July 2024

Taiwan Shifts on Immigration as Birth Rate Falls

Taiwan is set to loosen regulations on hiring caregivers, opening the door for more foreigners to meet the rising demand for elderly care in its fast-graying society. A long-standing evaluation will soon no longer be required for the most vulnerable elderly to receive live-in assistance from foreigners, Deputy Labor Minister Wang An-pang told Taiwan's legislature last week. Like its East Asian neighbors, Taiwan is becoming a super-aged society, with people over 65 years old already comprising about 18 percent of the...

November 2022

Taiwan to have world’s lowest birthrate by 2035

Taiwan is expected to replace South Korea as the country with the lowest birthrate by 2035, population projections by the National Development Council showed. The nation’s birthrate is expected to be the lowest in the world with 1.12 births per woman in 2035, when South Korea’s birthrate is expected to be 1.18, data released by the council showed. Taiwan previously had the lowest birthrate in the world when the number fell to 0.9 births per woman in 2015, but the figure...

August 2022

Dependents to exceed workers earlier than expected in Taiwan: NDC

Taiwan's dependent population will outnumber its working population earlier than previously forecast, according to a report released by the National Development Council on Monday. In its latest biennial report, the government's top planning agency maintained its forecast of Taiwan becoming a "super-aged society" -- with 20 percent of the population 65 or older -- in 2025. Read also US. How to reform Social Security to ensure a sustainable future The working population, however, is expected to become smaller than the dependent population...

April 2022

How AI and robots are caring for the elderly in Taiwan’s ageing society

The idea that cities today will have a disproportionate number of elderly would have been laughable a mere century ago. As recently as 1950, global mortality rates for children were five times higher than they are now, according to Our World in Data. Yet, advancements in healthcare and sanitation standards are helping adults live longer than ever before. Taiwan, in particular, is estimated to become a super-aged society by 2025, with one in five being over 65 years old, said...

January 2022

Taiwan fund to issue $2.3 bln climate change pension mandate, Asia’s first -official

Taiwan's largest pension fund is set to issue what a top official said is Asia's first climate change-focused stock mandate, worth $2.3 billion, amid mounting pressure for the global financial sector to support green investing. The open-tender bidding process for asset managers seeking to be involved in the Bureau of Labor Funds mandate will commence in the first quarter of the year, Liu Liju, deputy director general at the fund, told Reuters in an interview. The fund has Taiwanese $5.5 trillion...

December 2020

Asset management CEO arrested in Taiwan pension fund scandal

The CEO and other executives of one of Taiwan's largest asset management companies are being held incommunicado after being questioned over an alleged national labor fund investment scandal, the Taipei District Prosecutor’s Office said Friday (Dec. 11). The office launched the third stage of its bribery investigation on Thursday (Dec. 10). A Ministry of Labor official responsible for labor fund management was arrested two weeks ago for allegedly engaging in stock speculation. You Wei-wen (游迺文), who had been working...

July 2020

Taiwanese planning for retirement earlier than four years ago: survey

A survey released Monday showed that Taiwanese people are saving money or making investment plans in preparation for life after retirement earlier than four years ago as they have less confidence in the deficit-ridden government pension program. According to the survey, conducted by National Chengchi University's (NCCU's) Department of Risk Management and Insurance and Taiwan Life Insurance Co., respondents said they would start saving money for retirement at an average age of 37.87, compared with 43.29 in the...

May 2020

The Effect of Workplace Pensions on Household Saving: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Taiwan

By Tzu‐Ting Yang Population aging causes financial imbalances in pay‐as‐you‐go public pension programs. To remedy this problem, while ensuring the adequacy of retirement savings for employees, many countries complement or substitute public pensions by regulating their workplace pensions. This article exploits a pension reform in Taiwan that has mandated, since 2005, that all private‐sector employers contribute at least 6 percent of an employee's monthly wage to an individual pension account. I use workers in the unaffected sectors as a...

September 2019

Ageing right in Taiwan

The world’s population is getting older and in some places — especially Taiwan — at a relatively quick pace. Nine per cent of the world’s population is over 65 years old. In East and Southeast Asia, that figure jumps to 11 per cent. In Taiwan, 14 per cent of the population is over the age of 65 and will reach 20 per cent by 2026. Meanwhile the working population, aged between 15–64 years, peaked in 2015 and began shrinking...

January 2019

Pension Milestones: China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau take key steps in 2018

Pension experts from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau exchanged views and shared best practices on pensions and retirement savings issues across the region at the 10th Annual Cross Strait Pension Forum hosted by Hong Kong Retirement Schemes Association (HKRSA). The implementation of a Central Provident Fund (CPF) in Macau and the introduction of a tax deferral scheme for private pensions in China were among key milestones in 2018 for the pension sector, according to HKRSA Chairman Janet Li....