Elderly care in Taiwan

Elderly care is a big topic. Come next year Singapore will attain its super aged status, with 20 percent of citizens aged 65 or older.

Some readers sent me questions after reading my last blog post “Overseas retirement – what you don’t know”. They are interested to know the possibilities of retiring in foreign countries. Most are researching for their own retirement plan. Some are finding options for elderly care for themselves or their family members.

An aging population in Taiwan

I have started going to Taiwan for business trips since 2002. After the pandemic, I flied there twice a year. I am very comfortable with the people, food, language and culture of Taiwan.

Last week, I traveled to Jiufen (九份) again to appreciate the sunset. To my surprise, I was no longer as fit as before. It was tough climbing up and down the stairs. After I clocked up 19,000 steps that day, I felt tired in the evening.

The next morning, when all the tourists were still sleeping, I met droves of local elderly coming for hiking. They were all energetic and fit physically. Perhaps I could train my fitness by hiking in Jiufen or Yangmingshan (阳明山) more often.

At the Jiufen Gold Museum, it was a nice surprise to see older volunteers crowded at every stopover. They even outnumbered the visitors. These enthusiastic volunteers were all enjoying the job of greeting and assisting visitors.

Taiwan is already a super aged society in 2025, a year ahead of Singapore. In 2024, Taiwan has the world’s lowest fertility rate of 1.11.

Nonetheless, it has the world’s best healthcare system. According to the annual Numbeo’s Health Care Index in 2025, Taiwan tops global healthcare rankings for 7th consecutive year. It ranks number one in healthcare quality and cost-effectiveness.

Elderly care in Taiwan

“As Long As You Live” (长命百二岁) is a documentary series produced by Hong Kong TVB in 2018. The 60 episodes explore aging and elderly care in countries with an aging population.

In the first episode, the hosts took the audience to Taiwan’s high-end health villages. They are built with the purpose of achieving longevity, or maintaining the good health of senior residents.

Built in 2004, Chang Gung Health and Culture Village (长庚养生文化村) is located at Taoyuan. It is near the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital which is among the best three hospitals in Taiwan.

With 256,700 square meter in size, facilities include a fruit farm, swimming pool, gym, karaoke room, mahjong room, ping pong court, internet café, piano studio, hair salon and Buddhism classroom.

Applicants must be citizens over 60 years old, able to take care of oneself and pass a body check. Most are financially comfortable. They include former teachers, soldiers or civil servants. Over 60 percent are at least university graduates.

Monthly rents range from S$1,180 (for a 400 sq ft unit) to S$1,760 (for a 800 sq ft unit). Prices include accommodation and entertainment, but not meals and utility bills. Also, there is a deposit of S$17,000.

In 2024, the village has 1,040 units and 1,241 residents, with another 2,289 applicants in the queue. The wait is long. Because residents there feel healthier by the day. Once they cannot take care of themselves, they will be transferred to other care facilities under Chang Gung.

The more popular Shuang-Lian Elderly House (双连安养中心) in New Taipei City has 5,000 applicants in the queue. There are eleven restaurants there. All the elevators are equipped with comfortable seats.

Other elderly care services

Not all seniors like to stay with their counterparts in a community facility. Some prefer to spend their golden years at home. However, loneliness can be unbearable. In Taiwan, there are elderly care services targeting this group of silver consumers.

For example, granny’s secretary (爷奶秘书) companies trained 20-year-old youngsters to chat online with the elderly. A small fee of S$50 a month offers two-hour chat time. They don’t mind their customers being naggy, boring, or keep talking about their past. To avoid suspicion from the spouse, the better half is invited to join the video call too.

Granny’s secretary companies also provide chauffeur service and help customers to run errands. It is not just the old people who like to use their services. The children also hire them for the convenience of their parents.

This is a good way to prevent scammers from targeting older people. As we know, loneliness and helplessness are two big problems faced by the seniors.

Another elderly care service is home bathing car service (到宅沐浴车). For a fee of S$11 to S$15 (free for low-income families), these charitable organizations send a mobile bathtub to their customers’ home to bathe the bed-ridden elderly. Each time there is a team of three to four staff assisting with the task. The purpose is to ensure the process is comfortable while respecting the dignity of the customer.

Elderly care in Singapore

In Singapore, what are the options for our last mile?

With the absence of a family caregiver, the hiring of a domestic worker costs between S$650 to S$1,000 per month. There is also a monthly foreign worker levy of S$300 to S$450 before the S$60 concession levy.

In my neighborhood, I often see seniors taking a walk with a maid. The latter is often on her handphone. Both look bored.

What about elderly facilities?

Retirement homes or old folks’ homes are for seniors who can move around and take care of themselves. On the other hand, nursery homes are for immobile or bed-ridden elderly who need 24/7 care.

At a parliamentary Q&A session in August 2024, the Ministry of Health confirmed that, in the last five years, the median wait time for a nursing home bed is around one month. In addition, the median wait time for a nursing home bed for psychiatric care needs can be two to four months.

Nursing homes in Singapore charges between S$2,000 to S$5,000, or up to S$8,000 a month for high-end private facilities. The residents can withdraw up to $200 per month from their own or their spouse’s MediSave account to settle the bill.

They can also apply for Residential Long-Term Care Services Subsidy through a hospital or polyclinic. The subsidy amount ranges from 20 to 75 percent for citizens and 10 to 50 percent for PRs.

However, the applicant’s monthly per capita household income must be below S$3,601. For households with no income, the annual value of their residential property cannot be higher than S$21,000. For instance, if the annual value of your $1 million HDB flat is S$25,000, you are ineligible for any long-term care services subsidy.

Food for thought

Singapore has become increasingly elderly-friendly by providing more elderly care support over the years. Furthermore, we have Silver Support Scheme, Pioneer Generation Package and Merdeka Generation Package.

How elderly-friendly is Taiwan? According to the Health Promotion Administration, Taoyuan County and New Taipei City are currently members of the International Federation on Ageing. Besides, Taipei, Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Taichung and Chaiyi continue to conduct bilateral age-friendly exchanges with other cities abroad.

Both Singapore and Taiwan are super aged society in the region. It will be useful to connect the network of professionals and experts in the field. It is useful to share expertise and experiences for setting forward-looking aging-related policies and providing advanced elderly care services in the future.

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