As the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals reaches three years in effect, the issuance of Employment

National Development Council (NDC) held a celebration to mark the issuance of the 2,000th Employment Gold Card in the three years since the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (“the Foreign Professionals Act”) came into effect in February 2018. In the presence of more than 40 invited guests, including Ms. Dannielle Andrews, Economic Chief of American Institute in Taiwan, Mr. Leo Seewald, President of Amcham Taipei, Mr. Freddie Hoeglund, Chief Executive Officer of European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan as well as outstanding Employment Gold Card holders. NDC Minister Kung, Ming-Hsin presented the 1,998th, 1,999th and 2,000th Employment Gold Cards to their brightly talented recipients. This milestone for the card’s issuance gives witness to the successful results achieved under the Foreign Professionals Act as it comes up to its 3rd birthday.

The Foreign Professionals Act relaxes regulations relating to visas, work permits and residency for foreign professionals coming to work in Taiwan, and also enhances their insurance, tax, retirement and other benefits. Since it came into effect in February 2018, it has received a predominantly positive response from those whom it concerns. The Employment Gold Card, in particular, has been a gleaming jewel in the crown of the measures carried out under the Act. With approvals for issuance of the card topping the 2,000 mark this January, it has manifestly delivered superlative results for Taiwan’s talent recruitment policy.

The three card recipients at today’s presentation are all outstandingly talented individuals who are prime targets of competitive international recruitment. In addition to their excellent backgrounds, they all possess special expertise needed for Taiwan’s industrial upgrading. Mr. Calvin Chang (陳錦為) has a wealth of expertise as a futures trader with the Singapore Branch of Germany’s Commerzbank; Ms. Jennifer Chang (張棋惠) has held a senior leadership position in eBay; and Mr. George Ng (吳宇衛) is a successful program host, actor and writer. After being presented with their cards, these three glittering additions to Taiwan’s talent pool each spoke to share their thoughts about, and experience of, coming to work and live in Taiwan. The gathering was also treated to singing by card-holder Paul Whiteley, Welly Yang (楊呈偉) and Dina Morishita. Paul played a Phantom understudy in the 25th Anniversary world tour of The Phantom of the Opera, and is currently working as a show promoter, producer and performer in Taiwan. Welly and Dina are also outstanding singers, who had performed on the Broadway stage. Exemplifying the high caliber of Employment Gold Card holders, Paul, Welly and Dina are applying their rich expertise to nurture new avenues of development in Taiwan’s performing arts.

The NDC hopes that this celebratory event will help boost the government’s efforts to attract more high-level international talent to Taiwan, to contribute to the upgrading and transformation of Taiwan’s industries. It hopes that Taiwan will in the future become increasingly internationalized and globalized, and become such an alluring country as foreigners dream to work and live in.