From Temporality to Latent Permanency: The Construction of Skill and Labor in Taiwan's Migration Policy Transformation

As of 2024, Taiwan holds the distinction of having the world's lowest fertility rate, resulting in a growing demand for skilled workers in recent years. Simultaneously, over 700,000 blue collar migrant workers are employed in the country, serving as the primary source of affordable labour for secondary industries. As a relatively new participant in the global competition for talent, Taiwan faces significant challenges in establishing competitive advantages, particularly in contrast to the ‘rising starts’ in the global race for skills(Cerna & Czaika, 2020). The discourse on the global competition for talent and talent management has predominantly focused on Western countries, advanced economies, or rapidly globalizing economies (Kerr, 2018; Parsons et al., 2020; Yeoh & Lam, 2016). The case of Taiwan, which is currently transitioning from a provisional migration scheme characterized by its "permanent temporariness" (Meeus et al., 2019) to a more permanent framework offering limited opportunities for long-term residency, provides valuable insights into the complex processes underlying migration policy formation. This paper first identifies key strategies employed by the Taiwanese government to address the demand for skilled workers, including engaging with the diaspora—ethnic Chinese residing in Asia—and implementing state-sponsored study programs to facilitate intra-Asia mobility. To attract new skilled workers and retain trained talent, the government specifically targets the Chinese diaspora—primarily from Malaysia and Indonesia—as well as students from Southeast Asian countries with strong economic ties to Taiwan, through various study programmes, scholarships, and revised migration schemes. This transition is a field of struggle co-produced by various actors, including the state, intermediary agencies, industries facing labour shortages, and the public, which often holds negative attitudes toward non-Western migrants due to their association with migrant labour. Secondly, through an analysis of legislative debates and governmental documents on two key immigration acts—the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (2017) and the draft of the New Economy Immigration Bill (not yet passed)—as well as the Long-term Retention of Skilled Foreign Workers Program (2022), which could potentially allow migrant workers to qualify for permanent residency in Taiwan, this paper explores the policy logics underpinning these initiatives with special focus on the social constructions of skills (Lan, 2022; Liu-Farrer et al., 2021). It further highlights the embedded racism and classism directed toward foreigners from Southeast Asian countries. This paper argues that the formulation of migration policies is a context-dependent process constituted by distinctive state regulatory frameworks, local labour market dynamics, and specific economic developments, necessitating the adoption of a more innovative analytical approach.