- Abortion legal status
- Legal
- Emergency contraception
- Over the counter
- Emergency number
- 112
Updated July 2026 · Sources cited: timeout.com, travelladies.app
Good to know
Good to Know
- Regular birth control pills are sold over the counter at Taipei pharmacies without a prescription — unusually accessible compared to many countries — but emergency contraception (the morning-after pill) still requires a doctor's prescription, so plan ahead if you rely on EC as a backup method.
- If you're sexually assaulted, know that Taiwanese hospitals are legally required to report confirmed or suspected cases to police within 24 hours, even if you go only for medical care — factor this in if you want to control if/when police get involved.
- The 113 hotline is 24/7 and toll-free, but service is mainly in Mandarin; if you don't speak Chinese, consider going through your embassy's consular support line, or Garden of Hope Foundation, which offers services in English, Indonesian and Vietnamese, or bring a Mandarin-speaking friend to help translate on the call.
- Carry a spare pack of your regular contraceptive pills while traveling in Taiwan as a backup emergency contraception option, since obtaining dedicated EC pills requires a same-day clinic visit.
- In practice, abortion is accessible for most women through the 24th week under the broadly-interpreted 'affects mental health or family life' ground, so it functions similarly to abortion-on-request despite the law's restrictive-sounding structure.
- If you are married, be aware Taiwanese law currently still requires your spouse's consent for an abortion sought on mental-health/family-life grounds — a genuine practical barrier some nomads don't expect given Taiwan's otherwise progressive reputation.
- Abortion is not covered by National Health Insurance under any circumstance, including rape or incest, so budget for it as a private, out-of-pocket cost.
- Mifepristone (the abortion pill) is legal and available through authorized doctors for early pregnancies (up to about 7 weeks), which can be simpler to arrange than a surgical procedure.
- For English-language OBGYN care in Taipei, large teaching hospitals (like TMUH or Taiwan Adventist) tend to have more consistently English-fluent staff than smaller private clinics — call ahead to confirm a specific doctor's English level.
Street, Night and Taxi Safety
Overall Perception of Safety
Taipei is consistently described as one of Asia's safest cities for women, with a 2025 industry study on female digital nomads ranking it first worldwide and giving it the second-highest score for walking alone at night of any city surveyed. Travel-safety sites echo this, describing extremely low violent crime and a generally welcoming, helpful local culture.
Street Harassment
Multiple solo female travellers report that unwanted street harassment is uncommon in Taipei; one reviewer who lived there noted that walking on the street at night she "rarely encounter[ed] any harassment" and found the atmosphere relatively calm compared with many other large cities. A separate traveller-safety index similarly describes street harassment in Taiwan as rare.
Walking Alone at Night
Many areas of central Taipei, including busy night-market and commercial districts, are widely described as comfortable for women to walk through even late at night, with crowds, bright lighting and visible CCTV cited as reassuring factors. That said, a long-term female resident specifically flagged Linsen North Road and the Wanhua area as places she personally avoids walking at night, and general guides advise against wandering into poorly-lit or deserted side streets after midnight regardless of neighbourhood.
Taxis and Ride-hailing
Sources checked did not document a clear, Taipei-specific comparison of which taxi or ride-hailing option is safest for women; this appears to be a genuinely safe and normal way to get around at night, but no authoritative source broke out a particular app or taxi type as the documented safer choice for this city specifically. As a general precaution common to ride-hailing advice elsewhere, noting the license plate and driver details before getting in, and sharing your trip location with someone, are reasonable practices, though not confirmed as Taipei-specific guidance in the sources we checked.
Practical Precautions
Common advice repeated across traveller guides includes staying alert in less populated areas late at night, being cautious about accepting drinks or food from strangers, not leaving belongings unattended in public places, and choosing accommodation in well-lit, centrally located areas with secure locks. These are framed as standard precautions rather than responses to a specific known threat, since overall crime against women in Taipei is described as low.
Legal Framework
- Summary
- Abortion in Taiwan is governed by two overlapping laws: the Genetic Health Act (優生保健法, administratively being renamed the Reproductive/Fertility Health Act) which permits abortion on specified grounds, and the Criminal Code (Articles 288, 290, 292), which technically still criminalizes abortion outside those grounds.
- Who Can Perform
- The procedure must be conducted by a doctor specifically authorized by the central health authority — self-administered or unlicensed abortions remain criminal offenses.
- Practical Effect
- The mental-health/family-life ground has become the most common way to seek an abortion in Taiwan due to its ease of invocation, meaning the law functions in practice much like abortion-on-request for most women.
- Abortion Time Limit
- Abortion is generally accessible through the 24th week of pregnancy, and can be legally available afterward only when medically necessary.
- Permitted Grounds
- Under the Genetic Health Act, legal abortions can be performed under six conditions: if a pregnant woman is diagnosed with a genetic, infectious, or psychiatric disease; if the pregnancy threatens the life of the mother; if the fetus might be exposed to toxic substances that could cause birth abnormalities; if the pregnancy is a result of rape or sexual abuse; or if the pregnancy has the potential to affect a woman's mental health.
- Insurance Coverage
- Taiwan's National Health Insurance does not cover the cost of an abortion, even in cases of rape or incest, meaning it is an out-of-pocket procedure regardless of grounds.
- Enforcement Reality
- Illegal abortion prosecutions are extremely rare in practice — from 2014 to late 2024 only about 10 abortion cases had been adjudicated in local courts, against an estimated 50,000-60,000 legal abortions performed per year.
- Medication Abortion
- The medical abortion drug Mifepristone (RU-486), effective within the first seven weeks of pregnancy, is legal and readily available in Taiwan through authorized providers.
Consent Requirements
- Married Women
- Induced abortion sought on the mental-health/family-life ground for a married woman requires her husband's consent, unless the husband is missing, unconscious, or of unsound mind. Taiwan is one of eleven countries worldwide that still requires spousal consent for abortion.
- Minors Or Wards
- Unmarried minors or women under legal guardianship require the consent of a parent, legal guardian, or assistant.
- Reform In Progress
- A 2023 draft amendment would abolish the spousal consent requirement and rename the law the 'Fertility Health Law,' but as of the most recent reporting it has not yet been finalized by the Executive Yuan.
Criminal Code Penalty For Out Of Grounds Abortion
- Fine Range Low
- NT$3,000
- Fine Range High
- NT$15,000
- Note
- In 2024 the Ministry of Justice proposed raising these fines substantially (up to NT$80,000 for the woman and up to NT$500,000-2,000,000 for illegal providers), but this was a proposal, not yet enacted law, as of the latest reporting.
- Description
- Abortions performed outside the six legal grounds remain criminal offenses. Current fines for a pregnant woman having an illegal abortion range from about NT$3,000 to NT$15,000 depending on severity, and providers face separate criminal liability.
Named OB-GYN Options Taipei
Xinyi/Wuxing Area, Central Taipei
- Name
- Taipei Medical University Hospital (TMUH) — Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology
- Contact
- +886-2-2737-2181
- Languages
- English, Chinese, Cantonese
- Notes
- Large teaching hospital with English-speaking staff; the GYN department is known for advanced da Vinci robotic-assisted surgery and handles complex gynecological cases including cancer patients.
Taiwan Adventist Hospital — Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology
- Area
- Songshan District, central Taipei (Bade Road)
- Contact
- +886-2-2771-8151
- Notes
- Offers comprehensive pregnancy and childbirth care, prenatal counseling, and level II ultrasound for fetal anatomical evaluation; commonly used by Taipei's expat community.
Taipei Veterans General Hospital — International Medical Service Center
- Area
- Beitou District, Taipei (somewhat outside the immediate central core, but the designated international-patient hub)
- Languages
- English plus multiple others via interpreter services
- Notes
- Official referral center for International SOS, foreign embassies, and the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), and regularly treats patients from a wide range of nationalities; a practical option for nomads needing English-language coordination even though it sits further from the city center than other listed hospitals.
Emergency Numbers
110 - Police
- Number
- 110
- Notes
- General police emergency line; can dispatch officers and, at your request, a female officer to accompany you to hospital for a sexual assault examination.
119 - Ambulance / Fire
- Number
- 119
- Notes
- Medical emergency and ambulance dispatch.
112 - Mobile Emergency Relay
- Number
- 112
- Notes
- Works even without a SIM/on a locked phone if there is mobile signal; routes to police or fire. Slower than 110/119, so use it only if those fail.
113 Protection Hotline (Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault)
- Number
- 113
- Notes
- Taiwan’s toll-free, 24/7, nationwide hotline for domestic violence, sexual assault, and sexual harassment, run by the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Primarily Mandarin-language, but some multilingual/interpreter support is available; if calling from Taipei, cases are referred to the Taipei City Center for Prevention of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault.
Local Support Centers
Taipei City Center for Prevention of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault
- Phone
- (02) 2396-1996, ext. 226 or 227
- Address
- No.2, Alley 5, Lane 54, Sec. 1, Xinsheng S. Rd., Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City
- Services
- Government-run center coordinating shelter, medical accompaniment, legal aid, and counseling for assault and domestic violence survivors; every city/county in Taiwan has an equivalent center.
Taipei Women's Rescue Foundation
- Phone
- (02) 2391-7133
- Hours
- Weekdays 9:30–12:30 and 13:30–18:00
- Services
- NGO providing counseling, advocacy and support for survivors of sexual violence and domestic abuse; also active in national policy advocacy (e.g., on emergency contraception access).
Garden of Hope Foundation
- Services
- NGO offering shelter placement, social work support and referrals; services and hotline transfers are available in English, Indonesian and Vietnamese for foreign residents.
- Notes
- Works alongside government Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Prevention Centers (DVSAPCs) rather than operating an independent walk-in office in central Taipei.
Contraception And Emergency Contraception
IUD
- Access
- IUDs (including hormonal IUDs such as Mirena) are available in Taiwan but require a clinic/hospital visit for fitting by a doctor — it is not an over-the-counter product.
- Notes
- Reliable, current pricing for IUD insertion in Taipei was not found in this research; expect a gynecology clinic consultation fee plus the device cost, and to pay out of pocket as a short-term visitor without Taiwan's National Health Insurance (NHI).
Implant
- Access
- Contraceptive implants are not a mainstream option in Taiwan; older sources mention Norplant being available historically, but implants are far less commonly stocked or discussed than the pill or IUD.
- Notes
- If an implant is your preferred method, confirm current availability directly with a women's health clinic in Taipei before relying on it, rather than assuming it's stocked.
Emergency Contraception
- Status
- Prescription required
- Details
- Emergency contraceptive pills (both levonorgestrel and ulipristal-acetate types) are registered and available in Taiwan but remain prescription-only as of 2025, requiring a visit to a clinic or hospital rather than a pharmacy walk-in purchase.
- Backup Option
- If dedicated emergency contraception is inaccessible, some sources note regular combined birth-control pills can be used off-label as a backup EC method using only the first 21 pills of a 28-day pack — this is a harm-reduction workaround, not a substitute for medical advice, and dosing must be correct to be effective.
- Cost Note
- Cost is not free/subsidized for this indication; expect a doctor's consultation fee plus the medication cost. Specific current price data for Taipei was not found in this research.
- Policy Context
- Taiwan's FDA held public consultations in 2025 on reclassifying emergency contraception to over-the-counter status (following models like Japan's pharmacist-supervised pilot), but as of the most recent review, stakeholders (notably the Taiwan Association of Obstetrics and Gynecology) could not reach consensus, so the prescription requirement remains in force.
Regular Birth Control Pills
- Access
- Oral contraceptive pills can be purchased over the counter at Taiwanese pharmacies without a doctor's prescription, which is unusual by international standards.
- Notes
- Common European/US brands sold in Taiwan include Marvelon, Mercilon, Diane, Yasmin/Yaz and similar Bayer/Merck/Pfizer products. Selection at a given pharmacy varies, so it can take a couple of stops to find a specific brand you're used to.
Price Range
Budget Brand (E.g. Generic/older Formulations), per Monthly Pack
- Budget Brand (E.G. Generic/Older Formulations), Per Monthly Pack
- NT$100
Newer/branded Formulations (E.g. Yasmin-type), per Monthly Pack
- Newer/Branded Formulations (E.G. Yasmin Type), Per Monthly Pack
- NT$500
Legal Status
Fully legal and regulated
Pricing Note
Reliable, current per-procedure pricing for private abortion services in Taipei was not identified in available sources; expect it to be an out-of-pocket, NHI-uncovered cost at whichever clinic/hospital performs it.
Medical And Legal Notes
Medical And Legal Notes
- Foreign nationals can receive medical care after a sexual assault in Taiwan even if they choose not to report to police.
- By law, Taiwanese health and medical professionals must report any confirmed or suspected rape/sexual assault case to the police within 24 hours — something to be aware of before seeking hospital care if you wish to control how/when police become involved.
- Do not wash or change clothes before going to hospital if you want forensic evidence preserved.
- HIV PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis) is available by prescription at designated hospitals in Taipei and should be started within 72 hours of an assault to be effective.
- Embassy consular staff (for many nationalities) can provide 24/7 phone support, accompany-style guidance, and liaise with local police/hospitals if requested.
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this women's health & safety research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
More About Taipei
Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.