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kiwitraveller
Joined: 24 Jun 2004
Posts: 8
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 Posted: Thu Jul 08, 2004 1:44 am Post subject: tax and accommodation questions |
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Hi everyone, probably soon to accept a job with KOJEN teaching for 550 per hour in Taipei. Just wondering about tax, how much tax would the government take from that? Also, I went through a canadian recruiter called footprints, would they take a cut from what i get paid?
For accomodation, i'm planning to live and work in downtown Taipei, if that's possible. Is there an areas where westerners tend to live? Would it be possible to get shared accomodation with other westerners, or Taiwanese that I can communicate with in english? I plan to teach quite a few hours, so it would be nice to get a break from speaking clearly and mumble away as us new zealanders do.
Any advice much appreciated! |
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matchstick_man
Joined: 21 May 2003
Posts: 244
Location: Taiwan
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| Posted: Thu Jul 08, 2004 2:15 am Post subject: |
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Tienmu is the area where a lot of foreigners live as for talking in your natural kiwi accent...........head to one of the sports bars to meet aussies and kiwis as you will have to talk slowly and clearly to a lot of North Americans (no offense intended)as I suspect a large number of foreign residents in Teinmu are N.A>
A recruiter is likely to cut of your pay however there is also a possibility that they will be paid by the school. Some schools take the fees out of your wages and others don't.
In Taipei you would have been best staying in a hostel and then looking for work. |
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matchstick_man
Joined: 21 May 2003
Posts: 244
Location: Taiwan
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| Posted: Thu Jul 08, 2004 2:16 am Post subject: |
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| And the tax is 20 % for the first six months and then it goes down to around 10. |
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markholmes
Joined: 21 Jun 2004
Posts: 661
Location: Wengehua
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| Posted: Thu Jul 08, 2004 5:52 am Post subject: |
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Do you know you'll be working downtown? Kojen have schools on the edge of Taipei too (I worked in Neihu / Donghu school on the northeast fringe). I don't think they give you an option as to where you will work, they just tell you.
Kojen has loads of teachers. Somebody is bound to be moving out so you can move in. I wouldn't worry about that too much. Some of the teachers live in Kojen apartments. The apartments are supposed to be for new teachers when they first turn up, but I know two of them where the teachers had been there over three months. Most of them are quite nice, except one that was a total dump.
First six months you will pay tax ay 20% then it drops (I thought to 6% but it could be ten. If you are in the country more 183 days in the year then the difference between 20% and 10% will be refunded to you the next year (about April). If you are not in the country 183 days the government gets to keep the whole 20%.
In other words get on the plane and arrive here before July 28th (ish) and don't leave until after new year.
A lot of foreigners live in Tienmu, but that isn't the downtown area and tends to be more expensive for accomodation.
Don't make any decisions about where your going to live until you know where you are going to work. There are pockets of foreigners everywhere and you'll probalby end up socialising with your work colleagues, both foreign and Chinese. |
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kait
Joined: 17 Jun 2004
Posts: 93
Location: Lungtan, Taiwan
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| Posted: Thu Jul 08, 2004 7:30 pm Post subject: |
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| Do you have to be employed for 183 days in the year, or is it enough to be present in the country? |
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markholmes
Joined: 21 Jun 2004
Posts: 661
Location: Wengehua
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| Posted: Thu Jul 08, 2004 8:44 pm Post subject: |
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| Presentin the country as per the dates stamped in your passport. |
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Fortigurn
Joined: 29 Oct 2003
Posts: 390
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| Posted: Fri Jul 09, 2004 8:46 am Post subject: |
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So that means a visa run some time in the middle will blight your 183 days? Where can I get Chinese classes?  |
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Fortigurn
Joined: 29 Oct 2003
Posts: 390
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| Posted: Sat Jul 10, 2004 8:33 am Post subject: |
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| Fortigurn wrote: |
| So that means a visa run some time in the middle will blight your 183 days? Where can I get Chinese classes? |
This is a serious question. I want to be able to stay here until my ARC comes through. I do not want to do a visa run. Where's the best place to get Chinese classes? |
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wood
Joined: 13 Apr 2004
Posts: 202
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| Posted: Sat Jul 10, 2004 10:02 am Post subject: |
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| Fortigurn wrote: |
| Fortigurn wrote: |
| So that means a visa run some time in the middle will blight your 183 days? Where can I get Chinese classes? |
This is a serious question. I want to be able to stay here until my ARC comes through. I do not want to do a visa run. Where's the best place to get Chinese classes? |
If you have a visa, you ought to be able to get permission to work here. 20% isn't much to pay for tax anyway. If you're legally employed, you shouldn't have a problem. If you choose the illegal route, you won't pay any taxes. If you do, it's just your employer ripping you off. I think people make too much of a big deal about the 183 day thing. Taxes are generally low here. And it's relatively easy to get illegal--tax free--work. If you're pinching pennies to the degree that you're worried about taxes, maybe you should think again about what you're doing. |
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Fortigurn
Joined: 29 Oct 2003
Posts: 390
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| Posted: Sat Jul 10, 2004 11:45 am Post subject: |
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| wood wrote: |
| Fortigurn wrote: |
| Fortigurn wrote: |
| So that means a visa run some time in the middle will blight your 183 days? Where can I get Chinese classes? |
This is a serious question. I want to be able to stay here until my ARC comes through. I do not want to do a visa run. Where's the best place to get Chinese classes? |
If you have a visa, you ought to be able to get permission to work here. 20% isn't much to pay for tax anyway. If you're legally employed, you shouldn't have a problem. If you choose the illegal route, you won't pay any taxes. If you do, it's just your employer ripping you off. I think people make too much of a big deal about the 183 day thing. Taxes are generally low here. And it's relatively easy to get illegal--tax free--work. If you're pinching pennies to the degree that you're worried about taxes, maybe you should think again about what you're doing. |
Thanks wood, that was a good reply. I'm legally hired, and will be working legally. I came in on the 30 day 'visa free' status, however, and this means that I'll have to leave the country before my ARC is processed - affecting my 20% tax thing.
Now I don't mind paying taxes (hey, I was paying 38% back in Australia), and I certainly have no intention of avoiding them. And I'm happy paying 20% for my first 183 days. But I did think I was going to be able to switch to the 10% rate after that 183 days without doing a visa run (I had been told that I could apply for the 60 day visa while I was in Taiwan - apparently not).
It just irks me that I was given the wrong information, and will now have to wait until the end of the year (paying 20% tax), then another 183 days after that to pay 10%, and still not get a refund. If there is a way to avoid this, I am up for it (as long as it's legal, like Chinese lessons). |
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markholmes
Joined: 21 Jun 2004
Posts: 661
Location: Wengehua
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| Posted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 6:25 am Post subject: |
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Actually you won't be paying 10% at the end of the year, you will be paying 20% for the first 183 days of next year too. The difference is that next year you will be able to claim the extra back.
Tax is a fairly big deal. The first year we were in Taiwan my wife and I claimed back NT$160,000 which is a significant amount of money. |
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Fortigurn
Joined: 29 Oct 2003
Posts: 390
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| Posted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 4:43 pm Post subject: |
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| markholmes wrote: |
| Actually you won't be paying 10% at the end of the year, you will be paying 20% for the first 183 days of next year too. The difference is that next year you will be able to claim the extra back. |
That is the depressing news I didn't want to hear. And there is no way around this? I am really annoyed, I thought I had this totally sorted, we booked our tickets specifically with this in mind, and arrived in Taiwan with plenty of time to get within the deadline, now we have to go out again and ruin it all.
| Quote: |
| Tax is a fairly big deal. The first year we were in Taiwan my wife and I claimed back NT$160,000 which is a significant amount of money. |
That sounds like a big deal to me. |
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Fortigurn
Joined: 29 Oct 2003
Posts: 390
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| Posted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 6:01 pm Post subject: |
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Just found this on Tealit:
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Q: I am waiting to get to 183 days, but I have to leave the country, will that reset the count to zero?!
A: No. The counting is cumulative. If you stayed for 3 months, left for a month and came back, your first three months will still count toward your 183 days for that year. |
So a same day visa run return flight to HK might work? We arrived on June 29. |
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markholmes
Joined: 21 Jun 2004
Posts: 661
Location: Wengehua
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| Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 5:41 am Post subject: |
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It is possible to do a visa in a day. As I understand it the days that count towards your 183 days are those spent in the country inclusive of the dates stamped in your passport.
Lets say you go off to Hong Kong for the day on a visa run. Lets say you leave on August 28th and also return on August 28th. Technically I believe (somebody correct me if I'm wrong) but this day should still count towards your 183 days. Thus no days have been lost.
It might just work. |
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markholmes
Joined: 21 Jun 2004
Posts: 661
Location: Wengehua
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| Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 5:43 am Post subject: |
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By the way, I don't believe the recruiter is taking a cut of your pay. Kojen will pay him a fee.
Last edited by markholmes on Tue Jul 13, 2004 3:46 am; edited 1 time in total |
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