Everything a foreign buyer in Taichung asks us, in order: whether you are allowed to buy, whether a bank will lend, what it costs, and what happens between offer and keys.
Yes, most foreigners can buy, if their home country lets Taiwanese citizens buy there. That is the "principle of reciprocity" in Article 18 of Taiwan's Land Act. The Ministry of the Interior keeps the official list.
| Status | Countries and regions | Can you buy? |
|---|---|---|
| Fully reciprocal | Japan, South Korea, United States (most states; Oklahoma excluded), United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, most of the EU and many others | Yes |
| Conditionally reciprocal | Hong Kong permanent residents holding only an HKSAR or BNO passport | Yes, same terms as above |
| Separate regime | Mainland China | Permit system, see below |
| Non-reciprocal | Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Brunei, Macau, Iran and others | Generally no |
Two more conditions apply even when your nationality qualifies:
No property purchase, at any price, grants a residence permit. Land registration and immigration are two separate systems. Even an APRC holder is still registered as a foreign owner until they naturalise.
The legitimate routes to long-term residence are employment, marriage or family, investment in a company you establish (not a home), and professional-talent programmes. Get your residence route sorted first: your mortgage, your land-tax rate and your day-to-day life all get easier.
Harder than for locals, but routine if you have a residence permit and Taiwan income. Banks care about repayment ability and stability, not your passport.
| Your situation | What banks typically do |
|---|---|
| ARC/APRC valid 6+ months, salary taxed in Taiwan | Lend 50–70% of price, 15–20 years, rate slightly above local first-home rates |
| ARC/APRC, income from abroad | Lower loan ratio; often ask for a Taiwanese guarantor |
| No residence permit | Most decline. Buyers pay cash or co-borrow with a Taiwanese relative |
Typical documents: passport, ARC, six months of salary transfers or a withholding statement, employment letter, the sale contract, and the land and building registers. We arrange a pre-assessment with a bank before you bid. It helps, but it is not a guarantee: the bank only gives its final decision after the sale contract is signed, so we write a financing clause into the contract so you can withdraw or renegotiate if the approved amount falls short. Banks that commonly lend to foreign buyers include DBS, HSBC and Fubon, and a Taiwanese guarantor greatly helps approval.
Budget roughly 3% of the purchase price for buyer-side costs on a resale apartment. The tax items are calculated on government-assessed values, which are far below market price, so they are smaller than they sound.
| Item | Basis | Who pays |
|---|---|---|
| Deed tax (契稅) | 6% of the assessed building value | Buyer |
| Stamp duty (印花稅) | 0.1% of assessed values | Buyer |
| Registration fee | 0.1% of assessed values | Buyer |
| Land administration agent (代書) | Fixed fee, typically NT$10,000–20,000 per case | Buyer (transfer), seller (mortgage discharge) |
| Escrow (履約保證) | 0.06% of price, usually split | Both |
| Agency fee | Legal cap 6% combined; market practice buyer 1–2%, seller about 4% | Both |
| Mortgage set-up | Bank fee plus 0.1% registration on the mortgage amount | Buyer |
Selling later? The selling guide works the numbers.
With a mortgage, plan for about 3 to 5 months from offer to handover, and longer if documents need authentication abroad.
Four groups that people lump together and that the law treats very differently.
| Buyer | Rule | Main conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Hong Kong permanent resident | Land Act, conditionally reciprocal | Must hold an HK permanent ID and travel only on an HKSAR or BNO passport. Otherwise treated like any reciprocal-country buyer. The same test applies to people who moved to Hong Kong and later became permanent residents. |
| Macau resident | Land Act, not reciprocal | Macau does not allow free private ownership, so the Ministry of the Interior does not permit Macau residents to acquire land rights. |
| Mainland China resident | Cross-Strait Act Article 69 and permit rules | One self-use home per person, no letting, no resale for three years, Ministry of the Interior permit, 10% cap per building community, annual national quota. |
| Vietnamese national | Land Act, non-reciprocal | Generally cannot buy unless naturalised or holding another qualifying status. Assessed individually. |
Cantonese speakers can talk directly to Liu Chia-yu; Vietnamese enquiries also go to her. This section is also available in Chinese for Hong Kong buyers (港澳專頁) and in Japanese (日本語).
Both, as long as reciprocity applies and the land is not one of the seven restricted types (forest, fishing, hunting, salt, mineral, water-source land, and military or border zones). An apartment comes with a share of the land under it, and that share is registered in your name.
You can buy jointly with a Taiwanese spouse, and many couples do. Buying in a friend's name means the friend owns it; we do not recommend it and will not arrange it.
You generally cannot take title. The list changes, and naturalised citizens or people with certain special statuses are assessed individually, so ask us before you give up.
Yes, on the same eligibility terms, but the developer contract and the eventual title transfer both need checking. Since 2023 pre-sale contracts generally cannot be resold before completion.
No. A notarised or consulate-authenticated power of attorney lets our land administration agent sign and file for you. Plan two to three extra weeks for authentication.
This guide is general information based on the Land Act, Ministry of the Interior guidance and market practice as of September 2026. It is not legal or tax advice; your case is confirmed by a licensed land administration agent and your bank.
Most surprises for buyers and tenants from abroad come from these points. Our advisers raise them at the first meeting.
In many countries you get approval in principle before you commit. In Taiwan the bank only gives its final answer after the sale contract is signed and the property is valued. A pre-assessment helps, but it is not a guarantee, so the contract should include a financing clause.
Foreign buyers get approved far more easily with a Taiwanese guarantor. Banks that commonly lend to foreigners include DBS, HSBC and Fubon. Even a positive preliminary estimate is not a 100% approval.
In rural districts some purchases are limited, especially where road access is not legally secured or the land is classed as slopeland. We check zoning, road access and slopeland status before you make an offer.
From offer to handover, a purchase with a bank loan usually takes about 3 to 5 months, longer than many buyers expect.
Adapted from the Chinese guides on our main site, with the same figures and legal references, rewritten for readers who are new to Taiwan.
Offer to keys takes about 6 to 8 weeks. Money moves four times through escrow, and with an 80% loan you need roughly 28 to 33% of the price in cash.
7 min read
Buyer fees add up to roughly 3% of the price on top of the down payment; sellers pay land value increment tax and tax on the gain. Full tables and timeline.
7 min read
Escrow costs about 0.06% of the price, split half and half: NT$4,500 each on a NT$15,000,000 home. Money stays in a third-party account until title transfers.
6 min read
Disclosure statement, offer letter or earnest money, and the sale contract. Buyers may choose the offer letter; agents cannot force earnest money.
6 min read
Refundable in full until the seller signs. After that it is a deposit under Civil Code Article 249: a buyer who backs out forfeits it, a seller returns double.
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Plan on 25 to 30% of the purchase price, not just the 20% down payment. Taxes, agent fees and renovation add 5 to 10% that first-time buyers often miss.
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Banks apply the DBR 22 rule (unsecured debt below 22 times monthly income) and a 40 to 50% payment-to-income cap. Existing loans shrink your loan.
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Resale and new-build homes hand over in 1 to 3 months; pre-sale takes 2 to 4 years. Pre-sale escrow rules were strengthened in May 2026 after stalled projects.
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Water stains, 45-degree cracks, rooftop additions, parking title, and buildings finished 1982 to 1984 (radiation risk). A checklist for a 20-minute viewing.
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New builds are checked against the contract and drawings, with 5% of the price held back until defects are fixed. Resale homes are checked for hidden faults.
6 min readNew lift buildings in Taichung usually carry a 30–35% common-area ratio. Here is why, how to calculate it from the title deed, and when it is too high.
7 min readUnder 100 units is small, 100–300 medium, over 300 a large development. Compare fees, amenities, privacy and resale, and learn the six things to check.
6 min readTaiwan has no official database of stigmatised property. Follow five steps, use the two disclosure forms, and know the 6-month, 5-year and 1-year deadlines.
8 min readNo single official search system exists. The law only requires the disclosure statement to map facilities within 300 m. Six categories and where to check each.
7 min readTaiwan has 36 active faults and 27 declared sensitive areas, about 150 m each side. Three free official systems, the rules that apply, and what to ask.
7 min readAny building to the current code must survive a major quake; dampers and labels are extras. How to check the seismic label, permit date and damper documents.
8 min readRC, SRC and SC differ in what carries the load, not in grade. RC suits up to about 15 floors, SRC 15–25, SC above 25. How to check the register.
6 min readMost wall cracks are plaster shrinkage. Diagonal 45-degree or X-shaped shear cracks on columns and beams need an engineer; 0.2 cm on RC walls is the threshold.
7 min readFind leaks with rainy-day viewings and write them into the contract. After handover you have 6 months from notice and 5 years from handover to claim.
7 min readHomes on industrial land cost 20–30% less because living there is illegal: fines of NT$60,000–300,000, no youth loan, tighter mortgages, weak resale.
7 min readOur main site has 300+ Chinese articles, calculators and project pages. These are the ones behind this page. Your browser's translate button works well on them.
A 15-minute call or LINE chat before you look at listings saves weeks. We tell you what is realistic for your nationality, residence status and budget, then send you homes that fit.