KUALA LUMPUR - A labour broker in Taiwan has been fined over NT$10 million for illegally charging migrant workers job-placement fees, the Ministry of Labor (MOL) said Wednesday.

The ministry described it as the highest penalty ever imposed in such a case, Focus Taiwan reported.

MOL official Su Yu-kuo said the broker had illegally charged multiple migrant workers under the guise of end-of-contract transfer or contract renewal fees, collecting around NT$1 million in total.

"Because the illegal conduct was clear-cut, the local government imposed the (over NT$10 million) penalty," Su said.

He added that under the Employment Service Act, brokers can charge employers registration and placement fees, while migrant workers are only allowed to pay service fees.

Current regulations cap service fees at NT$1,800 per month in the first year after a worker's arrival in Taiwan, NT$1,700 in the second year and NT$1,500 from the third year onward.

Charging job-placement fees, known locally as "job-buying fees," falls outside the items permitted under the law, Su said.

In addition to the fine, the ministry plans to suspend the broker’s business for up to one year in accordance with the act, he added.

Su declined to specify how many migrant workers were affected, their nationalities, or the identity of the broker, and did not comment on whether it had prior violations.

CNA’s search of the MOL's Workforce Development Agency database found that a Taichung-based broker was fined NT$12.7 million by Taoyuan City Government on Nov. 25 for a violation that appeared to match Su’s description.

When asked if the more than NT$1 million in over-collected fees had been refunded, Su said he would "need to look into that detail."

The MOL investigation was launched after complaints from a civic group alleging that the broker had charged migrant workers illegal fees, he said.

Su did not provide details on when the complaints were filed, how long the investigation took, or when enforcement action was taken, saying only that the case occurred in recent months.

So far this year, 10 brokers have been found to have illegally overcharged migrant workers and fined by local governments, Su said.

He added that authorities conducted more than 2,200 inspections targeting such violations in 2025 and plan to carry out 2,500 inspections next year.

Su urged brokers to comply with the law and advised migrant workers to pay job-placement fees when switching employers to call the ministry's 1955 Hotline for guidance or to file a complaint.