Taiwan mulls 'global elite' cards to attract high-level professionals

Taipei, Sept. 19 (CNA) The government is planning to roll out "global elite" cards, providing more incentives than the current employment gold card, in yet another bid to attract more high-level skilled workers to Taiwan, the National Development Council (NDC) said Thursday.

At a Cabinet press briefing, NDC deputy head Kao Shien-quey (高仙桂) said that six years after the launch of the employment gold card, her agency was planning to issue "global elite" cards to further attract highly skilled talent.

Currently, the employment gold card serves as an open work permit, allowing eligible foreign professionals -- either those who earned more than NT$160,000 (US$5,001) per month in their previous job or who have a proven track record in designated fields -- to stay and work in Taiwan for up to three years.

According to Kao, the planned "global elite" cards will be awarded to foreign professionals with an annual salary exceeding NT$6 million.

Those with the cards will be eligible for permanent residency in Taiwan after one year and be entitled to social benefits, such as long-term care and disability services, comparable to those available to Taiwanese nationals, she said.

In addition, spouses of "global elite" cardholders will be allowed to work in Taiwan and their parents and grandparents will be permitted "unlimited stay in Taiwan," she said.

Under the proposal, the government also plans to issue one-year work permits to foreign graduates from top-ranking universities and "overseas Chinese students" who have recently graduated in Taiwan, allowing them to seek employment in the country, Kao said.

The term "overseas Chinese student" refers to a student of Chinese descent who has come to Taiwan to study and who was born and lived overseas until the present time, or who has been living overseas for six or more consecutive years in the immediate past and obtained permanent or long-term residency status overseas, according to the Ministry of Education.

The term "overseas" refers to countries or regions other than China, Macao and Hong Kong.

She added the NDC was aiming to finalize the proposal soon and send it to the Legislature for approval in the new session that commences on Friday.

The proposal is part of the NDC's ongoing efforts to tackle the brain drain and attract more foreign talent to Taiwan. It is estimated that by 2028, the country will be faced with a talent shortage of about 350,000 people.

Kao said the government has set a goal to attract a total of 200,000 highly skilled and mid-level skilled workers to Taiwan by 2028.