Taiwan Work Permit for a Foreign Chef: Requirements and Salary

Taiwan names restaurant chef work as a job foreigners can be hired for. Your company needs average turnover of at least NT$10 million (or a qualifying hotel licence), the chef usually needs five years' experience with evidence of distinction, and the salary must be at least NT$47,971 a month. That floor is above what Taiwan's restaurant cooks average, NT$41,030 in July 2025. Budget about NT$651,000 for the first year at the floor.

1. Chef work is a named category

Under the Employment Service Act, Article 46(1)(1), employers may hire foreigners for specialised or technical work. The detailed rules are the Qualifications and Criteria Standards for that article, last amended 1 August 2024. Article 4, item 15 covers other work designated by the Ministry of Labor, and the Workforce Development Agency lists 從事餐飲業之廚師工作, chef work in the food and beverage industry, under it. So the job itself is not in question. The employer test and the chef's evidence are.

2. Can your company sponsor? A decision path

NT$10 million a year is about NT$833,000 a month in sales. A small counter restaurant can easily sit below it. Check your filed turnover before you start recruiting.

3. Which route the chef qualifies on

Article 5 requires one of four conditions:

1. A certificate or licence from Taiwan's professional and technical examinations.
2. A relevant master's degree, or a relevant bachelor's degree plus two years' relevant experience.
3. At least one year with a multinational company, assigned to Taiwan by it. This suits groups moving a chef from Japan.
4. Five years or more of relevant experience through professional training or self study, with creativity and outstanding performance (有創見及特殊表現). This is the usual route for a chef trained in kitchens.

Article 2-1 adds a clean record: in the three years before the application, no unauthorised work in Taiwan, no work for another employer, no three day unexplained absence, and no refused health check, among others.

4. Evidence of "creativity and outstanding performance"

A reference letter the chef can ask a former head chef or owner to sign:

Have it translated into Chinese or English and keep the Japanese original.

5. Pay: the floor and the market

The official figures say something unusual: the legal floor for a sponsored chef is about 17% above what a restaurant cook in Taiwan earns on average, and about 5% above the hotel average. So a sponsored Japanese chef is a premium hire by law. Use that when you set the offer:

1. Sponsored head chef: at least NT$47,971. If a higher floor, reported at around NT$63,000, is announced, we cannot yet say whether it would reach permits already issued; build room for it into a three year budget.
2. Local cooks under the chef: the survey averages above are your benchmark.
3. Compare with the chef's pay in Japan after tax and housing; our sushi chef salary by country page sets out the official figures.

6. First year cost of one hire

At the floor. A foreign worker on a work permit is covered by labour insurance but not employment insurance, so the employer pays 70% of an 11.5% rate; at the top bracket (NT$45,800) that is NT$3,687 a month. National Health Insurance at the NT$48,200 bracket costs the employer NT$2,332 a month. The labour pension (6%) applies to foreigners only if married to a citizen or holding permanent residence, so not to a newly arrived chef.

7. Timeline from decision to first shift

The fees and legal steps are official; the weeks are planning allowances.

General information from Taiwan government sources as of September 2026, not legal or immigration advice. The salary floor is under review. Confirm the current rules with the Ministry of Labor or a licensed adviser before acting.