English teacher salaries in Taiwan are dependent on region, job type, and if you have chosen a salary or hourly position.
When Do Schools Pay English Salaries in Taiwan?
Most school salaries are paid monthly. It may be a fixed day like the 5th or 10th of the month.
What Is the Hourly Pay for English Teacher Salaries in Taiwan?
As with anywhere, the amount of salary you make, and how you make it depends on where you live and the school you work at.
Pay has been a point of contention for many long term residents as hourly pay has not changed much since the 1990s.
Most schools are going to pay around the 600NTper hour range. There are even schools that pay in the 500 per hour range. Some schools will start you off in the low 600NT/hour range and every year you work at the school, you may receive a 10NT, 20NT, or 30NT range. Some schools may offer no change.
Taipei City is the most expensive place to live in Taiwan, however, hourly wages there are no different that other cities like Kaohsiung or Tainan. In Kaohsiung a 600NT hourly wage can go a longer way that in Taipei City. The economics of this make no sense. However, there are always teachers willing to take a 590NT per hour salary in Taipei just to get some experience, or out of desperation.
How Many Hours Do English Teachers Work Per Week?
In language schools and Buxibans, “full time”teachers may teach 24-30 hours/week. Full Time, according to the Taiwan Education Bureau is only 14 hours per week.
When finding a teaching job, it is a good idea to see how many hours you will actually be teaching AND how many you are expected to work. You may be teaching 60 minutes but prepping 30 minutes. Are you paid for that? You may teach a 40 minute class which includes 20 minutes of prepping time. Teachers need to be clear about their contracts and what schools expect of them.
Salaried Teaching Positions
Usually private K-12 schools, and kindergartens may require teachers to spend a full day at school and receive a set monthly salary. The number of actual teaching hours vary at each school, and often you will have office hours or prep time.
Normally, nowadays, teachers receive hourly pay. However, some teaching positions, especially at private or public elementary schools, will provide a monthly salary. In these cases, office hours and teaching combine together.
Private Tutoring and Part Time Teaching
There are always opportunities for picking up extra teaching hours for one on one private tutoring and part time hours.
These jobs are under the table and payment is usually in cash without any deductions of health or labor insurance.
Private tutoring hourly fees are usually based on experience. Seasoned teachers may charge up to 2,000NT per hour, while newcomers may charge anywhere from 500-700 per hour.
What is Deducted From You Salary?
Schools should deduct health insurance and 18% tax from your salary. Your tax return is dependent on how long you stay in Taiwan in a calendar year.
If you stay over 183 days, the tax drops to 5% and you will get a healthy tax return when you file.
The Bottom Line for English Teacher Salaries in Taiwan
In Taiwan, teachers who are working full time can make from 50,000 to 100,000 NT a month. Again, this depends on where you work and your experience.
Those teachers making salaries in the 100,000NT range are either working at established and accredited private schools, or language schools that are paying them over 700NT per hour in addition to a healthy dose of hours. Also, if you are working a full schedule of afternoon hours, a good way of making extra pay is to work a few morning hours part time at a kindergarten. This will boost your salary nicely.
With a low cost of living, and if you have a goal of saving some cash or paying off a loan, teaching is Taiwan is still a good option.
