Taiwan approves permanent residency plan, 35,000 OFWs in Taiwan eligible

The Cabinet of Taiwan on Thursday approved a proposal to provide a pathway to permanent residency in Taiwan for migrant workers and also for foreign students who earn an associate degree in the country.

In a statement, the Ministry of Labor (MOL) said the plan approved by the Cabinet will allow for permanent residency applications by migrant workers and foreign associate degree graduates employed in fishing, manufacturing, construction, and agricultural food farming, and as caregivers.

When the plan goes into effect in April, the first step in the process for eligible persons will be an application by their employers to have them classified as “intermediate skilled manpower,” the ministry said.

In the case of migrant workers, they will be eligible for reclassification as “intermediate skilled manpower” if they have been employed in the designated fields for at least six years, after which they will have to work another five years at that level before they could apply for permanent residency, the MOL said.

Some 35,000 overseas Filipino workers in Taiwan are eligible to become permanent residents of the island under a new law, an official said Sunday.

But based on initial guidelines, a migrant worker who has worked 6 years in Taiwan can apply to be reclassified as an intermediate skilled worker, Chavez explained.

Once reclassified, the worker needs to serve for another 5 years to be able to apply for permanent residency, which means the entire process will take up to 11 years, he added.

Of the 142,000 Filipinos employed in Taiwan, around 35,000 have been working for more than 6 years, thus making them eligible for reclassification, Chavez said.

The official said employers are the ones who will apply for the reclassification of their workers.

Eight-five percent of OFWs in Taiwan work in the manufacturing industry while the remaining are mostly domestic workers, according to Chavez, noting that most workers usually stay for about 12 to 14 years.

In an earlier interview, he said the workers’ salary is also part of the conditions.

“Para sa manufacturing workers, dapat ay not less than 33,000 NT. Doon naman sa mga domestic at caregivers na nasa long term care homes, dapat 29,000 NT. Yung regular salary, hindi bababa d’yan. At para sa mga live-in, yung mga nasa bahay na caretaker at domestic worker caregivers, dapat tumatanggap sila ng regular salary na NT24,000,” said Chavez.