They can, as long as they are permanent residents.

According to 73 Internal Letter #21897 of the Executive Yuan on December 29th 1984, groups established by Special Law and specified as a legal entity with due establishment procedures by the Law are not subject to the restriction of Article 30 of the Civil Law that “Legal entities are not to be established without registration at competent authorities”. As long as the “legal entity” (such as industrial groups, farmers’ associations, fishermen’s associations, labor unions, and education groups) referred to in Article 38 of the Land Registration Regulations is specified by Special Law, it does not need to present the Certificate upon application but it should enclose its competent authority-issued registry certificate or proof logo and representative’s identification.

First, thank you for the question. Second, regarding “Long Stay”, please contact the tourist information sector at Buli Township Office at 886-(0)-49-2424266 or visit our website “http//www.puli.gov.tw/1-3-13.htm”

A home stay facility is where people provide their vacant rooms for tourists to stay and enjoy life in the countryside and is run as a family side-line business. A home stay facility combines local humane, natural, ecological, environmental resources and agricultural, forestry, fishing and animal husbandry production activities. (Article 3 of Regulations for the Management of Home Stay Facilities)

The following documents are required for registration of a home stay facility. 1. Copy of Land and Use Certificate.（Urban land only. Original copy will be returned after authenticated.） 2. Official copy of the Cadastral Map and Land Registration Transcript issued within the past three months. 3. Proof documents for approval of land use. (Land owners applying in person are exempted from providing this document.) 4. Building Registration Transcript or other proof documents regarding rights over the house. 5. Copy of the Occupancy Permit or legal household proof documents before construction management is applied. 6. Copy of Building Floor Plan submitted when applying for the Occupancy Permit. 7. Copy of pictures (3*5) containing the appearance, interior, guest room, bathroom and other related facilities of the lodge. (Attached on A4 papers with appropriate footnotes) 8. Four copies of the fire-extinguishing equipment location layout. 9. Four copies each for all qualification certificates and inspection approvals (including factory release certificates) of fire-extinguishing safety equipment. 10. Four copies each for all fire-extinguishing safety equipment and appearances. (Color pictures must come in either 3*5 or 4*6 formats and be footnoted with the manager’s seal on A4 papers.) 11. If curtains, carpets, drapes or demonstration billboards are installed, “inflammable” warning signs should be tagged during an onsite inspection. 12. Copy of Liability Insurance Contract. (The original copy will be returned after authenticated.) 13. Material fire-proof documents for the interior of the room or other proof documents signed by professionals. 14. Copy of the Land Use Certificate for the parking lot.

No Certificate of Business Registration is required for a home stay facility. However, it is mandated to apply with county and city governments for “Registration of Home Stay Facilities” and “Special Emblem”

The tourist department at county or city governments.

1. Application Form 2. Copy of Land and Use Certificate. (Urban land only) 3. Official copy of the Cadastral Map and Land Registration Transcript issued within the past three months. 4. Proof documents for approval of land use. (Land owners applying in person are exempted from providing this document.) 5. Building Registration Transcript or other proof documents regarding rights over the house. 6. Copy of the Occupancy Permit or legal household proof documents before construction management is applied. 7. Copy of Liability Insurance Contract. 8. Copy of pictures containing the appearance, interior, guest room, bathroom and other related facilities of the lodge. 9. Other documents required by local competent authorities.

After receiving an application, the tourist department will first browse through documents included and see if they meet the requirements of Regulations for the Management of Home Stay Facilities (if not, applicants are notified for complement) before taking on a written review or onsite inspection. Construction management, fire-extinguishing, and land departments are invited to take part in the review or inspection. Once all requirements are met, applicants are informed with a written notification to pay the certificate fee of NT$1,000 and claim the Certificate of Home-Stay Facilities Registration and Special Emblem. In application for feature home-stay facilities, applicants must enclose documents required by local county or city government regulations regarding feature home-stay facilities. In this case, city or county governments will invite industrial representatives, government officials and scholars to form a review panel and conduct an onsite inspection for unanimous decision.

Once approved with government-issued Certificate of Home-Stay Facilities Registration and the Special Emblem, home-stay facilities can be run legally and are connected to the government’s official website. Furthermore, our government will advertise for all home-stay facilities and hold related seminars and trainings for managers to attend to fortify the management and enhance service quality. Legal home-stay facilities can join as one of the contract stores where civil servants can go consume with their national travel cards.

According to the Statute for the Development of Tourism, those running home-stay facilities without the Certificate of Home-Stay Facilities Registration are subject to a fine from NT$30,000 to NT$150,000, and termination of operation.

1. Behaviors of disgracing national pride, harming national benefits, obstruction of goodwill or swindling tourists are subject to a fine from NT$30,000 to NT$150,000. Extreme cases are subject to termination of partial to whole operations or revoke of Business License or Certificate of Registration. Those being terminated partial to whole operations and continuing to operate are to be revoked Business License or Certificate of Registration. 2. Those not meeting the requirements of Paragraph 1, Article 37 of the Statute for the Development of Tourism are handled according to the law and notified to improve within a certain timeframe. Failure to improve is subject to a fine from NT$30,000 to NT$150,000. Extreme cases also need to shut down part or all of its operations. Those being terminated operations and continuing to operate are to be revoked Business License or Certificate of Registration. Part or all of the facilities or equipment are subject to temporary shutdown if found by the results of inspections done by Paragraph 1, Article 37 of the Statute for the Development of Tourism with any disqualification or possible threat to tourists’ safety and yet to be improved. Evading, obstructing or refusing to receive inspections done by competent authorities according to the Statute is subject to continuous fines from NT$30,000 to NT$150,000 each time. 3. Article 42 of the Statute for the Development of Tourism specifies that suspended operation or management failing to report for second review or failure to apply for restoration after suspension period is due, or violation of orders announced in compliance with the Statute is subject to a fine from NT$30,000 to NT$150,000. Extreme cases can be revoked Business License. 4. Failure to return the special emblem for tourism in compliance with Paragraph 3, Article 41 of the Statute for the Development of Tourism or use of the special emblem without approval from competent authorities is subject to a fine from NT$30,000 to NT$150,000 and mandated for stop of use and demolition.

1. Scenic destinations. 2. Tourist spots. 3. National parks. 4. Aboriginal regions. 5. Remote areas. 6. Offshore islands. 7. Leisure ranches assigned by competent agricultural authorities or with a Business License issued by competent agricultural authorities. 8. Natural villages of the Kinmen Special District Plan. 9. Rural Land. (Article 5 of Regulations for the Management of Home Stay Facilities)

Type A, B, C of construction land, farming and animal husbandry land, forestry land, fish culture land, and salt industrial land can allow for operation of home-stay facilities. (Annex 1, Article 6 of Regulations on Non-urban Land Use Control)

Houses or farms legally leased from the National Property Administration, with appropriate Land and Use Certificates, Occupancy Certificates or legal household proof documents before construction management is implemented, and meeting the requirements of Regulations for the Management of Home-Stay Facilities can apply for home-stay facilities registration.

“Tourist spots” are to be determined coverage through negotiations at county and city governments. Once determined, the proposals along with related tourist resources information are sent to the Ministry of Transportation and Communications. Experts and scholars from related institutions are then invited by the Tourism Bureau to conduct onsite inspections and meet with prospective business competent authorities for final agreement before sending for public announcement by the Ministry. “Remote areas” refer to regions meeting the requirements of Article 2 of “Investment Deduction Applicable Guidelines to Companies Investing in Resources-Deprived or Slow-Developing Regions” established in compliance with Paragraph 2, Article 7 of the Statute for Upgrading Industries.

They can, as long as they are allowed for use as the primary residential land and meet the requirements of the Regulations for the Management of Home-Stay Facilities.

Articles 27 and 29 of the Enforcement Rules of the Urban Planning Act in the Province of Taiwan” specify that farm buildings to be built on the preservation or agricultural areas refer to the primary residential buildings used by farmers in agricultural production activities. Article 3 and Item 1, Article 10 of the Regulations for the Management of Home-Stay Facilities also establish that a home-stay facility is where a vacant primary residential room combines local humane, natural landscapes, ecological and environmental resources, and agricultural, forestry, fish culture, and animal husbandry production activities and is run as a family side-line business and provided for tourists to enjoy lifein the countryside. The buildings are to be used as housing only. Based on these, there should be no controversy involved in the establishment of home-stay facilities on the preservation and agricultural areas in urban planning. However, only leisure ranches on aboriginal reserves, with a Business License from or assigned by agricultural competent authorities and farm buildings in tourist spots, remote areas and offshore islands can apply for home-stay facilities registration.

A home-stay facilities generally must have less than 5 rooms and the total floorage of the guest house is below 150 square meters. However, feature home-stay facilities established on the leisure ranches of aboriginal reserves, with a Business License from or assigned by agricultural competent authorities, in tourist spots, remote areas, and on offshore islands can have as many as 15 rooms and the total floorage can reach but not exceed 200 square meters.

Buildings that meet the requirements of the Regulations for the Management of Home-Stay Facilities and farm buildings on leisure ranches of aboriginal reserves, with a Business License from, or assigned by agricultural competent authorities, in tourist spots, remote areas, and on offshore islands can apply for home-stay facilities registration.

In terms of buildings before the implementation of construction management, as long as applicants can provide with the Building Permit, Certificate of Registration, Work Completion Certificate for buildings exempted from construction management, transcripts of the land use inventory or card with building information, proof of tax payment, utilities receipts, Certificate of Evidence of Residential Status, topographic map, urban planning status layout, urban planning prohibited construction map, aerial photos, or government institutions measured and drafted map, they can apply for home-stay facilities registration.

Responsible parties must file for the Building Permit and Occupancy Permit with the construction management department at county or city governments for buildings without these two certificates before registering as home-stay facilities.

Annex I of Article 6 of the Regulations on Non-Urban Land Control, “Table for the Application of all Usable Lands”, establishes that Type A, B, and C construction lands are allowed for use as countryside housing. Annex I of Point 2 of Enforcement Guidelines for the Use Permission of Non-Urban Land of Taiwan Province, “Detailed List of Permissible Usage”, specifies that countryside housing can be used as home-stay facilities. Based on the above mentioned, lawful residential buildings on non-urban Type A, B, and C construction lands can be registered as home-stay facilities. As for whether it is okay to register vacant floors in a building where restaurants are run as home-stay facilities, it is up to the discretion of central government authorities concerned.

According to Item 2, Paragraph 1, Article 2 of the Public Housing Act, subsidized public housing refers to housing offered to lower-income families. The Ministry of the Interior Tai Nai Ying Tzi Letter #25839 of 07.03.1979 also discloses that “Public housing is a residential housing for permanent residence only. Even if it does not obstruct public safety, health and tranquility when used for a family side-line business or low-cost business, it shall not violate the cause and purpose of public housing. Furthermore, Item 9, Article 2 of the Statute for the Development of Tourism establishes that a home stay facility is where people provide their vacant rooms that combine local humane, natural landscapes, ecological, environmental resources andagricultural, forestry, fishing and animal husbandry production activities and are run as a family side-line business for tourists to stay and enjoy life in the countryside. To sum up, subsidized public housing is for residential use only and cannot be run as home-stay facilities.

There is no specific regulation against buildings seized by the court applying for home-stay facilities registration. As for whether home-stay facilities registration violates the enforcement of the seizure, it is not of our responsibility for interpretation. Please make appropriate decisions based on clauses of the Compulsory Execution Law.

Applicants do not have the ownership and therefore should include other documents to prove rights over the house, such as owner’s agreement and contract, before filing an application.

The “actual user” in Item 2, Article 10 of the Regulations for the Management of Home-Stay Facilities is not limited to the owner. Applicants, except for the owners of the land or building, should follow the requirements outlined in Article 13 of the Regulations and submit proof documents over the approved land use and rights of use. As for verification on whether the applicant is the actual user, it is up to the discretion of county or city governments.

If the applicant is not the sole owner over the building to be registered as a home-stay facility, the Regulations for the Management of Home-Stay Facilities require that the applicant provide approval documents from other owners.

Item 2, Article 10 of the Regulations for the Management of Home-Stay Facilities establishes that “The registered home-stay facilities are to be run by the actual building user. Home-stay facilities on offshore islands entrusted by local governments are not subject to the restriction.” The so-called “actual user” refers to a natural person, not a company, a legal entity or a government institution. The “local governments” in the proviso refer to county or citygovernments in the location of the home-stay facilities.

1. The materials of the internal walls and ceilings and the structure and clear width of the separation walls and corridors should meet Articles 9, 10, and 12 of Improvements in the Fire Safety and Evacuation Facilities and Fire-Extinguishing Equipment Old Buildings.” 2. Buildings with a floorage over 200 square meters for each level above ground or the basement must possess a clear width above 1.2 meters between the stairway and the platform. Levels with a floorage over 240 square meters should be installed with two or more direct stairways. Failure to meet the above requirements is subject to Article 13 of the Improvements. However, the foregoing regulations are not applicable to home-stay facilities established on the leisure ranches of aboriginal reserves, with a Business License from or assigned by agricultural competent authorities, in tourist spots, remote areas, and on offshore islands. Please refer to the appropriate construction management regulations established by competent constructiauthorities for these home-stay facilities.