Taiwan woos Singaporean talent in gold card drive

台灣推就業金卡，盼吸引新加坡人才

Employment Gold Card holders enjoy unlimited re-entry without need to secure job first


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan is vigorously seeking to attract talent from Singapore with a focus on people from six core strategic industries.

A delegation of the National Development Council (NDC) is on a three-day visit ending Wednesday (Sept. 7) to the Southeast Asian country for that purpose, with members hailing from businesses including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. Information sessions have been held at the National University of Singapore and the prestigious Nanyang Technological University.

Deputy minister of the NDC Yu Chien-Hwa (游建華), who is heading the mission, told CNA that Taiwan has been promoting its Employment Gold Card program to attract overseas talent. The card grants residency before one secures a job, making it easier to settle down in the country, he said.

Launched in 2018, the Employment Gold Card can function as a visa, work permit, alien resident certificate, and re-entry permit. The multi-use card is an ID offered to foreign professionals specializing in fields spanning science and technology, economics, education, culture and art, sports, finance, law, architecture and design, and national defense.

While the trip did not target experts from any specific field, it did hope to find potential applicants whose expertise is related to the Tsai administration’s six core strategic industries and the “five plus two” innovative industries.

The former entails information and digital affairs, cybersecurity, precision health, green and renewable energy, national defense, and strategic supplies. The latter involves defense, biotech, green tech, becoming the Silicon Valley of Asia, smart manufacturing, circular economy, and new agriculture.

A total of 6,000 gold cards have been issued, including 200 to Singaporean citizens.