A qualified voter who has lived in the free area of the Republic of China for not less than six consecutive months, has registered their domicile in the Republic of China for not less than fifteen years, and has reached forty years of age may apply to be registered as a candidate for president or vice president.
Persons whose Republic of China citizenship has been restored or was acquired through naturalization, persons from the mainland China area, and residents of Hong Kong and Macao who are permitted to enter Taiwan shall not be permitted to register as a candidate for president or vice president.

Candidates for president and vice president shall prepare the forms and the deposit stipulated by the Central Election Commission and shall file the registration application with the Commission by joint signature. If the registration application is not filed by joint signature the forms or deposit are not in accordance with the relevant provisions, or the application is not filed during the prescribed period, it shall not be accepted.
The candidates referenced in the preceding paragraph shall be recommended by a political party or through a joint-signature petition.
If the qualifications of one or both candidates in a pair of candidates for president and vice president are found to not meet the requirements, the pair of candidates shall not be registered.

Candidates for president and vice president who register with the Central Election Commission by means of political party recommendation shall provide a political party recommendation letter that is stamped with the seal issued to the political party by the Ministry of the Interior. If two or more political parties jointly recommend one pair of candidates, a recommendation letter stamped with the political parties' seals in the order of recommendation shall be submitted together with the application. One political party shall not be permitted to recommend two or more pairs of candidates, and if it should attempt to do so, the application filed later shall not be accepted.
Political parties referenced in the preceding paragraph shall meet one of the following requirements:
1. In the most recent election for president and vice president, candidates recommended by the political party received not less than 5% of the total number of valid votes. If two or more political parties jointly recommend one pair of candidates for president and vice president, the number of votes allocated to each political party shall be calculated by dividing the number of votes received by the candidates by the number of recommending political parties.
2. Prior to public notice for the election, in the most recent national election for legislators-at-large and legislators residing overseas or election for regional and indigenous legislators, the political party received not less than 5% of the total vote.

Those who are applying to be registered as candidates for president and vice president by way of joint-signature petition shall, within five days after public notice for the election is issued, file an application with the Central Election Commission to be a prospective candidate by way of joint-signature petition apply for petition forms in the correct format, and pay a deposit of NT$1 million.
After receiving the applications specified in the preceding paragraph and at a determined time, the Central Election Commission shall issue public notice of the applicants for candidacy by way of joint-signature petition, notify the prospective candidate by way of joint-signature petition to complete the joint-signature petition within forty-five days from the day after the public notice is issued, and to mail a written request to process the joint-signature petition documents submitted by prospective candidate or their proxy to the special municipality or county (city) election commission within the period for joint-signature petitions. However, in the case of a by-election or a new election, the documents shall be accepted within twenty-five days from the day after public notice is issued.
Citizens of the free area of the Republic of China who are twenty years of age by the day public notice of the election is issued may sign the joint-signature petitions referenced in the preceding paragraph.
If during the period prescribed in Paragraph 2, the number of petition signatures reaches 1.5% of the total qualified voters for the most recent election for president and vice president, the Central Election Commission shall, at a determined time, issue public notice of the success of the joint-signature petition, grant the prospective candidate a certificate of completion of the joint-signature petition, and return the deposit. If the number of signatures on the joint-signature petition does not reach a half of the number prescribed, the deposit shall not be returned.
The prospective candidate or their proxy shall, during the period prescribed for collecting signatures, print the register of joint-signature petition signatures and affidavits in the format specified by the Central Election Commission. When signing a joint-signature petition, the signer shall produce a photocopy of their national identification (ID) card. A person who signs a petition shall only sign one petition for one pair of prospective candidates, and if they sign petitions for two or more pairs of prospective candidates, all signatures shall be null and void.
After receiving the joint-signature petition documents referenced in the preceding paragraph, special municipality and county (city) election commissions shall perform a selective examination of the documents and report the results to the Central Election Commission. Under any of the following circumstances, the signature of a petition signer shall be removed:
1. The petition signer is not in accordance with the provisions of Paragraphs 3 or 5
2. The name, date of birth, or identification number of the petition signer is illegible on the photocopy of their national identification (ID) card
3. The petition signer has not signed their name or affixed their seal on the register of joint-signature petition signatures
4. The signature of the joint-signature petition signer has been forged
The joint-signature petition documents referenced in the preceding paragraph shall be kept for three months after the ballots are counted. If a lawsuit regarding the election is filed during the retaining period, the period shall be prolonged to expire three months after the final judgement.
Regulations governing joint-signature petitions and examination of signatures shall be determined by the Central Election Commission.

If a prospective candidate for president dies during the period prescribed for collecting signatures, the Central Election Commission shall issue public notice that the joint-signature petition for that pair of prospective candidates for president and vice president has been terminated; if a prospective candidate for vice president dies during the period prescribed for collecting signatures, the joint-signature petition shall remain valid and the presidential nominee shall, within three days, submit an application to the Central Election Commission for the replacement of the prospective candidate for vice president and continue to solicit signatures for the joint-signature petition.
If a prospective candidate for president dies after completing their joint-signature petition, but before applying for registration as a candidate, that pair of prospective candidates for president and vice president shall not apply for registration as candidates. If the prospective candidate for vice president dies after completing their joint-signature petition, but before applying for registration as a candidate, the prospective candidate for president of that pair shall put forward another prospective candidate for vice president, and then apply for registration as candidates for president and vice president by way of joint-signature petition.

Those who are applying to be registered with the Central Election Commission as candidates for president and vice president by way of joint-signature petition shall submit their certificate of completion of the joint-signature petition together with the application.

If the election for president and vice president is held on the same day as an election for other public officials, and a person is registered as a candidate in two or more elections, that person’s registration in the election for other public officials shall be null and void, and the deposit shall not be returned.

Persons for whom any of the following circumstances apply shall not be registered as a candidate for president or vice president:
1. The person has committed the offense of sedition or the offense of treason after the period of National Mobilization in Suppression of Communist Rebellion, and has received a final conviction and sentence.
2. The person has committed the offense of corruption and has received a final conviction and sentence.
3. The person has received a final conviction and sentence for committing any offense prescribed in Paragraphs 1 or 2 of Article 84, Article 85, Paragraph 1 of Article 86, Paragraph 1of Article 87, Article 88, or Paragraphs 1, 6, or 7 of Article 89, for violating the Public Officials Election and Recall Act by committing any offense detailed in Paragraphs 1 or 2 of Article 97, Article 98, Paragraph 1 of Article 99, Paragraphs 1 or 2 of Article 100, Paragraphs 1, 6, or 7 of Article 101, Paragraph 1 of Article 102, or Article 103, for violating the Criminal Code by committing any offense detailed in Articles 142 or 144, or for violating the Criminal Code by committing any offense detailed in Article 143 as a qualified voter in the election of the speaker or deputy speaker of a special municipality or county (city) council, the chairperson or vice chairperson of a township (city) or an indigenous district council.
4. The person has received a final conviction and sentence for violating the National Security Act by committing any offense detailed in Paragraphs 1 to 4 of Article 7, Paragraphs 1 to 3 of Article 8, or Paragraphs 1 or 2 of Article 12, for violating the Classified National Security Information Protection Act by committing any offense detailed in in Paragraphs 1, 2, or 4 of Article 32, Paragraphs 1, 2, or 4 of Article 33, or Paragraphs 1 to 4 of Article 34, for violating the National Intelligence Work Act by committing any offense detailed in Paragraphs 1 to 4 of Article 30, Article 30-1, or Article 31, or for violating the Anti-Infiltration Act by committing any offense detailed in Article 3, Article 4, Paragraph 3 of Article 5, Article 6 or Article 7.
5. The person has received a final conviction and sentence for committing any offense detailed in the Organized Crime Prevention Act.
6. The person has received a final conviction and sentence for violating the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act by committing any offense detailed in Articles 4 to 9, Paragraphs 1 or 2 of Article 12 or the attempt thereof, Article 13, Paragraphs 1 or 2 of Article 14, or Article 15, for violating the Controlling Guns, Ammunition and Knives Act by committing any offense detailed in Article 7, Paragraphs 1 to 5 of Article 8, Article 12, or Article 13, for violating the Money Laundering Control Act by committing any offense detailed in Articles 14 or 15, or for violating the Criminal Code by committing any offense detailed in Article 302-1 or 339-4. However, an indigenous person who is solely guilty of the unauthorized manufacture, transfer, transportation, loan or possession of a homemade hunting rifle, its major component parts or ammunition, shall not be guilty of such an offense unless convicted prior to the effective date of the Controlling Guns, Ammunition and Knives Act, as amended on May 22, 2020.
7. The person has received a final conviction and sentence for any of the offenses specified in the preceding six subparagraphs and has been granted probation.
8. The person has committed an offense other than those specified in Subparagraphs 1 to 6, the minimum penalty for the said offense is imprisonment for a term of not less than seven years, and they have been convicted and sentenced to a fixed term of imprisonment of more than ten years.
9. The person has committed an offense other than those specified in Subparagraphs 1 to 6, has received a final conviction and sentence of a fixed term of imprisonment or higher, has not yet served their sentence, not yet discharged their sentence, is on probation, or the sentence cannot be enforced due to the expiration of the statute of limitations.
10. The person has received a sentence of death penalty, life imprisonment or fixed-term imprisonment of more than ten years and the conviction is not yet final.
11. The person has received a final conviction and has been sentenced to rehabilitative disposition, but has either not yet served their sentence or not yet discharged their sentence.
12. The person has declared bankruptcy or has commenced liquidation proceedings due to court order and has not yet recovered their property rights.
13. The person was removed from office due to a disciplinary action.
14. The person, in accordance with law, was dismissed or has been suspended and the suspension period has not yet expired.
15. The person has been deprived of civil rights, and the said rights have not yet been restored.
16. The person is subject to an order of custodial protection or assistantship that has not yet been rescinded.

The following persons shall not be permitted to apply to be registered as a candidate for president or vice president:
1. Members of the armed forces who are on active duty
2. Personnel handling election affairs
3. Persons with a foreign nationality
4. Persons who, under the provisions of other laws, are prohibited from registering as a candidate
Active-duty members of the armed forces who were mustered from the reserves, have not yet been sworn into military service, or were mustered from education, service, or military drills shall not be included under Subparagraph 1 of the preceding paragraph.
If the final decision of a court declares an election to be void due to any reason prescribed in Subparagraphs 2 and 3 of Paragraph 1 of Article 104, the elected candidates shall not be permitted to apply for registration as a candidate for president or vice president in the by-election.

After public notice of the list of candidates for president and vice president is issued, if it is discovered that any of the following circumstances applied to a candidate before the public notice was issued or shall apply before the election, the Central Election Commission shall cancel the registration of the candidate before the election; if the candidate has already been elected, a lawsuit that challenges the validity of the election shall be filed in accordance with the provisions of Article 105:
1. The said person does not meet the requirements specified in Article 20.
2. Any of the subparagraphs of Article 26 applies to the said person.
3. In accordance with the provisions of Paragraphs 1 and 3 of the preceding article, the said person is not permitted to register as a candidate.
4. In accordance with the provisions of Paragraph 1 of Article 78, the said person is not permitted to register as a candidate.

If the death of one of the candidates for president occurs after the deadline for registration and prior to election day, the Central Election Commission shall immediately issue public notice to stop the election and shall determine a date for a new election.
When a new election is to be held in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph, certificates of completion of a joint-signature petition issued to candidates for president and vice president prior to the issuance of public notice to stop the election shall still apply to the new election.

Persons who are registered as a candidate for president or vice president shall not be permitted to withdraw their registration.
Once a political party recommends candidates for president and vice president, the political party shall not be permitted to withdraw the recommendations.

When registering as candidates for president and vice president, each pair of candidates shall remit a deposit of NT$15 million.
The deposit specified in the preceding paragraph shall be returned within thirty days after the list of electees is issued by public notice. However, deposits shall not be returned to the candidates who receive less than 5% of the total votes.
Fines levied in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph 2 of Article 113 shall be deducted directly from the deposit specified in the preceding paragraph, after which any remaining balance shall be returned.

The deposit specified in Paragraph 1 of Article 23 and Paragraph 1of the preceding article shall be paid in cash or through a promissory note issued by a financial institution, certified check or Giro business check; cash payments made using coins shall not be accepted.

The Central Election Commission shall determine and issue public notice of the qualifications for registry as a candidate; those who does not meet these qualifications shall not be registered as a candidate. The Central Election Commission shall inform each pair of candidates that the public drawing of lots to determine the number assigned to each pair of candidates included on the list of candidates shall take place three days prior to public notice of the finalized list.
If there is only one pair of candidates, that pair shall be assigned number one and the lottery specified in the preceding paragraph shall not take place.
The drawing of lots to determine numbers assigned to the candidates shall be conducted under on-site supervision. One candidate from each pair shall be in attendance and shall personally draw one of the lots. If neither candidate is able to attend and personally draw one of the lots, a proxy who has power of attorney for the pair of candidates may draw one of the lots in their stead. If a pair of candidates is not in attendance and has not sent a proxy to act in their stead, or are in attendance, have been summoned three times, and still fail to draw one of the lots, the Central Election Commission shall draw one of the lots on behalf of the pair of candidates.