What are the taxes on small restaurant business?

[micheleru]

Glad it's useful for you.
I forgot to write that the taxation I previously described is related to a Limited Company.
That's why with a Limited Company you can apply for a working permit. If you already have your working permit and ARC I suggest to you to apply for a "Store".
A "store" is just a business category under which you can operate also in catering. With a store you cannot apply for a working permit.
Taxation for store is much lighter.
1 don't need to remit 500.000 nt in company bank account. Even 100.000 is fine.
2 you can pay VAT by estimate and not calculate on your income: An inspector of the Tax Bureu Office will check your location before you start working and he will decide depending on dimension, employees number, customer target etc. if you are going to overcome a 200.000 nt/month income, or not.
If you are over, than you will pay your VAT based on your income (don't know how much). But if, for God's sake, the inspector "estimates " your monthly income under 200.000 you make bingo. Cause you are going to pay only 1% of the monthly income estimated by the inspector. He estimates your income in 150.000 nt/ month? You will pay 1500 nt/month. No matter if your income is over that amount. Of course if your business gets huge, you will be forced to upgrade and pay a calculated VAT.
Over the 1500 nt/ month you have to pay the taxes as taiwan resident: 0 to 500.000 nt/year .... 5% etc...
There is another solution. This is a bit tricky.....you can open a "Store" and a "LImited Company" just with a 90 days permit. Don't need any Visa, ARC, working permit. What you are not allowed to do is "phisically" working in the store. This doesn't mean that you cannot appear in the store, but, making the example of the restaurant, you cannot cook, cut vegetables, bake a pizza etc...rather you are just the owner, that coordinate/manage the daily operativity of your business and check the cash at the end of the day. This is feasible if you have a good staff that you really trust, so you minimaze the risk to be caught from a Labour Inspector while marinating the sushi. In that case, as you know, you have 24 h to leave Formosa.....
I got all the info displayed from Jusregal firm: http://www.jusregal.com/english.htm, that I really suggest you if you need a CPA.
By the way, may I ask you which kind of restaurant would you like to open and where?

[Puppet]

A bar/pub in Zhanghua. A store won't really work based off what you described. I'll have to work there the majority of the time.

[micheleru]

Hi Puppet,
Zhanghua, is west coast, isn't it?
I am planning to open a small cafe/cake shop in Taipei, size not over 25 ping, with 10 seats, rent in the range 30-40k ntd/month, starting with one employee working as front line.
From a first draft forecast it comes out that with 1 million ntd I can cover3/4 month of running business. To cover 7-8 months of activity I need plus 500.000 ntd, so 1,5 million in total, considering to run a Limited Company. Is there anyone out there, that started similar business in the last 2 years in Taiwan, who can confirm or less my calculation?
Thanks folks!

[ichbinjenny]

I am planning to open a small cafe/cake shop in Taipei, size not over 25 ping, with 10 seats, rent in the range 30-40k ntd/month, starting with one employee working as front line.
From a first draft forecast it comes out that with 1 million ntd I can cover3/4 month of running business. To cover 7-8 months of activity I need plus 500.000 ntd, so 1,5 million in total, considering to run a Limited Company. Is there anyone out there, that started similar business in the last 2 years in Taiwan, who can confirm or less my calculation?
Thanks folks!

Plan 1.5 mil for the first three months, if not more if you can, just to be safe. Gates break, stoves break, employees bail out on you, suppliers change prices, your boxes aren't as eye-catching as you thought they would be...customers are slow to come. You'd be surprised how much can go wrong and how much it costs to make things right. I've often gone home from work asking 'where did all the money go!?'

[micheleru]

Thanks Jenny, precious advice!