This Act is enacted to protect citizens’ right to housing, establish a robust housing market, improve the quality of housing, and thus allow all citizens to enjoy suitable housing and a dignified living environment.

The term “competent authority” in this Act refers to the Ministry of the Interior at the central level; the municipal governments at the municipal level; and the county (city) governments at the county (city) level.
The duties of competent authorities at each level are as follows:
1. Central competent authority:
(1) Formulate and implement housing policies and national housing plans.
(2) Financial planning for national housing plans.
(3) Subsidize, supervise, and assist housing affairs of municipalities and counties (cities).
(4) Collect, analyze, and announce national housing information.
(5) Research and establish housing policies, subsidies, market, quality and other related systems.
(6) Establish basic housing standards.
(7) Construct social housing.
(8) Other relevant matters.
2. Municipality, county (city) competent authorities:
(1) Establish administrative goals of housing within their jurisdiction.
(2) Formulate and implement housing plans within their jurisdiction.
(3) Financial planning for housing projects within their jurisdiction.
(4) Process, approve, and review housing subsidy applications.
(5) Collect, analyze, and announce local housing information.
(6) Surveys on housing subsidies, market supply/demand, quality and other relevant matters within their jurisdiction.
(7) Construct social housing.
(8) Other relevant matters.
Industrial competent authorities may provide social housing in coordination with policy requirements, and may provide social housing in accordance with Articles 19~24, Article 33, Article 34, Paragraph 1 of Article 35, Article 36, and Article 58.
Industrial competent authorities and their counterpart competent authority shall jointly provide or encourage private organizations to provide social housing for indigenous peoples based on requirements for education, language, and cultural development.

The terms used in this Act are defined as follows:
1.Housing: Refers to a registered building with a doorplate that is occupied for habitation.
2.Social housing: Refers to housing and necessary ancillary facilities built by the government or by the private sector with subsidies from the government that is primarily rented.
3.Public welfare landlord: Refers to landlords or payers of taxes on houses that have not been initially registered for ownership and the ownership of which is unclear who rent their house to persons qualified for rent subsidy, or to social welfare organizations that sub-rent the house to persons determined by the municipal or county (city) central competent authority as qualified for rent subsidy.

At least 40% of social housing built by the competent authority and private sector calculated based on the jurisdiction of each municipal, county (city) government shall be rented to economically or socially disadvantaged persons. A specific ratio of social housing shall be provided to persons whose permanent address is not registered in the area where they are going to school or working in.
Economically or socially disadvantaged persons referred to in the preceding paragraph shall mean families whose total income divided by the number of members in the household and whose total family assets do not exceed certain standard thresholds announced by the competent authority and who meet one of the following:
1. Low-income or lower middle income households.
2. Families in special circumstances.
3. Persons with two or more children who are minors.
4. Persons under the age of 25 who are unable to return home after being placed in a residential institution or foster family.
5. Senior citizens of ages 65 and above.
6. Domestic violence or sexual assault victims and their children.
7. Persons with disabilities.
8. Persons infected with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) or Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS).
9. Indigenous peoples.
10. Disaster victims.
11. Homeless people.
12. Minors who encounter difficulties due to pregnancy or childbirth.
13. Other persons approved by the central competent authority.

In order to allow all citizens to enjoy suitable housing and a dignified living environment, the central competent authority shall formulate housing policies with consideration to future environment developments, supply/demand in the housing market, affordability of housing, housing development issues, and cultural requirements of indigenous peoples, and submit the policies to the Executive Yuan for ratification.
Municipal and county (city) competent authorities shall establish administrative goals for housing in accordance with the central housing policy and local development requirements, and formulate housing plans and financial plans, which shall be submitted to the central competent authority for future reference.
The central competent authority shall formulate housing plans and financial plans based on the housing policy and with consideration to social and economic development, national land planning, regional development, industries, population, housing supply/demand, affordability, housing quality, financial condition of central and local governments, and the status of housing plans implemented by municipal and county (city) competent authorities, and shall submit the housing plans and financial plans to the Executive Yuan for ratification.
The competent authority may implement housing plans in coordination with public land resources, urban planning, land development, urban renewal, financing, housing subsidies or other strategies.
The ratio and distribution of economically or socially disadvantaged tenants in social housing provided by municipal or county (city) competent authorities shall be reported to the central competent authority each year for future reference.

Competent authorities shall invite related agencies, private organizations, experts and scholars to form a housing advisory committee to jointly consult and deliberate on housing projects, evaluate the ratio and distribution of economically or socially disadvantaged persons, and assess social housing affairs; no less than half of all committee members shall be private organizations, experts and scholars.
Regulations on the establishment of housing advisory committees shall be prescribed by competent authorities at each level.

Competent authorities may establish housing funds to develop a robust housing market, provide housing subsidies, provide social housing, and improve the quality of housing environments.
Sources of funding for the central housing fund are as follows:
1. Appropriated by the government according to budgetary procedures.
2. Income from disposal of the fund’s property.
3. Profits from building social housing.
4. Interest income from the fund.
5. Other income.
Sources of funding for municipal, county (city) housing fund are as follows:
1. Appropriated by the government according to budgetary procedures.
2. Income from disposal of the fund’s property.
3. Income from bulk rewards of urban planning.
4. Income from sale of building bulk in urban planning.
5. Income from donations for change of urban planning.
6. Profits from building social housing.
7. Interest income from the fund.
8. Other income.

Competent authorities may establish or commission an organization or institution to handle housing related affairs.