Will Taiwan’s minimum hourly wage be adjusted in 2025? 3 major impacts you must know

As 2025 is approaching, the issue of adjusting Taiwan’s minimum hourly wage has become a hot topic of social discussion. According to an announcement from the Executive Yuan, starting from January 1, 2025, Taiwan’s minimum hourly wage will be raised from NT$183 to NT$190, and the monthly minimum wage will be raised from NT$27,470 to NT$28,590. This adjustment will directly affect more than 2.57 million workers. Whether you are a worker, a business owner, or a newcomer to the workplace, you cannot ignore the extensive changes brought about by this policy. This article will analyze the background and data of Taiwan’s minimum wage adjustment from an in-depth reporting perspective, and sort out three social and industrial impacts you must know.

Overview of Taiwan’s Minimum Hourly Wage Adjustment in 2025

Minimum hourly wage and monthly wage increase details

According to the review of the Ministry of Labor and the approval of the Executive Yuan, Taiwan’s minimum hourly wage and monthly wage in 2025 will be adjusted as follows:

The increase is 4%, mainly in response to rising prices, rising costs of living and international wage trends.

Affected groups

• Domestic workers: about 2.05 million
• Foreign workers: about 368,000
• Youth and newcomers to society (hourly wage earners, part-time students)
• Grassroots employees in catering, retail, service, manufacturing, cleaning and other industries

3 major impacts you must know

1. Direct Improvement of Workers’ Living Standards

Relieve the pressure of living expenses

Wage increases will help ease the cost of living for working families, especially in the context of price inflation, the basic protection of grassroots workers is more solid. Taking full-time part-time workers as an example, with a monthly working time of 174 hours, after the minimum hourly wage is adjusted in 2025, the minimum monthly income will increase by:

Key point: This amount is higher than the statutory minimum monthly wage, but employers still need to comply with the minimum standard. If the agreed working hours exceed the limit, the pay must be increased proportionally.

Salary structure must be adjusted

• When hourly wages and monthly wages are not adjusted synchronously, employers need to pay special attention to the calculation method to avoid violating the law.
• People who are paid by the hour (such as part-time workers, housewives, and retirees who are re-employed) can receive direct and substantial benefits.

2. Immediate impact on business operating costs

Enterprises must do a good job in 4 aspects of budget planning

1. Increased salary expenses: A comprehensive assessment of employee salary structures is required to ensure that all salaries comply with the new standards.
2. Labor and health insurance premiums will increase: Many social insurance collection standards are based on the minimum wage, and the related burden will also increase.
3. The human resources management system needs to be updated: From salary structure, overtime pay calculation to salary deduction for personal leave, companies are required to keep pace with the times.
4. External contracts (outsourcing, dispatch) synchronize salary increases: It is necessary to ensure that cooperative manufacturers and outsourced personnel also comply with regulations to avoid risks of breaking the law.

The following table summarizes the comparison of business cost items:

Risk of illegal penalties

• If the statutory minimum hourly wage or monthly salary standards are not met, employers may be fined between NT$20,000 and NT$1 million and their names will be made public, and the company's reputation will also be damaged.

3. Long-term impact on social economy and labor-capital relations

Price rise and job market restructuring

• May lead to a slight increase in prices: Since wages are an important component of corporate costs, if businesses increase operating costs, there will be upward pressure on product prices in some industries in the long run.
• Promote industrial upgrading: Wage increases have prompted companies to accelerate automation and digital transformation and improve labor productivity.
• New challenges in labor-management communication: The HR department needs to strengthen communication with employees and accelerate the revision of work rules and labor contracts to avoid disputes.

Improved labor market opportunities

Adjusting the minimum hourly wage will help narrow the income gap between low-wage workers and general employees, and also increase work-study opportunities for grassroots workers. In particular, young people, women and elderly part-time workers, those with lower wages will become the main beneficiaries.

Key regulatory issues that companies and employees should pay attention to

Main responsibilities and compliance matters of both employers and employees:

• Wages must not be lower than Taiwan’s minimum hourly wage and minimum monthly wage.
• Salary deductions for personal leave and overtime pay calculations must be adjusted according to the new standards.
• Unilateral reduction of wages that are higher than the minimum wage is not allowed and must be agreed upon by both labor and management.
• For employees who are subject to the responsibility system of Article 84-1 of the Labor Standards Act, wages must be calculated in proportion to normal working hours.

Additional: Applicable groups and work types

Outlook after the implementation of Taiwan's minimum hourly wage adjustment

The global trend of Taiwan's minimum wage adjustment policy is obvious, and it is expected that it will continue to be fine-tuned based on economic growth rate, inflation and social development in the future. The government, businesses and workers must work together to respond to the new labor environment and make good use of salary increase opportunities to improve the quality of the workforce and job satisfaction. Whether business owners or workers, they must always pay attention to Taiwan’s minimum hourly wage trends and review and adjust the salary structure to create more security for future work and life.

We remind you that after Taiwan’s minimum hourly wage comes into effect in 2025, please check your personal salary slips at any time to see if they comply with legal standards. Companies should immediately review their existing labor cost structure and make adjustments legally and effectively to achieve a win-win situation for both labor and capital and stable development.