Legislative Acts

Multi-Satellite Regulatory Adaptation

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Timeline

2026

• 2026.05.12 [General Inquiry] Request Executive Yuan support for Article 36 amendment Legislator JU CHUN KO stated that opening LEO satellite operations is essential to Taiwan’s communications resilience and national security. He asked the Executive Yuan to support the Article 36 amendment, allowing regulators to approve foreign satellite communication providers case by case when they pose no adverse impact on national security or other public interests.

• 2026.05.12 [Policy Position] Open Taiwan’s sky and let multiple satellite services compete fairly Ko emphasized that the reform is not about opening the door for only one company. It should give all global satellite communication operators a fair opportunity to serve Taiwan. The more diverse Taiwan’s satellite services are, the stronger its disaster response, rural access, aviation, maritime, and national-security communications resilience will be.

• 2026.05.12 [Industry Signal] Starlink still has interest in serving Taiwan Responding to claims that Taiwan’s commercial satellite market is too small and that operators lack interest, Ko said this sounds more like a negotiation tactic. His office has also received industry messages indicating that Starlink is in fact interested in serving Taiwan and willing to communicate with governments around the world.

• 2026.05.12 [Aviation Use Case] LEO satellite connectivity is a structural upgrade Airlines have also indicated that regulatory reform is urgent and necessary. United Airlines expects to install Starlink on more than one aircraft per day throughout 2026, with evidence of speeds seven times faster and fuel-impact reductions of 85%. This is not incremental improvement; it is a structural shift in communications service.

2025

• 2025.12 [Legislative Progress] Amendment Passed First Reading The amendment to Article 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act proposed by Legislator JU CHUN KO, advocating for the relaxation of foreign ownership and nationality restrictions, has officially passed the first reading in the Legislative Yuan and has been referred to the Transportation Committee for review. Bill Details | Gazette Download

• 2025.11.25 [General Inquiry] Call to Break Communication Isolation Legislator JU CHUN KO pointed out during the Transportation Committee’s general inquiry that 90% of Taiwan’s internet relies on submarine cables—an extremely high risk. He urged the Executive Yuan to review Article 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act or adopt a “project permit” approach similar to Japan to allow foreign satellite services.

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• 2025.10 [Inquiry] LEO Satellite Communication Resilience Legislator JU CHUN KO questioned the Ministry of Digital Affairs (MODA) and NCC, pointing out that Taiwan currently relies solely on the ST2 geostationary satellite (Singapore-dominated) for backup, and OneWeb’s coverage capacity is insufficient, revealing a huge gap in national communication resilience.

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• 2025.04 [International Development] Japan KDDI Launches Starlink Direct Connection Japan officially activated Starlink direct-to-phone service, solving communication dead zones in mountainous areas and remote islands, providing an excellent reference for Taiwan.

2027 (Projected)

• 2027 [Future Outlook] Taiwan’s First Domestically-Made LEO Satellite NSTC plans to launch Taiwan’s first domestically-made LEO communication satellite (B5G program), taking the first step in domestic space communications.

Key Issues & Q&A

Q1: Will allowing foreign satellites (like Starlink) create national security concerns?

A: Communication blackout is the greatest national security crisis. Some worry that foreign satellite companies may be controlled by other governments. However, Legislator JU CHUN KO argues that the real national security crisis is “Taiwan being completely cut off from the internet during war or disaster.” By allowing “diverse” satellites (not just one provider but multiple coexisting ones) and requiring ground data to pass through Taiwan’s gateways, we can ensure communication resilience while maintaining information security.

Q2: Why can’t we rely solely on our own satellites?

A: Too slow to help and too costly. Taiwan’s domestically-made satellite is only projected to launch its first unit in 2027. Building a “constellation” capable of covering all of Taiwan (typically requiring hundreds of satellites) could take over a decade. Facing imminent geopolitical risks, we cannot wait. Adopting a dual-track approach of “leasing international services + autonomous R&D” is the most pragmatic strategy.

Q3: How does this affect ordinary citizens?

A: Signal in mountains, at sea, and in remote areas; faster disaster response. Beyond national security, LEO satellites can solve Taiwan’s long-standing poor signal problems in mountainous areas and offshore islands. If “direct phone-to-satellite” is allowed in the future, citizens hiking Taiwan’s hundred peaks, fishing at sea, or even during earthquakes when base stations collapse, will still have phone signal for emergency calls. This is the most direct form of “digital equality” and life preservation.

Legislator JU CHUN KO’s Reform Proposals

Faced with a major national communications gap, Legislator JU CHUN KO has advocated pragmatic regulatory adjustments to improve Taiwan’s communication resilience.

Option 1: Amend Article 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act

He proposes reviewing antiquated restrictions—such as foreign ownership limits and nationality requirements for company chairpersons—to allow international satellite operators to set up local subsidiaries under Taiwan’s oversight. This would not remove national security protections, but instead introduce smarter guardrails:

• Require data to land in Taiwan’s ground gateway stations (Gateways) so traffic can be monitored and routed as needed
• Apply domestic encryption layers for critical infrastructure (government, military, financial systems)
• Establish priority-use rules and failover mechanisms during emergency conditions

Option 2: Project-Permit (Special-Case) Mechanism

If full legislative reform is politically difficult, adopt a Japan-like project-permit system: grant administrative approvals on a case-by-case basis for vetted international LEO services. The benefits are:

• Quick deployment without lengthy legislative procedures
• Retain case-by-case government review and oversight
• Accumulate real-world evidence for broader legal reform

The May 12, 2026 general inquiry made this path more concrete: regulators could approve foreign satellite communication providers after confirming that they do not harm national security or other public interests, allowing them to provide satellite communication services in Taiwan without being blocked by certain legacy restrictions. This shifts the question from rigid formal barriers to substantive review based on national security, public interest, and actual risk.

Option 3: Let Multiple International Services Coexist

Ko emphasized that Taiwan does not need only one LEO satellite service. It needs a diverse sky. Starlink, OneWeb, Amazon Kuiper, and other international satellite operators should all have a fair opportunity under the same safety review and public-interest standards. The more diverse the services, the less likely Taiwan is to face a single point of failure during war, disasters, or submarine cable incidents.

Build a Hybrid ‘Cable + Microwave + Satellite’ Network

True resilience comes from diversity. JU CHUN KO advocates a layered design:

• Normal times: Submarine cables as the primary backbone for cost-efficiency and high bandwidth
• Cable outages: Activate microwave links (e.g., between outer islands and the main island)
• Extreme scenarios: Deploy LEO satellite backups to guarantee continuity of government command-and-control and basic public communications

This hybrid strategy ensures Taiwan can stay connected under all circumstances.

Future Vision: Always-Online Taiwan

Legal and responsible satellite adoption yields benefits far beyond national-security backups.

Lifeline for Disaster Response

When earthquakes, typhoons, or other disasters destroy ground infrastructure, satellites become a critical lifeline for rescue teams, medical services, and affected civilians, vastly improving the efficiency of emergency response.

Digital Equity

LEO satellites can solve long-standing coverage issues in Taiwan’s mountains, islands, and rural areas. With direct-to-phone satellite services, hikers, fishermen, and remote communities would gain access to emergency services—achieving genuine digital equality.

Industrial Opportunity

Opening Taiwan to satellite competition will stimulate demand for antennas, ground gateways, and terminals—helping local telecom and hardware industries to move from manufacturing to system-level vendors in the global LEO supply chain.

Always Online

Resilient, multi-layered connectivity ensures that Taiwan’s command chain, financial systems, and basic communications remain online during war, natural disasters, or undersea cable failures—delivering true national continuity.

Call to Action: The sky is open; regulations should not be self-restricted. Support legislative amendments to allow diverse satellites and make Taiwan’s communication network unbreakable and more resilient!