Getting a Taiwan residential deposit back as a foreign tenant

For most residential leases in Taiwan, the deposit may not exceed two months' rent. Article 7 of the Rental Housing Market Development and Regulation Act sets that cap and tells the landlord when the money must come back: once the lease has ended, the tenant has returned the dwelling, and the tenant has paid any debts under the lease. All three must be met. The landlord then returns the deposit in full, or whatever is left after setting off those debts.

The Act does not cover every rental. Article 4 excludes leases shorter than thirty days, housing let for leisure or tourism, and housing run by the government, a government-established body, or a cooperative. Separately, for urban housing, Land Act Article 99 caps security money at two months' rent and lets the tenant apply any excess toward rent.

A clause demanding three or four months' deposit does not change these limits. The part above the applicable cap can support a set-off against rent or a claim for its return.

When the landlord may take the dwelling back

The answer depends on whether the lease has a fixed term.

If it does not, Land Act Article 100 bars the landlord from reclaiming the dwelling unless one of six grounds exists: the landlord needs it for self-use or rebuilding; the tenant sublet in breach of Civil Code Article 443(1); rent arrears reach two months or more after the deposit is applied; the tenant uses the dwelling illegally; the tenant breaches the lease; or the tenant damages the dwelling or its fixtures and does not pay reasonable compensation.

Arrears alone do not let the landlord end the lease on the spot. Under Civil Code Article 440, the landlord must demand payment within a reasonable period and may terminate only if the tenant still does not pay; for housing, the arrears must also reach two months' rent, and if the rent was agreed to be paid at the start of each period, the landlord may terminate only after payment is more than two months late. Court precedent applies this demand requirement when a landlord relies on the arrears ground in Land Act Article 100 (precedents on Land Act Art. 100).

Supreme Court Precedent 37-Shang-7729 (1948), listed on the same precedents page, and Judicial Yuan Interpretation Yuan-Jie No. 3489, as cited in other precedents on that page, read Article 100 as governing leases without a fixed term. A fixed-term lease ends when the term expires (Civil Code Article 450). If the tenant keeps living there after expiry and the landlord does not promptly object, Civil Code Article 451 treats the lease as continuing for an indefinite term, and Article 100 then applies.

During a fixed term, an early-termination clause may be limited if it departs from the mandatory and prohibited terms for standard residential leases published by the government (Executive Yuan page). Article 10 of the Act sets out the cases in which a landlord may terminate early during the lease term: the tenant damages the dwelling or its equipment and neither repairs it nor pays reasonable compensation; the tenant is in arrears of two months' rent or more on rent or charges and still does not pay after a demand within a reasonable period; the tenant sublets without the landlord's written consent; the landlord must take the dwelling back in order to rebuild; or another statute allows early termination. The landlord must give written notice with supporting evidence 30 days before termination, or three months before termination for rebuilding.

Disputing deductions

Deposit disputes are usually decided on paper and photos: move-in and move-out pictures or video, the handover checklist recording furniture, walls and appliances, rent and utility transfers, chats asking for repairs, and proof that the termination notice reached the landlord. Each deduction the landlord claims should match a ground in the lease or the law and a loss that actually occurred.

Article 12 of the Act requires both parties to inspect the dwelling and its equipment together at handover. If one side ignores a notice giving a reasonable period to attend, the handover is treated as done. For belongings left behind after handover, unless the parties agreed otherwise, the landlord may set a reasonable period for the tenant to collect them; if the tenant does not, the items are treated as abandoned and the disposal cost may be deducted from the deposit, with any shortfall claimable from the tenant.

Either the landlord or the tenant may apply to the municipal or county (city) government for mediation of a residential lease dispute, free of charge (Article 16). If mediation fails, the next steps are court mediation or a civil lawsuit.

Instructing a Taiwan lawyer to send a demand letter or handle mediation from overseas is covered in Hiring a Taiwan lawyer from abroad. When writing, please include the lease, move-in and move-out photos, the deposit amount and the landlord's contact details. Contact Attorney Wei Tseng (曾雋崴), Hovering International Law Firm: wei@hoveringlaw.com.tw. Address: 7F-2, No. 35, Sec. 1, Chengde Rd., Datong Dist., Taipei City 103, Taiwan (103 臺北市大同區承德路一段35號7樓之2).

Official sources

• Rental Housing Market Development and Regulation Act: Art. 4, Art. 7, Art. 10, Art. 12, Art. 16.
• Land Act Art. 99, Art. 100.
• Interpretations and precedents on Land Act Art. 100 (Yuan-Jie No. 3489; Supreme Court 37-Shang-7729).
• Civil Code Art. 440, Art. 450, Art. 451.
• Executive Yuan page on mandatory and prohibited terms for standard residential leases.

Verified: 2 October 2026