Newsletter
Amendments to the Regulations of Leaves for Workers
Amendments to the Regulations of Leaves for Workers
Susan Lo/Gloria Chu
On December 9, 2025, the Ministry of Labor promulgated amendments to the "Regulations on Leaves for Workers," which shall take effect on January 1, 2026. The amendments primarily address provisions concerning personal leave, full-attendance bonuses, and sick leave.
The key amendments are as follows:
1. Employees are permitted to take personal leave to provide direct care for family members and may take such leave in hourly increments.
Article 7 of the "Regulations of Leaves for Workers" has been amended to add a new second paragraph explicitly permitting employees to take personal leave in hourly increments for the purpose of providing direct care to family members, including, but not limited to, elderly relatives and young children.
2. Employers shall not deduct full-attendance bonuses due to the aforementioned personal leave; however, such bonuses shall be calculated pro rata based on the number of sick leave days taken.
Article 9 of the "Regulations of Leaves for Workers" has been amended to stipulate that, in addition to existing leave categories such as marriage leave, bereavement leave, and work-related injury sick leave, employers shall not withhold full-attendance bonuses when employees take personal leave to provide direct care for family members.
Article 9 currently stipulates that employers shall not withhold full-attendance bonuses payable to employees who take sick leave, rather than maternity leave, due to miscarriage within the first three months of pregnancy. The proposed amendments further provide that, in the case of sick leave, full-attendance bonuses shall be calculated on a pro rata basis according to the number of sick leave days taken.
3. A new provision has been introduced to safeguard employees’ rights to take sick leave.
Article 9-1 is hereby enacted to protect employees who take no more than ten (10) days of sick leave within a year from any adverse treatment by their employers. In addition, when assessing employee performance, employers shall not rely exclusively on the number of sick leave days taken; rather, they must reasonably and comprehensively evaluate overall work performance as the basis for such assessments.
These amendments primarily address Taiwan’s demographic trends of an aging population and declining birthrate, which have resulted in increased temporary family caregiving needs among employees. Additionally, the amendments aim to alleviate employees’ concerns regarding the forfeiture of their entire full-attendance bonuses or the imposition of other disadvantages due to taking sick leave. The objective is to enable employees to balance family caregiving responsibilities while safeguarding their health.
Lee and Li’s Labor Practice Group has extensive experience assisting employers in complying with labor law amendments by facilitating the timely revision of internal policies. Should you require any assistance, please feel free to contact the experts in our Labor Practice Group at your convenience.