your reply

I am sure Taiwan will be a great place to reside and to have a bit of fun. After all, I am an ABC and can converse in basic Mandarin.

As for the company paying for my housing, they are only paying AUD$1K per month, kinda low in my opinion as I am looking at units in the Xinyi district.

In regards to tax returns, are rent / cost of living / anything you can think of to support your living in Taiwan tax deductable?

[tommy525]

YOu might wanna 'splain this superannuation thingy . Some of us dont have anything to annuate lah.

[misterpoh]

YOu might wanna 'splain this superannuation thingy . Some of us dont have anything to annuate lah.

Thanks Tommy.

In Australia, the employer must contribute a minimum of 9% of your earned salary towards a registered superannuation fund.
If one would like to contribute more, they are allowed to.

What I meant was if Taiwan had similar regulations?

[tommy525]

oh those, yeah we have them here in the usa. I forgot the name . But I don't think taiwan does . I may be wrong, but I don't think so. Thats why people like to work for the govt because of the nice retirement package. Most private enterprises dont have retirement.
YOU better save up yourself.

A lot of these in the usa nowadays have no matching employer contribution. My present employer for example does NOT contribute. Whereas one i worked for before matches yours up to 500/month.

[Abacus]

1000AUD/mo should come at least close to covering your housing in Taipei area. Rent is tax deductable up to 125,000NT/yr IIRC. The standard deduction is 75,000. I actually need to check into this further since I think my rent will be high enough this year to qualify. IIRC you can also deduct labor and health insurance payments. It might not amount to a big refund but a little extra money is always nice.

And even with a housing payment at home you should be able to live like a king in Taiwan for 75,000 AUD. Aside from booze, toys (electronic and vehicular) and nice expensive hotels there isn't a lot to spend your money on here. There is a lot of great outdoor stuff that is overlooked by most. Of course maybe I don't think there is a lot to spend money on since I don't have a lot (more like 25,000 AUD/yr).

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YOu might wanna 'splain this superannuation thingy . Some of us dont have anything to annuate lah.

Thanks Tommy.

In Australia, the employer must contribute a minimum of 9% of your earned salary towards a registered superannuation fund.
If one would like to contribute more, they are allowed to.

What I meant was if Taiwan had similar regulations?

That sounds like the laobao/labor insurance. So, yeah, you and your employer both contribute to it.