A TikTok Taiwan Subsidiary? What the News Tells Us About Company Formation

Has TikTok set up a company in Taiwan? A company registered in Taichung, "Sheng Yang International Biotech Co., Ltd.," recently had its name change approved to "ByteDance Taiwan Co., Ltd." — and its English name on file with the Bureau of Foreign Trade was also changed to "Tiktoktaiwan CO., LTD."

Did TikTok quietly land in Taiwan?

But according to public data from the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Department of Commerce, as of the query date (December 20, 2022), the company's paid-in capital was NT$12 million, with the original Taiwanese directors and supervisors holding NT$11 million — a 92% stake.

Without an actual transfer of shares, you can't necessarily conclude this is an affiliated entity or a case of trademark squatting (though it's certainly suspicious, lol).

According to the news, the matter is reportedly under further investigation regarding possible violations.

When forming a company, there are generally three things you need to nail down:

Company name
Capital and shareholders
Registered address

First, company name pre-check: this is reviewed by the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Central Regional Office under the Regulations Governing Pre-Check of Company Names and Business Items, mainly to screen out duplicate or inappropriate names.

As long as a name falls within the rules, the rest is up to your creativity.

Next, for capital and shareholders: if any shareholder is not a Taiwanese individual or company — regardless of nationality — approval from the Investment Commission of the Ministry of Economic Affairs is required before they can invest in Taiwan.

That's why foreign or Chinese investment into Taiwan generally takes longer, since it needs to go through the Investment Commission's review.

(A typical Taiwanese company can be approved in as little as one day; foreign-invested or Chinese investment cases can take anywhere from 2 to 12 months.)

As for registered address: if the company is registered in Taipei City, it must first go through a "business location pre-check" to confirm the address complies with urban planning and building management regulations. Outside of Taipei City, there's currently no such requirement.

With technology evolving rapidly, and after being tested by the pandemic, many new business models have emerged, and entrepreneurs are finding that you can get everything done with just a computer.

But under current law, companies still need a physical registered address, which is why it's common to register a company at a "home office," or to rent a registered address from a business center.

A company's actual place of business doesn't necessarily match its registered address — which is why news reports sometimes describe reporters visiting a registered address and finding it empty, or tucked away inside someone's home.

Online sellers, similarly, often don't need an actual place of business, so when they need to form a company, they commonly register it at their home address.

If you have more questions about company formation, capital requirements, or foreign investment into Taiwan, feel free to leave a comment or contact us!

Set up your company with Chia Hsin — steady growth, bigger paychecks