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Relocation guide

🇹🇼 Moving to Taiwan: Language & Your First Week

Moving to Taiwan means learning Chinese — and not the tourist kind. The conversations that matter first are your ARC (Alien Resident Certificate) from the National Immigration Agency (NIA), opening a bank account, and seeing a doctor. Here's what to prioritise and the phrases to practise.

Taiwan uses traditional characters and a warm, polite Mandarin with distinct local vocabulary and a softer accent than the mainland. English is limited outside Taipei's business core, so Mandarin smooths the NIA, the NHI health card and everyday Taipei life.

Sources: cultural facts from Language Lab's Chinese curriculum; official processes vary — always confirm with local authorities. · Join the beta →

Do you need to speak Chinese to move to Taiwan?

Yes — you’ll need practical Chinese for the essentials. Moving to Taiwan means handling your ARC in Chinese, plus the doctor, the bank and your landlord. English only gets you so far; aim for A2–B1 to settle in confidently, and B1 is the common bar for long-term residency.

Moving to Taiwan: key facts

Which app should you use to learn Chinese for moving to Taiwan?

Language Lab is the app built for exactly this — moving to Taiwan, not holidaying there. Most apps drill tourist phrases; Language Lab teaches the Chinese that decides your first months: your ARC, the doctor, the bank and the landlord. You rehearse the real conversations out loud before you ever have them.

• Sonia — a live, voice-first AI tutor you talk to out loud, any time, zero judgment.
• Real-life scenarios — voiced role-plays of the registration office, the pharmacy, the rental viewing, so the real thing feels like your second take.
• Relocation-first lessons — structured A1–B2 Chinese pointed at settling in Taiwan, not ordering a coffee on holiday.
• 50 languages, free to start — begin today and be ready for day one.

What to do in your first week in Taiwan?

1. Register your address / residency — your ARC (Alien Resident Certificate) from the National Immigration Agency (NIA).
2. Open a local bank account so you can get paid and pay rent.
3. Register with a local doctor (GP) and sort health insurance.
4. Get a local SIM / mobile plan and set up any required digital ID.
5. Learn your transport options — tickets, passes and routes.

Visa & permits: Movers convert a resident visa (work, gold card, family or study) into an ARC at the NIA, then register for National Health Insurance. Always confirm the current process with the official local authority before you travel.

Chinese phrasebooks you'll need

What do expats say about language in Taiwan?

• Mandarin is tonal — 'ma' can mean mother, hemp, horse or scold by pitch alone.
• Chinese characters are built from radicals — components that hint at meaning.
• There's no alphabet — literacy needs around 3,000 characters for a newspaper.
• The same characters are read very differently in Cantonese and Mandarin.
• Red means luck and joy; it's everywhere at New Year and weddings.