The Ministry of the Interior said Jan. 9 that the government is committed to attracting and retaining international professionals by, for example, relaxing permanent residence restrictions and naturalization laws.
According to the ministry’s latest survey, a total of 330 foreign professionals have been naturalized as Taiwan citizens without having to give up their original nationality from 2016 to 2024. Among them, 123 people, the largest number, are in academic research and education, followed by 65 people working in business.
In terms of original nationality, 86 people came from the U.S., accounting for 26.1 percent of the total, followed by 65 Malaysians, accounting for 19.7 percent. There were also 57 people under the age of 40, with the youngest being 27 years old.
The MOI added that the total number of people including foreign professionals, specific field and high-level professionals approved for permanent residence was 1,675, 1,964 and 2,131 in each of the past three years, indicating an increasing annual trend.
Interior Minister Liu Shyh-fang said that the Nationality Act was amended last May to relax the number of required residence years for high-level professionals to obtain naturalization qualifications. The amended act stipulated that an applicant must have legally resided within the territory of the ROC (Taiwan) for more than 183 days each year for at least two consecutive years, compared to five consecutive years in the original act, or must have legally resided within the territory of the ROC (Taiwan) for more than five consecutive years.
The ministry added that after foreign professionals are granted ROC (Taiwan) citizenship, they are endowed with political rights and can enjoy the country’s social welfare. (YCH-E)
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