Although Taiwan continues to encourage people to have children by increasing maternity subsidies, its fertility rate is still among the lowest in the world. This contradiction shows that the real cost of raising children is much more than money. For many young couples, childbirth is not only an economic challenge, but also a heavy burden on society and careers.
According to our group’s bachelor’s thesis on fertility difficulties in Taiwan, economic considerations are the main reason most often mentioned by interviewees for delaying or abandoning childbirth.
Although the government’s subsidy policy is well-meaning, it is difficult to cope with long-term and practical childcare expenses. From expensive private childcare and cram schools to rising housing prices in metropolitan areas, the overall cost of parenting often goes far beyond the affordability of middle-class families.
One of the interviewees in our study said: “Government subsidies can buy diapers and milk powder, but this is just the beginning. The real expenditure is calculated from the time the child goes to school.”
In addition to economic pressure, Taiwan‘s public childcare resources are quite scarce. Many parents face the problem of insufficient places in affordable childcare centers, so they can only rely on private institutions or elders for assistance. Due to the lack of childcare resources, dual-income families are hesitant about whether to have a second child or even a first child.
At the same time, the imbalance of caring responsibilities is still deeply rooted. Women are more often expected than men to sacrifice their careers and return to their families after having children.
This also extends to another implicit cost: the so-called “maternal punishment.” Even though society’s awareness of gender equality is gradually increasing, many women in the workplace still face discrimination when planning childbirth. Rigid working hours and the lack of a perfect maternity leave system for small and medium-sized enterprises make it difficult for both parents to balance family and career.
A female respondent in our study mentioned that she was asked during a job interview whether she intended to get married or have children, which itself reflected the employer‘s expectations and prejudices against women.
In addition, the prevailing culture of long working hours in Taiwan aggravates the problem. Late marriage and the pursuit of economic stability have made many young people postpone or even give up their fertility plans. For them, not having children is not a change of values, but a rational response to the limitations of reality.
The fertility crisis Taiwan faces does not simply come from “young people do not want to have children,” but reflects a structural problem: Under the current system, “raising a child well” is almost an impossible task.
Even if short-term subsidies can slightly reduce the burden, they cannot fundamentally solve deeper concerns about work-life balance, housing, education and gender equality.
If Taiwan really wants to improve its fertility rate, it must get out of the idea of looking to financial subsidies to solve the problem. It needs to create a society that truly supports childcare: providing flexible working hours, expanding public trust resources and promoting the cultural transformation of child-rearing responsibility sharing. Only in this way can it not only encourage fertility, but also build a society that makes people willing and able to have children.
Huang Ya-chun is a student at Wenzao Ursuline University of Languages’ Department of International Affairs.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has long been expansionist and contemptuous of international law. Under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), the CCP regime has become more despotic, coercive and punitive. As part of its strategy to annex Taiwan, Beijing has sought to erase the island democracy’s international identity by bribing countries to sever diplomatic ties with Taipei. One by one, China has peeled away Taiwan’s remaining diplomatic partners, leaving just 12 countries (mostly small developing states) and the Vatican recognizing Taiwan as a sovereign nation. Taiwan’s formal international space has shrunk dramatically. Yet even as Beijing has scored diplomatic successes, its overreach
After 37 US lawmakers wrote to express concern over legislators’ stalling of critical budgets, Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) pledged to make the Executive Yuan’s proposed NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.7 billion) special defense budget a top priority for legislative review. On Tuesday, it was finally listed on the legislator’s plenary agenda for Friday next week. The special defense budget was proposed by President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration in November last year to enhance the nation’s defense capabilities against external threats from China. However, the legislature, dominated by the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), repeatedly blocked its review. The
In her article in Foreign Affairs, “A Perfect Storm for Taiwan in 2026?,” Yun Sun (孫韻), director of the China program at the Stimson Center in Washington, said that the US has grown indifferent to Taiwan, contending that, since it has long been the fear of US intervention — and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) inability to prevail against US forces — that has deterred China from using force against Taiwan, this perceived indifference from the US could lead China to conclude that a window of opportunity for a Taiwan invasion has opened this year. Most notably, she observes that
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) said on Monday that it would be announcing its mayoral nominees for New Taipei City, Yilan County and Chiayi City on March 11, after which it would begin talks with the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) to field joint opposition candidates. The KMT would likely support Deputy Taipei Mayor Lee Shu-chuan (李四川) as its candidate for New Taipei City. The TPP is fielding its chairman, Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌), for New Taipei City mayor, after Huang had officially announced his candidacy in December last year. Speaking in a radio program, Huang was asked whether he would join Lee’s
RSS