According to Art. 29 of the Fraud Crime Hazard Prevention Act of Taiwan, online advertising platform operators that provide services within Taiwan but do not maintain a physical presence, residence, or established branch in the territory are legally required to appoint a legal representative located in Taiwan. This representative must be either a Taiwanese national, a legally registered corporation, or a non-corporate entity with a representative or manager domiciled in Taiwan. The operator must report the full contact details of the appointed representative to the competent authority responsible for industries related to the digital economy. The representative must be authorised to receive legal documents, assist in compliance with fraud prevention regulations, and carry out other statutory duties.
Under Art. 2.5, the term "online advertising platform operators" refers to final-stage platform operators that provide services for posting or disseminating advertisements, collect remuneration, and engage with citizens through online platforms or spaces. It is reported that this provision applies to both domestic and foreign internet platforms, including those related to social media, search engines, news, education or knowledge, dating, video, or similar services, provided they present, post, or deliver advertisements within Taiwan in quantities that meet the thresholds set by the Ministry of Digital Affairs (MoDA). At present, MoDA has designated Google, YouTube, Line, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok as regulated internet platforms. The companies operating these platforms are therefore required to comply with the legal representative appointment requirement in Taiwan.

Under the Statute for Investment by Foreign Nationals, all foreign investments must receive approval from the Investment Commission of the Ministry of Economic Affairs (Art. 8). Foreign investment, as defined by the Statute, includes: (a) holding shares issued by a Taiwanese company or contributing to its capital assets, (b) establishing a branch office in Taiwan, or (c) providing a loan to the invested enterprise in cases of (a) or (b) for more than one year (Art. 4).
According to Art. 7, foreign investment is prohibited in industries that may threaten national security, public order, good customs and practices, or public health, as well as in sectors listed on the negative list. On the other hand, foreign investment in restricted industries must be approved by the Investment Commission under Art. 8. It has been reported that "regulatory and legislative scrutiny of select investments, on grounds unrelated to national security, contributes to ongoing concerns about the predictability of Taiwan's investment approval procedures.

Cross-border transfers of personal data are, in principle, permissible under the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA), unless expressly prohibited or restricted by the relevant central competent authorities. Pursuant to Art. 21 of the Act, such authorities may impose limitations on cross-border data transfers under the following circumstances: (i) where the transfer would compromise significant national interests; (ii) where the transfer is restricted or prohibited under an international treaty or agreement; (iii) where the recipient jurisdiction lacks adequate legal safeguards for personal data, thereby potentially infringing upon the rights or interests of data subjects; or (iv) where the transfer is intended to circumvent the provisions of the PDPA. Notably, this regulatory framework was previously codified in Art. 24 prior to the 2010 amendment of the Act.
On 25 September 2012, the National Communications Commission issued a general directive prohibiting communications enterprises—including telecommunications carriers and broadcasting operators—from transferring subscribers’ personal data to the People’s Republic of China (PRC), citing the inadequacy of data protection legislation in mainland China. Subsequently, in January 2022 and February 2023, the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Ministry of Labour, respectively, issued rulings prohibiting social work offices and human resources agencies from transferring the personal data of their service recipients to the PRC, based on similar concerns regarding insufficient legal protections. Finally, on 30 September 2025, the Ministry of Health and Welfare prohibited drug wholesalers and retailers from transferring personal data to China, Hong Kong and Macao, except in limited circumstances, due once again to the inadequacy of personal data protection laws in those jurisdictions.

Art. 7 of the "Statute For Investment By Overseas Compatriots" excludes overseas compatriot investors from sectors deemed harmful to national security, public order, good customs, or public health, or otherwise prohibited by law, and requires prior approval for investment in restricted industries, with the Executive Yuan responsible for periodically reviewing and updating the relevant classifications. Art. 8 sets out the core screening mechanism by requiring these investors to submit investment applications, including detailed plans and supporting documents, for approval by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, which must decide within one month, or within two months if additional sectoral approval is needed. Art. 9 enforces compliance by obligating investors to remit their approved capital contributions within a prescribed time limit, and empowers the competent authority to revoke investment approvals if the investment is not implemented accordingly, unless an extension is granted for valid reasons. Art. 3 defines overseas compatriot investors as Taiwanese nationals residing abroad who make investments in Taiwan in accordance with this Statute.

Under Art. 73 of the "Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area" of 1992, investment activities by any individual, legal entity, organisation, or institution from Mainland China are prohibited unless expressly permitted by the competent authorities and the Ministry of Economic Affairs. This restriction also applies to companies with investment links with Mainland China. According to Art. 3 of the "Measures Governing Investment Permit to the People of Mainland Area", restrictions apply to companies where individuals, legal entities, organisations, or institutions from Mainland China either (a) directly or indirectly hold more than 30% of the shares or the total contributing amount, or (b) exercise controlling power over the companies. Additionally, investment is prohibited under Art. 8 of the Measures if it results in (a) economic exclusivity, oligopoly, or monopoly, (b) political, social, or cultural sensitivity, or a threat to national security, or (c) a negative impact on national economic development or financial stability.

Under Art. 25 of the Patent Act of 1994, the application form for patents must be filled out in traditional Chinese, including the description, claim(s) and drawing(s). Initially, this information may be submitted in Arabic, English, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, or Spanish. A Chinese translation must be submitted within a specified period, or the patent application shall be dismissed. In addition, according to Art. 11, an applicant who has no domicile or business establishment in the territory of Taiwan shall designate an agent to file patent applications and handle patent-related matters on their behalf. Eligible agents shall be limited to patent attorneys unless otherwise provided for by laws and regulations. Furthermore, non-residents cannot make a payment of any fees directly to the Taiwan Intellectual Property Office by any means, whether it be payment by bank account transfer, credit card, or check. The payment has to be made by an appointed representative, either residing or domiciled in Taiwan, such as a patent attorney.

Taiwan is not a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). However, any applicant from a WTO member who files a patent application in Taiwan based on a PCT application may claim a right of priority if the PCT application is legally sound.

The Copyright Act provides a clear regime of copyright exceptions that follows the fair use model, which enables the lawful use of copyrighted work by others without obtaining permission. Art. 65, as amended in July 2003, lists the acts that shall be noted as the basis for the determination of fair use. In determining whether the exploitation of work complies with the reasonable scope or other conditions of fair use, all circumstances shall be taken into account, and in particular, the following facts shall be noted as the basis for determination: (i) the purposes and nature of the exploitation, including whether such exploitation is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes; (ii) the nature of the work; (iii) the amount and substantiality of the portion exploited in relation to the work as a whole; (iv) effect of the exploitation on the work's current and potential market value.

It is reported that there are notable levels of online copyright piracy through illicit streaming devices or illicit Internet Protocol Television services that unlawfully retransmit telecommunications signals and channels containing copyrighted content via dedicated web portals or third-party applications.

Taiwan has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Taiwan has not signed the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

The Trade Secrets Act provides a framework for effective protection of trade secrets. According to Art. 1, trade secrets include any method, technology, process, formula, program, design, or other information that may be applied in the course of production, sales, or business operations. The information shall be protected only if commercially valuable because of its secrecy and reasonable confidentiality measures have been taken to keep it secret. In addition, according to Art. 15, the protection of trade secrets of foreign nationals is based on the principle of reciprocity. In principle, if a foreign national's home country does not deny protection to the trade secrets of Taiwan nationals, and the foreign national's trade secrets meet the requirements of Taiwan's Trade Secret Act, the foreign national will enjoy the protection of such trade secrets under Taiwan's Trade Secret Act.

Pursuant to Art. 31 of the Telecommunications Management Act entities holding a dominant position in the market are required to share their telecommunications infrastructure with other service providers. In accordance with the definition provided in Art. 3.4, this obligation also applies to passive infrastructure.

According to Art. 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act, direct foreign ownership of telecommunications services can be up to 49%, and total foreign ownership, whether direct or indirect, may not exceed 60%. These restrictions apply to entities that establish public telecommunications networks using telecommunications resources. The Telecommunications Management Act replaced the Telecommunications Act, which provided for a similar requirement for single Type I telecommunications operator (a facilities-based operator) (Art. 12). When the subordinate legislation under the Telecommunications Act will be fully repealed, the National Communications Commission will proceed with the formal repeal of the Act itself.

Chunghwa Telecom, the largest network operator in Taiwan, was originally a fully state-owned enterprise but was partially privatised in 2005, reducing the level of government's ownership. As of 2024, the government reportedly holds a 41% stake in the company. In addition, the government owns approximately 4.4% of the shares of Far Eastone Telecommunications Co., through state-linked entities, including Chunghwa Post Co. (2.9%) and the Labor Pension Fund (1.5%).