Policy and institutions · Taiwan

Taiwan drafts rules to recognise foreign credits from 2021 or later for up to 5% of carbon fee emissions

On 12 November 2026, Taiwan's Ministry of Environment (MOENV) pre-announced draft rules for recognising foreign emission reduction credits.

Only credits generated in 2021 or later, with host-country authorisation and a corresponding adjustment under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, would qualify.

Existing carbon fee rules already cap foreign credit use at 5% of chargeable emissions and exclude high carbon-leakage firms.

12 Nov 2026Policy and institutionsTaiwanPublished 14 Nov 2026
Taipei skyline at dusk, seen from Elephant Mountain
Taipei skyline at dusk, seen from Elephant Mountain. Photo: Debjyoti Bardhan, CC BY 2.0, source. Resized only; no other change.
Report

What happened

On 12 November 2026, MOENV and its Climate Change Administration published a draft of the Foreign Emission Reduction Credit Recognition Rules. Article 27 of the Climate Change Response Act requires foreign credits used against the domestic carbon fee or a future cap-and-trade obligation to meet recognition rules set by MOENV. The draft sets out the application procedure and disclosure duties. Only 3 groups may apply: carbon fee payers, entities under cap-and-trade, and bodies designated by the central financial authority.

On eligibility, the draft follows Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. Credits must have been generated in 2021 or later, be consistent with the host country's nationally determined contribution (NDC), and be reflected in its national greenhouse gas inventory or transparency report. The host Party must authorise the credits and complete a corresponding adjustment, so that the same reduction is not also counted by the host. 3 project types are excluded: nuclear power, controversial logging and forestry projects, and measures that prolong fossil fuel use. MOENV says it plans to publish a positive list of eligible project types or methodologies at a later stage.

Recognised credits could be used only for legal obligations, namely carbon fee deduction or cap-and-trade offsets. They could not be used for corporate ESG claims or product carbon-neutral claims. The project source, project type, recognised quantity and cancellation of every recognised credit would be published on a government platform. MOENV cited Switzerland, Japan and Singapore as countries that already allow regulated firms to use foreign credits within an Article 6 framework. Comments may be filed within 30 days from the day after the draft is published in the Executive Yuan Gazette, or at a public hearing.

Context

Background

The carbon fee rests on the Climate Change Response Act, amended on 15 February 2023, which also sets a goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. The general rate of NT$300 per tCO2e was announced on 21 October 2024 and took effect on 1 January 2025. The fee applies to plants in power, gas supply and manufacturing whose emissions reach 25,000 tCO2e a year. In the first payment round, 461 plants at 240 companies had paid by May 2026.

The Regulations Governing the Collection of Carbon Fees already provide two offset routes. Domestic credits may be deducted up to 10% of chargeable emissions, and credits from voluntary or offset projects deduct at a ratio of 1.2. Foreign credits recognised by MOENV may cover up to 5% of chargeable emissions, but not for high carbon-leakage firms. Until now, the rules for how a foreign credit is recognised had not been issued, so the 5% route had no working procedure. The new draft fills that gap. Over the longer term, the Act points to a cap-based emissions trading system, which is why the draft also covers cap-and-trade entities.

Data

How it compares

Limits on credit use in five Asian compliance schemes

Source: Laws & Regulations Database of the ROC (Ministry of Justice); Ministry of Environment (MOENV), Climate Change Administration; National Environment Agency (NEA); National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS); METI (Industrial Structure Council); METI; Korea Ministry of Government Legislation, National Law Information Center (law.go.kr); Official Gazette of Viet Nam (congbao.chinhphu.vn); Government Electronic Newspaper of Viet Nam (baochinhphu.vn). Checked 2026-11-12. Limits are legal ceilings as stated in each source; bases differ (chargeable emissions, taxable emissions, actual emissions, surrender obligation, allocated allowances) and are not directly comparable. Taiwan's vintage condition is in the 12 November 2026 draft and is not yet in force.

Table of the same figures
SchemeCredit use limitEligible credits (as stated in official sources)
Taiwan carbon feeForeign credits up to 5% of chargeable emissions; domestic credits up to 10%Foreign credits recognised by MOENV; draft requires 2021 or later vintage
Singapore carbon taxUp to 5% of taxable emissions, from 1 January 2024International carbon credits meeting Article 6 rules plus seven principles
Japan GX-ETS10% of each year's emissionsJ-Credits and JCM credits
Korea K-ETSUp to 10% of the surrender obligation; exact limit set in the allocation planOffset credits (KOC/KCU)
Viet Nam carbon marketUp to 30% of a facility's allocated allowances4 sources: domestic mechanism, CDM, JCM, Paris Agreement Article 6
Ahead

What is next

No further dates are set in the official texts we checked.

Record

Sources

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