tax time!
Just like last year, I took the tax forms mailed to me (and those generated by the company I work for) to the Ximen Finance Ministry office. (It was beastly hot and the tax office is a 15-minute walk from the MRT station.) The section for foreigners is well-marked, with English-speaking helpers at each station. They help fill out a paper form, do a series of calculations, and voila! The total (refund or amount owed) pops up. Next, you wait your turn to speak with a professional tax preparer who checks the helpers work and does the final calculations.
Last year I got a refund. This year, I made 32,000 NT (~1000USD) too much to qualify for the 12% tax bracket, darn it. When the helper told me I was in the 20% tax bracket, I said “good for Taiwan” and she smiled. Of course, that “extra” pay was eaten up by what I owed. Oh well…
To pay what I owed, I walked 10 steps to a payment counter. They took my ATM card and within minutes, I had paid my taxes owing. Back to the tax preparer who printed a lovely blue “certificate of taxes paid” to be used when I file my US taxes next year.
Despite the fact that today was the last day to file taxes, I was in and out in less than 45 minutes!
Asia's best kept secret... 