I never had an employer that enforced the 20% rule, even when I was teaching kindy years back.

I get paid by many different clients, mostly government ministries. Some deduct nothing while others varyingly deduct 6%, 10% or 20%. I don't care at all since it doesn't make any significant difference to my financial situation.

On a side note, the 20% withholding rule did cause me grief in my very early days in Taiwan more than two decades ago. At that time, I was offered a part-time job at Lee and Li, the biggest and most prestigious local law firm. It was only an editing job, but it had clear potential to lead to higher things, and as I was then just taking a break from my legal career to study Chinese while still planning to return to lawyering later, it fitted my ambitions very nicely. The interview went extremely well until the very end, when the interviewer mentioned that they'd have to deduct 20% of my salary as withholding tax. I'd been teaching English and having just 6% deducted, so I took issue with the interviewer about this, in effect telling him that he was wrong and that they wouldn't need to deduct so much. He was clearly taken aback and rather pissed off, and the upshot was that they called me a couple of days later to inform me that they'd decided to give the job to someone else instead. I kicked myself and greatly regretted my youthful stupidity in throwing away such a good opportunity over such a trivial matter.

But we're talking about a new rule: one that comes into effect in the new year. It may still be up to employers how much they actually withhold each month; I'm not sure. But in any case, if a foreigner leaves Taiwan before completing six months' work in any year, the employer will have to pay 20% tax on his/her earnings.

I just got off the phone with a woman at the Kaohsiung tax bureau. They don't care what kind of visa anyone has, all foreigners are considered non-resident for tax purposes before 183 days. That includes JFRV, by the way, which I specifically asked about. She said it also applies to interest from investments, which answers the question I started in another thread. She told me it does not apply to company profit...but my secretary just showed me a paper stating that non-residents who own a company here must pay 30% business tax.

All I know for myself is that I guess I'll give up the fun of legally owning a business here, and go back to the tried and true method of registering everything in my wife's name, and being "unemployed". What a big pile of crap.

What she also said is that all employers are required to withold 20%. If they don't, and the employee leaves before 183 days, the employer will be held responsible to pay the balance. What the heck?

I guess I left at the right time. I want more than NHI for 20% taxation.

So it still is up to the employer how much to withhold then?

I remember hearing something about how bad the DPP was for foreigners and how peachy-keen the blues were gonna be.

But aside from the first year of marriage when it's optional, all spouses must file jointly. How's that going to work?

If you work for a company they will deduct 20% regardless of your status. If you are self-employed (freelance, whatever) but paid by Taiwanese companies they will also deduct 20% (as one of my old publishers always does). If you have your own business I can't see how it will work as yes you will file jointly with your wife and I can't see how they can force you to deduct 20% from yourself every month.

In any case, wtf is going on with this new law?

It means you'll either be getting a refund for the 14% "over" tax that you paid on income you earned for the first half of the year, or picking up the slack on taxes your spouse may have underpaid on her/his income.

For tax deducted from wages or income, it really doesn't make a difference if you are married or not. Tax is deducted from income at the time of payment. You pay on income you earn, she pays on what she earns. Come time to file, whatever you both paid throughout the year gets lumped in the same boat.

Look on the bright side. This just means a bigger bonus come August.