Which buildings in Taipei need a facade safety inspection? Building types against the regulations
In brief: Under Article 77 of the Building Act and the public safety filing regulations, commercial offices, department stores, hotels and hospitals in Taipei must file a public safety inspection — facade safety included — every one to two years. Purely residential buildings are outside the mandatory scope, but the Building Administration Office recommends voluntary inspection for residential buildings over 15 years old. Failure to file carries a fine of NT$60,000–300,000.
Falling facade tiles have injured people in Taipei and New Taipei repeatedly in recent years, and public attention to facade safety has risen accordingly. Many management committees and property managers have started receiving inspection notices from the authorities without being clear whether their building actually needs a facade safety inspection, how to arrange one, or how often.
What follows sets out the legal basis, the scope and the practicalities, so you can establish where your building stands.
The legal basis
Taiwan's regime for facade safety inspection rests on three levels:
Article 77 of the Building Act
The primary legal authority. Article 77 provides that building owners and occupiers shall maintain the lawful use of the building and the safety of its structure and equipment, and authorises the competent authority to make regulations on public safety inspection.
The principle it establishes: maintaining a building's safety is a legal obligation of the owner and the occupier, not an optional exercise.
The Building Public Safety Inspection, Certification and Declaration Regulations
Made under Article 77, these set out which buildings must file, what is inspected, the filing cycle and the penalties. Facade safety falls under the inspection item covering facade finishes and attached fixtures.
Taipei's municipal building management ordinance
As the capital, Taipei applies stricter local requirements on top of the national framework. Its Building Administration Office has strengthened facade safety management in recent years, widening the scope of inspection and increasing enforcement.
Which buildings must file?
Under the regulations, buildings required to file fall into the following categories:
Category one: commercial buildings
| Use | Scale threshold | Filing cycle |
|---|---|---|
| Department stores, large retail | Floor area ≥ 500 m² | Annually |
| Office buildings | Floor area ≥ 1,000 m² | Every 2 years |
| Financial institutions | Floor area ≥ 500 m² | Annually |
| General retail units | Floor area ≥ 300 m² | Every 2 years |
Commercial buildings in Taipei's Xinyi, Zhongshan and Songshan Districts overwhelmingly exceed the 1,000 m² threshold, and filing is mandatory for them.
Category two: public-use buildings
| Use | Scale threshold | Filing cycle |
|---|---|---|
| Hospitals and clinics | Floor area ≥ 300 m² | Annually |
| Schools and cram schools | Floor area ≥ 200 m² | Annually |
| Assembly venues (halls, conference centres) | Capacity ≥ 200 | Annually |
| Libraries and museums | Floor area ≥ 300 m² | Every 2 years |
Category three: hotels and hospitality
| Use | Scale threshold | Filing cycle |
|---|---|---|
| Tourist and general hotels | 20 rooms or more | Annually |
| Restaurants | Floor area ≥ 300 m² | Annually |
| Karaoke and entertainment venues | Any scale | Annually |
Category four: residential buildings
This is where most management committees are unclear.
Purely residential buildings: under current national regulation, an ordinary residential building not used by the public falls outside the mandatory filing scope.
However, Taipei's Building Administration Office has introduced the following:
- Residential buildings over 15 years old — voluntary facade safety diagnosis recommended
- Buildings that have had tiles fall — placed under enhanced guidance
- Buildings adjacent to arterial roads or pavements — prioritised for inspection
Not legally mandatory, but where a falling tile injures someone, a management committee may face civil liability under Article 191 of the Civil Code, covering the owner of a structure.
Category five: mixed-use buildings
Taipei has a great many mixed-use buildings — retail on floors 1–5 with residential above. The principle here is that if the commercial portion meets the filing threshold, the whole building must file, including the facade of the residential floors.
What is specific to Taipei
Beyond the national framework, the Building Administration Office applies the following:
Facade finish material safety filing
Taipei requires buildings with tiled or stone facade finishes to inspect the adhesion of those finishes specifically within the public safety filing. This is stricter than in most other municipalities.
Enhanced management of older buildings
For buildings over 30 years old, the office applies enhanced enforcement and guidance, notifying management committees directly to arrange facade safety assessment.
Priority districts
Densely populated commercial districts — Xinyi, Da'an, Zhongzheng — and buildings around MRT entrances are designated for enhanced management, with more frequent enforcement.
Online filing
The office runs an online public safety filing system, so a management committee or the professional it appoints can complete filing and track progress online. See the Building Administration Office site.
Which buildings are exempt?
Public safety filing is not required where:
- Floor area falls below the statutory threshold — a small retail unit under 300 m², for example
- Private housing — detached townhouses, or walk-up apartments of five storeys or fewer in purely residential use
- Farm buildings, warehouses and other non-public-use buildings — provided they are not open to the public
- Buildings completed within the last five years — some municipalities allow a grace period for new construction
- Buildings designated dangerous and scheduled for demolition — where demolition proceedings are under way
One caveat: exemption from filing does not remove the maintenance obligation under Article 77. Where the facade shows clear safety concerns — large areas of tile delamination, obvious cracking — the owner remains obliged to repair it.
Establishing whether your building needs inspection
If you chair a management committee or manage a property, work through the following:
Step one: check the occupancy permit
Find the building's occupancy permit, usually held in the management office or the committee's files, and confirm the use classification and floor area.
Step two: check against the thresholds
Compare against the tables above and establish whether the building meets the filing threshold.
Step three: check the Building Administration Office's system
Log in at https://dba.gov.taipei to check whether your building is on the register of those required to file. The 1999 citizen service line can also answer this.
Step four: consider voluntary inspection
Even outside the mandatory scope, voluntary inspection is strongly advisable if any of the following apply:
- The building is over 15 years old
- The facade is finished in tile or stone
- Tile delamination or cracking has occurred before
- The building fronts a pavement, or sits near a school or park
- A neighbouring building has had facade material fall
What a facade safety inspection covers
Within a public safety filing, the facade inspection covers:
- Adhesion of the facade finish — whether tile or stone shows delamination, bulging, looseness or spalling
- Structural cracking — whether structural cracks are present, and their width and orientation
- Waterproofing — whether the waterproofing layer has failed, and any signs of ingress
- Curtain wall safety — cracking in the glazing, corrosion of the fixings, ageing of the silicone
- Attached fixtures — how securely air-conditioning condensers, signage and planters are fixed
- Parapets and eaves — cracking or lean in the roof parapet
General Drone Service uses a DJI Matrice 30T carrying an infrared thermal camera and a high-resolution camera, which completes all of the above quickly without any scaffolding. Thermography is particularly effective at detecting tile delamination and water ingress — the things a visual inspection most often misses.
Inspection cycles at a glance
| Category | Examples | Filing cycle | Voluntary inspection |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial (higher risk) | Department stores, entertainment venues, restaurants | Annually | Annually |
| Commercial (general) | Offices, retail units | Every 2 years | Every 2 years |
| Public buildings | Hospitals, schools, libraries | Every 1–2 years | Annually |
| Hotels | Tourist and general hotels | Annually | Annually |
| Residential (15+ years old) | Residential communities | Not mandatory | Every 3–5 years |
| Residential (under 15 years) | New developments | Not mandatory | As conditions require |
| Mixed use | Retail plus residential | Per the commercial portion | Every 2 years |
Penalties and liability
The consequences of not filing:
Administrative penalties
Under Article 91 of the Building Act:
- First instance: a fine of NT$60,000–300,000, with a period to remedy
- Not remedied in time: penalties may be repeated
- Serious cases: use may be suspended, or demolition ordered
Civil liability
Under Article 191 of the Civil Code, covering the owner of a structure, where falling facade material causes injury or property damage:
- The owner is presumed at fault and liable in damages
- A management committee that has not discharged its management and maintenance duty may share that liability
Criminal liability
Where falling facade material causes death or injury and it is established that the manager knew of the danger and did nothing:
- Negligent injury or negligent homicide may be made out
How General Drone Service can help
General Drone Service is a professional drone building survey company in Taiwan, working with management committees and property managers to complete facade safety inspections quickly.
What we bring:
- A DJI Matrice 30T infrared thermal camera — 640×512 resolution, detecting delamination and water ingress precisely
- No scaffolding — lower cost and a shorter programme
- Reports meeting public safety filing requirements — usable directly in the statutory filing
- Coverage — all districts of Taipei and New Taipei, including Xinyi, Songshan and Da'an
Whether or not your building falls within the mandatory scope, regular facade safety inspection is a sensible investment in resident safety and in reducing the committee's legal exposure.
Get in touch to arrange a facade safety assessment.
- More detail: facade survey services
- Regulations: Taipei Building Administration Office | Laws & Regulations Database
- Enquiries: contact us
