Premier greenlights migrant domestic helper eligibility expansion

Taipei, March 19 (CNA) Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) on Thursday approved an expansion of eligibility to hire migrant domestic helpers, with employers required to pay monthly fees of between NT$2,000 (US$62.5) and NT$10,000 to fund Ministry of Labor (MOL) measures aimed at mitigating potential impacts on Taiwanese workers.

Cho approved the policy at a weekly Cabinet meeting. Under the new regulations, families with at least one child under the age of 12 may apply to hire a foreign domestic helper.

Previously, families were required to have three or more children aged 6 or under to be eligible to hire domestic helpers.

In addition to a worker's salary, families that hire migrant domestic helpers must pay a monthly "employment stabilization" fee of NT$5,000, which will be set at NT$2,000 for families with special needs.

• Taiwan to let families with one child under 12 hire migrant domestic helpers

Families with special needs include those with one child under the age of six and another under the age of 12; those with three children under the age of 12; and those with a disabled family member and a child under the age of 12.

They also include single-parent families with a child under the age of 12; families with a child under 12 who has been diagnosed with a rare disease or a disability; and those with a child under the age of six with developmental delays.

Foreign employers must have household registration in Taiwan and will be required to pay NT$10,000 per month in employment stabilization fees, according to the MOL's Workforce Development Agency (WDA).

WDA official Chuang Kuo-liang (莊國良) said the fee for foreign families with special care needs is still being determined and will be announced before applications open on April 13.

Labor Minister Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) told a weekly Cabinet news conference on Thursday that the MOL will work together with the Ministry of Health and Welfare to offer job-matching services to Taiwanese babysitters and domestic helpers affected by the new rules.

There are currently around 8,000 licensed Taiwanese babysitters and 13,000 domestic helpers, Hung said.

The MOL will also expand its subsidy program for companies that offer employees childcare services to help address potential impacts on Taiwanese babysitters' employment prospects, he added.