In recent years, Taiwan has attracted many major international firms to the island to invest in and build facilities for research and development. This success is due to Taiwan's many strengths, including its key position in the global semiconductor industry, high-quality R&D personnel, comprehensive industrial clusters, outstanding innovation capabilities, a complete intellectual property rights management system, and effective handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, about 30 large international firms have set up R&D centers in Taiwan, investing a total of about NT$60 billion (US$1.9 billion) and generating an estimated annual production value of nearly NT$340 billion (US$10.9 billion). Among those R&D facilities, Google's data center is the largest in Asia, and Microsoft's AI R&D center is the first of its kind in Asia.
Three main strategies
■ Expand R&D subsidies: Promote the Pioneers for Innovation Leadership on Technology Program to attract leading international firms to establish R&D centers in Taiwan. Promote the Global Innovation Partnership Initiatives Program to incentivize innovative R&D in Taiwan by complementary foreign companies that share mutual benefits with domestic industries. These programs will encourage foreign businesses to jointly invest in forward-looking technologies with domestic partners.
■ Strengthen talent cultivation: Establish colleges for the study of semiconductor technology and other fields of national interest to foster a highly skilled science and technology workforce. Implement the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals that provides specialist workers with a four-in-one Employment Gold Card that combines work permit, residence visa, Alien Resident Certificate and re-entry permit.
■ Offer tax incentives: Provide tax credits for R&D investment along with enterprise tax incentives. Offer relevant tax benefits to companies that establish a presence in science parks and export processing zones.