Taiwan���s Congress Passed Amendments to Taiwan���s Main Telecommunications Legislation which Re-regulate Numbers Resale Services and Internet Access Services

Taiwan���s current telecommunications legislation, the Telecommunications Management Act (TMA), became effective in 2020 with the goal of deregulating telecommunications services. It abandoned the franchise and license requirements set forth by Taiwan���s former telecommunications legislation, and replaced them with a registration scheme. Registration is optional except for services providers that apply for allocation of telecommunications numbers and/or frequencies from regulators, or services providers whose networks will be interconnected with other services providers. Registered telecommunications services providers are subject to various obligations such as, universal services, non-discrimination, confidentiality and record maintenance, and reporting/filing requirements pursuant to the TMA.

However, following the increase in telecom fraud and the introduction of Taiwan���s anti-fraud legislation, the Taiwanese Legislative Yuan (the ���Congress���) considers it no longer appropriate to deregulate certain telecommunication services under the TMA. On 17 June 2025, the Congress passed amendments to the TMA which imposes mandatory registration requirements on (i) services providers that secure subscriber numbers provided by local fixed-line or mobile network operators (and associated services) via wholesale, leasing or purchase, and re-allocate/resell the subscriber numbers and associated services under their own name to their own customers for use; and (ii) Internet access services providers. The amendments further provide that number resale services providers or Internet access services providers that fail to register with Taiwan���s telecommunications regulator, the National Communications Commission (NCC), pursuant to the amendments, will be subject to an administrative fine of between NT$100,000 and NT$1,000,000 and a rectification order. If the failure is not rectified within the time period set forth by the rectification order, additional administrative fines will be imposed until the failure is rectified. Number resale services providers or Internet access services providers already engaged in the number resale services/Internet access services before the effective date of the amendments must complete registration with the NCC within one year upon the effective date of the amendments. In fact, the NCC required number resale service providers to proceed with telecommunication services provider registration last year via its telecommunication number management regulation. This requirement was criticized as inconsistent with the optional registration scheme under the TMA. The amendments now fix these defects.

In addition, considering the operational scales of Internet access services providers vary, as do their risk management capabilities and the extent of their impact on public welfare, the amendments authorize the NCC to adopt a tiered management approach to Internet access services provider registration after taking into consideration the revenue and the number of subscribers of the Internet access services providers.

The amendments will become effective on the third day after the President���s announcement of the amendments.

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English translations of telecommunications and media laws and regulations are available from YANGMING PARTNERS��� Legal Support Department. This publication is intended to highlight selected legal developments and not to be comprehensive nor to provide legal advice. If you have any questions on issues reported here or if you have any issues you would like to see covered in future editions, please contact the editors: Robert C. Lee, at +886-2-8725-6601, rclee@yangminglaw.com If you are interested in subscribing to any of our newsletters, please click here.