The short version
We found no official or academic source on how people in Taiwan date, so this page covers the law and where to get help. Sex by any means against a person's will is a crime, and the age of consent is 16. Filming someone's intimate images without consent, sharing them, or making fake ones is a crime too. On campus, harassment and assault involving a student go to the school's Gender Equity Education Committee (性別平等教育委員會), usually through the Office of Student Affairs, which must tell you within 20 days whether it accepts the case. University staff may not date students they teach, supervise or grade. The 113 protection hotline is free, open 24 hours, with English interpreting. In danger, call 110.
Consent and the law
- Against your will Sexual intercourse by violence, threats, intimidation, hypnosis or "other means against the person's will" (其他違反其意願之方法) is punished with 3 to 10 years in prison (Criminal Code, art. 221).
- Age of consent 16. Sex with someone under 14 is 3 to 10 years; with someone aged 14 to under 16, up to 7 years. Offenders aged 18 or under may have the sentence reduced or waived (arts. 227 and 227-1).
- Abuse of power Sex obtained by using power over someone in your education, supervision or care: 6 months to 5 years (art. 228).
- Intimate images Since 2023: secretly recording sexual images, up to 3 years; recording by force or against the person's will, up to 5 years and a fine of up to NT$500,000; sharing or showing them without consent, up to 5 years; making or spreading fake computer-generated sexual images of a real person, up to 5 years or a fine of up to NT$500,000 (arts. 319-1 to 319-4).
Kaohsiung Medical University (KMU) warns its international students that taking or keeping images of someone's intimate areas without consent is a serious offense that can lead to criminal penalties and affect your visa or residence.
Harassment and stalking
- On campus: when one side is a student and the other is a student, teacher or staff member, sexual assault, sexual harassment and sexual bullying fall under the Gender Equity Education Act (性別平等教育法). Sexual harassment there means unwelcome sexual or gender-related conduct that harms a person's dignity, learning or work. Sexual bullying (性霸凌) means demeaning, attacking or threatening someone over their sex characteristics, gender traits, sexual orientation or gender identity.
- Off campus: the Sexual Harassment Prevention Act (性騷擾防治法) covers conduct "against the person's will". Kissing, hugging or touching intimate parts while the person cannot resist is punishable by up to 2 years in prison or a fine of up to NT$100,000. You can complain within 2 years of learning of it and no later than 5 years after it happened.
- Stalking: under the Stalking and Harassment Prevention Act (跟蹤騷擾防制法), repeatedly watching, following, waiting near someone's home or work, contacting, sending items or misusing their data, against their will and related to sex or gender, is stalking. Police must investigate and can issue a written warning. If it happens again within 2 years, you can ask a court for a protective order. Stalking is punishable by up to 1 year, or up to 5 years if the person carries a weapon. Between current or former partners, the Domestic Violence Prevention Act applies instead.
Staff and students
The Ministry of Education's campus rules (校園性別事件防治準則, in force since March 2024, art. 8) say university staff may not form romantic or sexual relationships with minor students. The same applies to adult students when the staff member holds power over them, such as teaching, supervising, evaluating, managing, counseling or offering work. A staff member who realizes a relationship may break this rule must step back from that role and report it to the school. Art. 9 asks staff and students to respect each other's sexual and bodily autonomy and to avoid unwanted pursuit. Schools must put both articles in their student handbooks.
Reporting on campus
- Who can report The person harmed, their legal representative or carer, or anyone else who knows (檢舉人), to the school the respondent belonged to at the time.
- Where At universities, the Office of Student Affairs (學生事務處) or a unit the school names. A spoken or email report counts if it is recorded and you confirm it by signing.
- Answer The school tells you in writing within 20 days whether it accepts the case. Accepted cases go to the Gender Equity Education Committee within 3 days.
- Investigation Finished within 2 months, which can be extended twice by up to a month each.
- Appeal Within 30 days of receiving the written result, in writing with reasons, once only.
- Confidential Names and details of the people involved, and of the person reporting, are kept confidential, and public announcements may not name them.
- Protection The committee can adjust attendance and grading, reduce contact between the two sides, suspend a teaching or supervising relationship and act against retaliation. Support can include counseling and legal aid.
Good to know: the campus rules don't provide for an interpreter for foreign students. They only ask schools to consider language and cultural differences in campus safety planning. Some schools publish English pages (below).
What named universities publish:
| School | Who to contact | 24 hours or emergency |
|---|---|---|
| NTU (Taipei) | Gender Equity Education Committee, 02-3366-9607 or 3366-9608, gender@ntu.edu.tw (page mostly in Chinese) | Not stated on the page |
| NCCU (Taipei) | Gender Equity Education Committee, 02-2939-3091 ext. 67850 or 62211, gender@nccu.edu.tw (English FAQ) | Night emergency 0919-099119; escort service through the guardroom |
| NCHU (Taichung) | Student Safety Division, Office of Student Affairs, 04-2284-0610 or 04-2284-0544, gender@nchu.edu.tw | 04-2287-0885 |
| NCKU (Tainan) | Gender Equality Committee, 06-275-7575 ext. 50323 to 50325, genderncku@ncku.edu.tw; counseling ext. 50320 | Campus Security Center, ext. 55555 or 06-238-1187 |
| NDHU (Hualien) | Any staff member you trust, the Gender Equity Education Committee or the Student Affairs Office, by email, in writing or in person. Keep copies of documents. | 03-863-2995 or 0937-295-995 |
NCCU's international office also has an English gender equality page, with the Act in English and the reporting procedure.
Help lines
- 113 The Ministry of Health and Welfare's protection hotline (113保護專線), for domestic violence, sexual assault and sexual harassment. Free, 24 hours, every day, from any phone. Mandarin and Taiwanese, with interpreting in English, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Thai and Japanese. Also online chat and SMS. In immediate danger, call 110 first.
- 110 Police.
- 165 The anti-fraud line.
- 1990 The National Immigration Agency's line for foreigners, in English, 24 hours.
Romance scams
Police name fake dating combined with fake investment (假交友投資) as a common fraud. The Criminal Investigation Bureau (January 2026) describes a contact from a dating app who moves the chat to LINE and steers the victim to buy USDT (a cryptocurrency) and use unofficial platforms. Its warning signs: guaranteed returns, payment in virtual currency and unofficial apps. An earlier notice says small early withdrawals build trust, and then "taxes" or "deposits" block you from taking money out. It suggests checking LINE IDs against the 165 fraud list. Call 165 or go to a police station.
Same-sex relationships and marriage
- Since May 24, 2019, two people of the same sex can marry under the Act for Implementation of J.Y. Interpretation No. 748 (司法院釋字第七四八號解釋施行法). The minimum age is 18, the same as for all marriages. The marriage is made in writing with at least two witnesses and registered at a household registration office.
- For a foreign partner, the Department of Household Registration asks for a Chinese name declaration and a marital status certificate verified by an ROC mission abroad. A partner from a country that does not recognize same-sex marriage submits the result of an interview at the overseas mission, plus a marital status certificate from home. Both people appear in person.
Questions
Can a professor date a student in Taiwan?
Not one they hold power over. The Ministry of Education's campus rules say staff may not form romantic or sexual relationships with minor students, or with adult students they teach, supervise, evaluate, manage, counsel or offer work to. A staff member in that position must step back from the role and report it to the school.
What can I do if someone harasses me on campus?
You, or anyone who knows about it, can report it to the school, usually through the Office of Student Affairs, in writing, in person or by email. The school must tell you in writing within 20 days whether it accepts the case, and the investigation is normally finished within 2 months. The 113 hotline also takes reports, 24 hours, with English interpreting. In danger, call 110.
What is the age of consent in Taiwan?
16. Under the Criminal Code, sex with someone under 14 is punished with 3 to 10 years in prison, and with someone aged 14 to under 16, up to 7 years. Any sex against a person's will is a crime at any age.
Can a foreigner marry a same-sex partner in Taiwan?
Yes, with conditions. Same-sex marriage has been legal since 2019. A partner from a country that does not recognize same-sex marriage needs an interview at the ROC mission abroad and a marital status certificate, and both people register in person at a household registration office.
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Sources (23)
Checked November 2026.
Laws (Ministry of Justice database): Criminal Code (amendment history), Gender Equity Education Act (English) and Chinese, Campus Gender Incident Prevention Regulations, Sexual Harassment Prevention Act, Stalking and Harassment Prevention Act, Civil Code art. 980, J.Y. Interpretation No. 748 Act. Government: Executive Yuan on the age of marriage, Department of Household Registration, same-sex marriage, BOCA marriage interview rules, Ministry of Health and Welfare, 113 hotline, NIA 1990 hotline, National Police Agency on dating and investment scams (2026), Criminal Investigation Bureau on LINE investment fraud. Schools: NTU, NCCU gender equity FAQ, NCCU international office, NCHU, NCKU, NDHU counseling center, KMU privacy notice.