Call 119 for a fire, an injury or a sudden illness; call 110 for matters that need the police; when your phone has poor reception and neither 110 nor 119 will connect, dial 112 instead, and when you hear the recording press 0 for the police or 9 for the fire department. 113 is the Ministry of Health and Welfare's protection hotline (domestic violence, children and youth, sexual assault and so on), 165 is the anti-fraud consultation hotline, and 1955 is the Ministry of Labor's labor consultation and complaint hotline.
Note: Do not dial 112 first when your reception is normal. The National Fire Agency explains that 112 goes through a voice menu, which lengthens the time to connect, so with good reception you should call 110 or 119 first. A caller who claims to be 165 or the police and tells you "do not hang up, press 165 directly to verify" is a scam. Follow the latest announcements of each responsible agency.
The 6 numbers at a glance
| Number | Nature / responsible agency | Use | Notes |
|---|
| 119 | County and city fire departments (National Fire Agency) | Fires, disasters, emergency medical care, life rescue | 24 hours; if your phone has no signal, dial 112 and press 9 to be connected to the 119 for your location |
| 110 | County and city police departments (national police agency, 警政署) | Reporting to the police: incidents that need police handling | People with hearing or speech impairments can report by SMS or fax (see below) |
| 112 | Mobile phone emergency rescue number (connects to 110 or 119) | When mobile reception is poor and neither 110 nor 119 will connect | Can be dialed without a SIM card; Chinese and English recording, press 0 for 110 and 9 for 119 |
| 113 | Ministry of Health and Welfare | Consultation and reporting for domestic violence, child and youth protection, sexual assault, elder protection, protection of people with physical or mental disabilities, and sexual harassment | 24 hours, free from mobile phones and from landline and public phones; SMS and online chat are available, with interpretation in 5 foreign languages: English, Vietnamese, Thai, Indonesian and Japanese (Ministry of Health and Welfare press release, 2022) |
| 165 | Ministry of the Interior's national police agency (criminal investigation bureau, 刑事警察局) | Consultation and verification of suspected fraud; getting help after being defrauded | You must hang up first and then dial it yourself |
| 1955 | Ministry of Labor | Labor-law consultation and labor dispute complaints; local and foreign workers and employers can all call | Free; three-way calls are available to help with interpretation |
None of these is for asking about municipal matters or reporting a street light that is out. For those, call 1999; see What the 1999 citizen hotline can do.
112: can you dial it with no signal or no SIM card?
The National Fire Agency explains that 112 is an emergency rescue number that can be dialed from mobile phones anywhere in the world, and even without a SIM card, you can dial 112 as long as the phone still has battery and is within range of a signal. The "signal" here means the signal of any mobile carrier, not only your own. Once connected you hear a recording: "This is the mobile phone 112 emergency rescue hotline. To report a crime, press 0 and we will transfer you to the 110 police department. If you urgently need rescue, press 9 and we will transfer you to the 119 fire department."
The National Fire Agency also notes that on some phones with no SIM card or no signal, dialing 119 already switches automatically to 112. If your location has no base-station signal from any carrier at all, 112 cannot be dialed out either; for people who often go into the mountains, the agency recommends carrying a phone and remembering 112.
What to say when you call 119
2 key points from the National Fire Agency's "reporting guide" (報案要領):
- Use a landline if you can: When you dial 119 from a landline (including a public phone), the fire department can find your address through the system, which greatly shortens the time to accept the call and dispatch.
- On a mobile phone, give the location first: First state clearly the location of the incident, a relative position or coordinates, and then say what happened. On a mobile call the signal may be poor, the call may drop or the battery may die, so giving the address at the very start matters most.
Once connected, stay calm, do not interrupt the duty officer, and simply answer the questions one by one. In a gas leak, remember to leave the scene before calling; for the steps see What to do about a gas leak. To see the cases each county and city fire department is currently handling, see How to check real-time incidents from each county and city fire department. For whether calling an ambulance costs money, see Does an ambulance cost money?
Hearing or speech impairment, or cannot talk: reporting by SMS or fax
For 110, the national police agency published the "110 SMS and fax reporting hotlines for people with hearing or speech impairments" on the government open data platform (data updated 2025-12-02). The numbers for Taipei and New Taipei are:
| Unit | Mobile SMS reporting number | Fax reporting line |
|---|
| Taipei City Police Department (臺北市政府警察局) | 0911-510-914 | 02-2331-8898, 02-2331-9413 |
| New Taipei City Police Department (新北市政府警察局) | 0911-510-105 | 02-2966-8310, 02-2966-8312 |
For 119, the SMS numbers differ by county and city. The National Fire Agency website's page on reporting for people with hearing or speech impairments lists the SMS and fax numbers for each county and city, and offers the "119 reporting app". The SMS number for people with hearing or speech impairments listed on the home page of the Taipei City fire department website and in its "emergency reporting service leaflet" is 0911-511-902, with fax 02-2758-7865, the same as on the National Fire Agency page (the Taipei SMS field in the government open data platform's 119 dataset is written differently; this article follows the Taipei City fire department's announcement). For New Taipei and other counties and cities, check the National Fire Agency page. It is a good idea to save the numbers in your phone beforehand.
What 165, 113 and 1955 each handle
165 anti-fraud consultation hotline: The criminal investigation bureau warns that fraud rings pretend to be a bank and say you have transferred money to a warning-flagged account, then tell you "do not hang up, press 165 directly to verify", when in fact the call is being passed to their accomplices. The correct approach is "listen, hang up, verify" (一聽、二掛、三查證): hang up first, then dial 165 yourself. If you find you have been defrauded, dial 165 or 110 immediately.
113 protection hotline: A 24-hour, year-round hotline set up by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, providing consultation and reporting for domestic violence, child and youth protection, sexual assault, elder protection, protection of people with physical or mental disabilities, and sexual harassment, free from mobile, home or public phones. The ministry reminds callers that for an emergency that endangers life, they should dial 110 directly.
1955 labor consultation hotline: When it opened in 2009 it was a 24-hour consultation and protection hotline for foreign workers; from November 7, 2016 it was merged with the Ministry of Labor's labor-law hotline and renamed the "1955 labor consultation hotline" (1955 勞工諮詢專線), and local workers can also consult and file complaints. It can be dialed directly from a mobile phone or landline, is free of charge, and can use three-way calls to help employers and foreign workers communicate.
What happens if you dial the wrong number or misuse it
The law penalizes "calling without good reason" and "false reports":
| Provision | Conduct | Penalty |
|---|
| Fire Services Act, Article 36, subparagraph 1 (violating Article 18, paragraph 2) | Calling the fire reporting number without good reason, or falsely reporting a fire, disaster, life rescue or emergency medical care | A fine of NT$10,000 or more and NT$50,000 or less |
| Social order maintenance act (社會秩序維護法), Article 85, subparagraph 3 | Deliberately making a false report of a disaster to a public official | Detention, or a fine of up to NT$12,000 |
| Social order maintenance act, Article 85, subparagraph 4 | Calling a police reporting hotline without good reason and not stopping after being told to | Detention, or a fine of up to NT$12,000 |
If you press the wrong number by accident and get connected, this article suggests the following (not an official rule): do not just hang up; tell the duty officer that it was a misdial and that there is no emergency, so they do not think you are in trouble and call back or send someone. Handle it the same way if a child playing with the phone dials by mistake.
FAQ
What can a foreign friend dial in an emergency in Taiwan?
They can dial 112. The National Fire Agency explains that 112 has Chinese and English recordings, with 0 for the police and 9 for the fire department, which is more convenient for visitors to Taiwan.
Which is faster, 112 or 119?
With normal reception, 119 (or 110) is faster, because 112 first goes through a voice menu. 112 is the backup number for when reception is poor and 110 and 119 will not connect.
If a family member is being violent to me, should I call 113 or 110?
If there is immediate danger, call 110 first. The Ministry of Health and Welfare advises calling 110 for an emergency that endangers life; for consultation, reporting or follow-up help, call 113.
My boss will not pay overtime; can I call 1955?
Yes. 1955 provides labor-law consultation and receives complaints, and local workers have been among the people it serves since November 7, 2016.
Last updated: 2026-10-31
This article is compiled by the SOSfix editors from public information and is for general reference only; for your own case, contact the National Fire Agency (Ministry of the Interior), the national police agency (Ministry of the Interior), the Ministry of Health and Welfare or the Ministry of Labor.
Sources
- National Fire Agency, Ministry of the Interior: 119 and 112 (內政部消防署：119、112; in Chinese; verified 2026-10-31): 119 as a 24-hour reporting line, dial 112 and press 9 when there is no signal, some phones switch over to 112, fine of NT$10,000 to NT$50,000 for false reports, conditions for dialing 112 without a SIM card, content of the recording, call 110 or 119 first when reception is good, Chinese and English recordings.
- National Fire Agency, Ministry of the Interior: reporting guide (內政部消防署：報案要領; in Chinese; verified 2026-10-31): use a landline first, give the location first on a mobile phone, stay calm once connected.
- National Fire Agency, Ministry of the Interior: reporting for people with hearing or speech impairments (內政部消防署：聽語障人士報案; in Chinese; verified 2026-10-31): the 119 reporting app, table of SMS and fax numbers for each county and city fire department.
- Government open data platform: 110 SMS and fax reporting hotlines for people with hearing or speech impairments (政府資料開放平臺：110聽語障人士簡訊及傳真報案專線; in Chinese; national police agency, data updated 2025-12-02): SMS and fax reporting numbers of the Taipei City and New Taipei City police departments.
- Taipei City fire department: home page, hotline for fax and SMS for people with hearing or speech impairments (臺北市政府消防局：網站首頁「聽語障傳真簡訊服務專線」; in Chinese; updated 2026-10-31, verified 2026-10-31): fax 02-27587865, SMS 0911511902.
- Taipei City fire department: emergency reporting service leaflet (臺北市政府消防局：緊急報案服務宣傳單; PDF, in Chinese; verified 2026-10-31): fax service line 02-27587865, SMS reporting number currently accepted 0911-511-902.
- Government open data platform: 119 SMS and fax reporting hotlines for people with hearing or speech impairments (政府資料開放平臺：119聽語障人士簡訊及傳真報案專線; in Chinese; data updated 2025-12-16): the Taipei SMS field does not match the 0911-511-902 announced by the Taipei City fire department and the National Fire Agency; this article follows the Taipei City fire department announcement.
- Laws and regulations database: Fire Services Act (全國法規資料庫：消防法; in Chinese; last amended November 29, 2024): Article 18, paragraph 2 on not calling without good reason or making false reports, Article 36 on fines of NT$10,000 or more and NT$50,000 or less.
- Laws and regulations database: social order maintenance act (全國法規資料庫：社會秩序維護法; in Chinese; last amended June 11, 2025): Article 85, subparagraphs 3 and 4 on falsely reporting a disaster, and calling a police reporting hotline without good reason and not stopping after being told to, punished by detention or a fine of up to NT$12,000.
- Ministry of the Interior: dialing 165 directly during a call? Beware of scam rings posing as police (內政部：通話中直接撥打165?小心詐騙集團假冒警察; in Chinese; published 2024-11-24): how the fake 165 trick works, listen-hang up-verify, dial 165 or 110 after being defrauded.
- Ministry of the Interior: fully strengthening the capacity of the 165 anti-fraud hotline (內政部：全面強化165反詐騙專線能量; in Chinese; published 2025-09-04): the 165 anti-fraud consultation hotline is run by the criminal investigation bureau of the national police agency.
- Ministry of Health and Welfare: 113 open through the Lunar New Year (衛生福利部：113服務春節不打烊，與您共同守護每個家; in Chinese; updated 2021-02-04): 113 as a 24-hour hotline, scope of service, free of charge, SMS and online chat, call 110 when life is endangered.
- Ministry of Health and Welfare: 113 service continues through the Lunar New Year (衛生福利部：113春節服務不停歇，與您一起平安過新年; in Chinese; filed 2022-01-27, verified 2026-10-31): 113 as a 24-hour free hotline, SMS and online chat, interpretation in 5 foreign languages: English, Vietnamese, Thai, Indonesian and Japanese.
- Ministry of Labor: results of the "1955 hotline" in the first half of 2017 (勞動部：「1955專線」106年上半年執行成效; in Chinese; published 2017-08-24): renamed the 1955 labor consultation hotline on November 7, 2016 and serving local workers, free from mobile and landline phones, three-way calls.
- Ministry of Labor: the 1955 hotline supports foreign workers, officially opened July 1, 2009 (勞動部：專線1955挺外籍勞工，98年7月1日正式開通; in Chinese): when the 1955 hotline opened and its original name.
Related reading: Taiwan Scam Texts and Calls: Spot Them, Verify with 165 · Taiwan CPR and AED Steps: Compress 5-6 cm, 100-120 a Minute · Taiwan Alert Accounts: 2-Year Limit, Release, Mule Penalties
