TW · Small Claims Procedure

小額訴訟程序

Money claims of NT$100,000 or less go through the small-claims procedure at the district court’s simple division for a NT$1,000 court fee — and with both sides’ written agreement the same procedure is available up to NT$500,000.

What the rules actually say

Maximum claim

NT$100,000 or less, for claims to money, other fungibles, or securities.

The threshold reads 「十萬元以下」 — at or below — so a claim of exactly NT$100,000 is inside the procedure. The court may also move an unsuitable case to the simplified procedure on its own motion, and that ruling cannot be contested.

Statute民事訴訟法 第436-8條

Opting in above the threshold

Up to NT$500,000 by agreement of both parties, and the agreement must be evidenced in writing.

Statute民事訴訟法 第436-8條第4項

Court fee

NT$1,000 for the portion of the claim up to NT$100,000.

The fee schedule is banded by claim value; the first band — 「十萬元以下部分徵收一千元」 — is what a small claim pays.

Statute民事訴訟法 第77-13條

Hearings outside working hours

Small-claims sessions may be held at night, on Sundays or on other rest days — unless a party objects.

Rules for those sessions are set by the Judicial Yuan. This is the provision that makes the procedure usable without taking leave from work.

Statute民事訴訟法 第436-11條

Appealing the judgment

Only to the same district court sitting as a panel, and only on the ground that the judgment violates the law (違背法令).

You cannot re-argue the facts on appeal — the panel reviews legal error only.

Statute民事訴訟法 第436-24條

After the appeal

The second-instance decision is final. No further appeal lies.

Statute民事訴訟法 第436-30條

Mediation is not optional

For a property dispute at or under NT$500,000, court mediation must be attempted before the action may be brought — which covers every small claim.

Article 403 lists eleven categories of compulsory mediation; the monetary category is the one that catches ordinary consumer disputes. The Judicial Yuan may move the NT$500,000 figure within a statutory band.

Statute民事訴訟法 第403條

The cheaper alternative first

For an undisputed money debt, a payment order (支付命令) can be applied for without a hearing; the debtor then has 20 days from service to object.

If the debtor objects in time, the case converts into ordinary proceedings — so it saves the most where the debtor is unlikely to respond.

Statute民事訴訟法 第508、514條

What we could not establish

• How long a small claim typically takes from filing to judgment. The Judiciary publishes aggregate clearance statistics, not a per-track figure a claimant can rely on.
• Whether interpreter arrangements for non-Mandarin speakers are guaranteed at small-claims sessions or provided at the court’s discretion; practice notes differ by district court.

Procedural information, verified 2026-08-16 against the sources cited above. It is not legal advice, and it does not account for the facts of your case. Where two official sources disagree we show both rather than choose for you.