When a Taiwan bank account is listed as a warning account

A warning account (警示帳戶) is a deposit account that a court, prosecutors' office or judicial police authority has told the bank to flag because a criminal investigation needs it. The definition is in Article 3 of the Regulations Governing Deposit Accounts and Suspected Illegal or Apparently Unusual Transactions (存款帳戶及其疑似不法或顯屬異常交易管理辦法, "the Deposit Account Regulations"). Under Article 5, the bank then suspends every transaction function on the account and sends incoming remittances back to the remitting bank. Other deposit accounts held by the same person are "derived control accounts" (衍生管制帳戶) under Article 3; under Article 5 the bank must immediately suspend their ATM card, phone and online transfer and other electronic payment functions, and return incoming remittances.

The rules make no distinction for foreigners. An account opened with an Alien Resident Certificate or a passport is frozen the same way, which usually means salary deposits, rent transfers and card payments stop together. Ask the bank which authority filed the notice and for any case reference; every later step runs through that authority.

Who can lift the restriction

The bank cannot. Article 10(1) allows the bank to lift a warning account's restrictions only when the original notifying authority tells it to, or when the warning term runs out. A holder who believes the listing is wrong takes the matter to that authority under Article 9(2); the bank assists when necessary. In practice that means explaining to the investigating authority how the account came to be used, supported by records such as chat logs and the holder's own ordinary transactions.

Derived control accounts, and accounts the bank flagged under its own criteria for suspicious or unusual activity, follow a different rule. Article 10(2) requires the bank to lift those restrictions immediately once it verifies that the suspicious circumstances no longer exist. So the first question is whether your account is the warning account itself or a derived account.

Under Article 9(1), a warning lasts two years from notification and then lapses automatically. If the warning needs to continue, the original authority must re-notify the bank before the term ends. Only one extension is allowed, for no more than one year.

Victims' remaining funds

Money a scam victim sent into the account is handled differently from the holder's own salary, and returning it is not part of lifting the warning. Which rules apply depends on when the account was flagged.

For accounts notified on or before 31 March 2025 (ROC year 114), Article 11 of the Deposit Account Regulations governs. The bank first tries to agree with the holder on returning the victim's money, with police help where needed, and can reach victims through the remitting bank; victims apply with identification, the police case-acceptance certificate and an affidavit.

For accounts notified on or after 1 April 2025, the Regulations Governing Financial Institutions and Virtual Asset Service Providers on Anti-Fraud Compliance (金融機構及提供虛擬資產服務之事業或人員防制詐欺犯罪危害應遵循事項辦法) apply. Under Article 52, once judicial police send the bank a written notice to return the remaining funds, copied to the holder, the bank may return them after the victim submits ID, the police case-acceptance certificate and an affidavit. The bank "may" return the funds; the rule does not make return automatic.

Article 53 lists those three documents. The affidavit (切結書) is the victim's written undertaking to bear all legal liability if the claim is false. The bank works out which victim funds are still in the account by counting deposits in reverse chronological order, so money already withdrawn is not covered. Under Article 69, if the bank considers the matter a suspected transaction dispute or a complex case, this return procedure does not apply and the matter goes through the courts.

A victim seeking full compensation, rather than whatever balance is left, needs a civil claim. One route is described in Accessory civil suits for fraud victims. Lifting the warning or returning a balance does not settle the amount of damages.

If you are outside Taiwan

Before an agent files anything with the notifying authority, the bank or the police on your behalf, ask that office whether your power of attorney and identity documents need translation or authentication. Keep copies of the bank's notice, account statements and chat and transfer records before you leave. Hiring a Taiwan lawyer from abroad covers the engagement process.

When writing in, please attach the bank's notice and the account's transaction history. 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

• Regulations Governing Deposit Accounts and Suspected Illegal or Apparently Unusual Transactions, Articles 3, 5, 9, 10 and 11 (Financial Supervisory Commission, FL039015).
• Regulations Governing Financial Institutions and Virtual Asset Service Providers on Anti-Fraud Compliance, Articles 52, 53 and 69 (FL104315).

Verified: 2 October 2026