Taiwan — Legal Help

If detained, you have the right to a lawyer and to contact your representative office; there is no formal embassy (only the American Institute in Taiwan, British Office Taipei, etc.), but their consular functions are full. The age of consent is 16 under the Criminal Code, but sexual acts with anyone under 18 are separately regulated by the Child and Youth Sexual Exploitation Prevention Act 2017.

Sex work is technically legal only inside designated "special zones" under the 2011 amendment to the Social Order Maintenance Act, but no county has established one, so paid sex is de facto illegal for both parties. Drug penalties are severe: Category 1 offences under the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act can carry life or the death penalty, and cannabis remains Category 2.