Taiwan Company Formation & Entity Choice

Common entity types

Foreign and local investors most commonly use a company limited by shares or a limited company under the Company Act; foreign companies may also operate via a branch or representative office. Foreign-owned entities must clear the Investment Commission (MOEA).

• Company limited by shares (股份有限公司) — Most common vehicle for larger/foreign-invested businesses; shareholders' liability limited to share capital; requires at least one shareholder (corporate) or two natural-person shareholders and directors ((approx — confirm director/shareholder minimums)) (Company Act)
• Limited company (有限公司) — Simpler form for SMEs; one or more members with liability limited to capital contributions; at least one director (Company Act)
• Branch of a foreign company — An extension of the foreign parent (not a separate legal entity); branch profits are not subject to the undistributed-earnings surtax (Company Act)

Capital, process and timeline

There is no statutory minimum capital for most domestic businesses, but foreign-investment cases and work-permit-sponsoring entities face practical capital expectations, and paid-in capital must be CPA-verified.

• Minimum share capital — No statutory minimum for most companies; capital must be sufficient for operations and is CPA-verified. Foreign-investment / work-permit cases often expect capital around NT$500,000 or more in practice TWD ((approx — confirm work-permit capital expectation)) (Company Act)
• Foreign investment approval — Foreign investors must obtain Foreign Investment Approval from the Investment Commission (Department of Investment Review), MOEA, before incorporation (Statute for Investment by Foreign Nationals)
• Core incorporation steps — 1) reserve company name & business scope; 2) FIA approval (foreign investors); 3) open preparatory bank account & inject capital; 4) CPA capital verification; 5) company registration with MOEA; 6) tax & employer (labor/health insurance) registration (Company Act)
• Typical incorporation timeline — Approximately 4–8 weeks for a foreign-invested entity, depending on investment approval and capital verification ((approx — confirm)) (Company Act)
• Indicative professional/setup cost — Government fees are modest; professional fees for a foreign-invested company commonly range from roughly NT$60,000 to NT$150,000+ TWD ((approx — confirm; varies by provider)) (Company Act)

Core annual compliance

Incorporated entities must keep statutory books, file annual tax returns and maintain their MOEA registration.

• Annual corporate income tax return — File the profit-seeking enterprise income tax return by 31 May following the fiscal year-end (Income Tax Act)
• Bimonthly VAT returns — File business (VAT) returns every two months by the 15th of the following month (Value-added and Non-value-added Business Tax Act)
• Company registration upkeep — Changes to directors, capital, address or business scope must be filed with the MOEA; companies must maintain a Taiwan-resident responsible person/representative (Company Act)