Taiwan Company Registration Form - An Introduction

The Taiwan company registration form is a document completed during the application process for registering a new Taiwanese company.

If the application process is approved, authorities stamp this form and issue the company with a registration number.

When dealing with Taiwanese companies, requesting & verifying a copy of their Taiwan company registration form is a useful step to ensure that they are a legitimate business.

What is a Taiwan Company Registration Form?

To register a company in Taiwan, companies must complete a Taiwan company registration form (公司設立登記表) and submit to the Taiwanese authorities handling company registration.

There are actually many different Taiwan company registration forms available, depending on the type of company being registered.

Here are some examples:

• Limited liability company (有限公司)
• Joint-stock company (兩合公司)
• Company limited by shares (股份有限公司)
• General partnership (無限公司)
• Branch of foreign company (外國公司分公司)
• Branch of Mainland China company (大陸地區公司)

Each form is in a similar format and is completed in traditional Chinese characters. They vary in length (typically 2 to 4 pages long) as the content changes depending on the type of company being registered.

However, the first page of each form is fairly consistent and contains the key information about the company's registration. It is this page which is typically provided by Taiwanese companies as proof of registration.

For example, this is what the first page of the Taiwan company registration form for a limited liability company looks like:

What Information is Displayed on a Taiwan Company Registration Form?

As you would expect, there is plenty of information displayed and this can be very useful for getting a better understanding of the business.

Of course the information varies form by form, but from the limited liability company registration form above (which is also used for company mergers), we can find a host of information in 3 different sections.

In the top section of the form from left to right:

• Official Company Seal (公司印章)
• Official Company Legal Representative Seal (代表公司負責人印章)
• Company Pre-check Number (公司預查編號)
• Company Registration Number (公司統一編號)
• Contact Phone Number (公司聯絡電話)
• Investment Type: Overseas Investment / Mainland China Investment / One-person Company (僑外投資事業/陸資/一人公司)
• Scheduled Date of Establishment (預定開業日期)

The middle section of the form contains the following information labeled 1 to 8 in Chinese characters (一，二，三，四，五，六，七，八):

1. Official Company Name (公司名稱)
2. Registered Address (公司所在地)
3. Registered Capital (資本總額)
4. Number of Directors (董事人數)
5. Legal Representative (代表人姓名)
6. Date of Articles of Association (公司章程訂定日期)
7. Capital Details (資本明細)
8. Details of Merged Company (被合併公司資料明細)

• Date Merged (合併基準日)
• Registration Number (統一編號)
• Company Name (公司名稱)

The bottom section of the form contains the following information:

• Date & Reference Number of Registration (核准登記日期文號)
• Date of Establishment (核准登記日期)
• File Number (檔號)

Taiwan Company Registration Authorities

Unlike in Mainland China, where applications must be made to the Administration for Industry and Commerce, Taiwan offers a few different options when registering a company.

Although company registrations are each recorded with the Ministry of Economic Affairs Department of Commerce, the application can also be made with the Ministry of Economic Development and at various local municipal governments, such as Taipei City Government and Kaohsiung City Government.

There is a helpful English language blog which discusses issues regarding registering a company in Taiwan online and the Ministry of Economic Affairs' SME Administration also operates this useful website.

Do Taiwan Companies have a Business License?

Prior to November 2001 Taiwanese companies were issued with a rather attractive business license (經濟部公司執照) which looked like this:

If you are dealing with a Taiwanese company that was registered before then, you may be given a copy of this document.

However, for Taiwan companies registered after 2001, an approved Taiwan company registration form is the closest equivalent.

How Can I Check the Authenticity of a Taiwan Company Registration Form?

To check if a Taiwan Company Registration Form is authentic you can use the online search system of the Department of Commerce, MOEA to find details on the more than 600,000 Taiwanese companies.

Although their website is available in English, it generally should be searched in traditional Chinese, except for registered foreign companies.

A more convenient option is to order a China Checkup Taiwan Essential Verification report. Let our experts research the company and receive our PDF report direct to your inbox.

Our Other Introductions