Special Examination Information

1. The common subjects for all divisions include:

First stage

Second stage

Division: All divisions

Professional subject: Physical examination

(the test shall be based on a cardiorespiratory endurance test of 1,200-meter run; male candidates must complete the course within five minutes fifty seconds and female candidates must complete the course in six minutes twenty seconds.)

Third stage

Division: All divisions

Oral examination (individual examination)

Score Calculation

Grade Three and Grade Four Special Examination

• The examination is administered in three stages. The first stage is the written examination; the second stage is the physical examination; the third stage is the oral examination. Only candidates that qualified in the first stage may enter the second stage and only candidates that qualified in the second stage may proceed to the third stage.
• The score in the first-stage written examination accounts for 80%; the score in the third-stage oral examination accounts for 20%. The sum of the scores is the total score of the test.
• The calculation of the written examination score for Grade Three Special Examination shall be calculated based on the sum of the scores of regular subjects and professional subjects; the score of regular subjects shall be calculated based on the sum of the scores of each subject multiplied by 10%; the score of professional subjects shall be calculated based on the total score of each subject divided by the number of subjects and multiplied by the remaining percentage. The scores of Grade Four Special Examination shall be calculated based on the average score of all subjects.
• The second-stage physical examination shall be based on a cardiorespiratory endurance test of 1,200-meter run; male candidates must complete the course within five minutes fifty seconds and female candidates must complete the course in six minutes twenty seconds.
• Candidates shall be disqualified if they scored zero points in a subject in the first-stage written examination, if their written test score is less than fifty points, if they fail to pass the second-stage physical examination test, or if they fail to score at least sixty points in the third-stage oral examination.

Physical Examination Regulations

• After candidates qualify in the first stage, they shall be required to receive a physical examination in a designated medical institution (public hospital, education hospital, or an Outpatient Center of the National Health Insurance Administration). Candidates that fail to pass the physical examination or fail to submit the physical examination inspection form within the specified time may not proceed to the second stage.
• After candidates report for duties and accept the training, they may be required to undergo a second physical examination in a public hospital designated by the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau. The physical examination standards shall be the same as those set for the examination.

Physical examination standards (a candidate shall be disqualified under any of the following conditions)

• Height: Male candidates shorter than 155cm (with shoes removed); female candidates shorter than 150cm (with shoes removed).
• Body mass index: Where the candidate weight (in kg) divided by the square of the candidate's height is lower than 18 or higher than 31.
• Vision: Naked vision of either eye is less than 0.2. However, this restriction shall not apply if the corrected vision reaches 1.0.
• Color vision: Inability to distinguish between red, yellow, and green.
• Hearing: Loss of hearing of more than 90 decibels in the ear with superior hearing.
• Blood pressure: The high blood pressure continuously exceeds 140 mmHg and the low blood pressure continuously exceeds 95 mmHg.
• Positive response in tuberculosis sputum test.
• The candidate loses a thumb, an index finger, or more than two of the three other fingers or cannot open or clutch the fist at will.
• The candidate's arm cannot bend and straighten at will or the two arms cannot bend normally.
• The candidate's lower limbs exhibit evident obstacles for squatting, standing up, or jumping on the same spot at will.
• The candidate is certified by an education hospital to be suffering from a mental disease or other mental impairment that makes the candidate unable to fulfill his/her duties.
• The candidate has severe facial damage which cannot be rectified by cosmetics, wearing assistive instruments, or other means.
• The candidate suffers from other severe illness that cannot be cured and makes the candidate unable to fulfill his/her duties.

※ The aforementioned restrictions on height, body mass index, and facial features shall not apply in the physical examination of candidates registering for the chemical forensic division and medical forensic division.

Training

• Grade Three Special Examination: Recruits shall be trained by the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau (Cadet Training Office) for one year; during the training period, the recruits shall receive allowances based on grade five basic pay for junior grade five employees.
• Grade Four Special Examination: Recruits shall be trained by the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau (Cadet Training Office) for six months; during the training period, the recruits shall receive allowances based on grade one basic pay for junior grade three employees.
• According to Articles 4 of the Civil Service Examinations Act, qualifiers may not request an extension except for compulsory military service, studying towards a Master's Degree, preparing a Doctoral Degree, illness, pregnancy, childbirth, parental illness, severe conditions of their children, rearing children under three years, and other force majeure reasons. Qualifiers who passed training must receive the approval of the Civil Service Protection and Training Commission to complete examination procedures. The approval shall be submitted to the Examination Yuan which shall issue an examination qualification certificate. The qualifiers shall be assigned to the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau for appointment.

Scope of the Services (Q&A)

Q: What is the future scope of the services to be provided by qualifiers of the Grade Three Special Examination?

A: Qualifiers must receive a training program in the Cadet Training Office of the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau (hereinafter referred to as the Bureau) for one year in which qualifiers shall not occupy any posts. All personnel qualified in the training, regardless of gender, shall be assigned to field units of the Bureau (including mountain areas, remote islands, and other remote areas) to perform counter-espionage, anti-corruption, prevention of significant economic offenses, money laundering offenses, and drug enforcement as investigative agents of the nation. The Bureau encourages investigative agents to gain experience in different roles to enrich their career in investigative tasks. As a principle, new investigative agents must have first-line experience in field work and use their own professional skills in investigative tasks. Therefore, qualifiers of the information technology, electronics, medical/chemical forensics, engineering divisions, and the Investigation Task Force divisions, and those that take special language tests in the examination shall cooperate with transfers to related professional office units for services in accordance with the Bureau's requirements. Certain qualifiers may be directly assigned to serve in related professional office units after graduation from training.

Q: What are the future tasks of qualifiers of the Grade Three Special Examination?

A: The main tasks of investigative agents are as follows (assigned based on mission requirements):

• Case investigation tasks: The tasks include preliminary evidence collection, case execution planning, inquiries, searches, surveillance, waiting, taking people into custody, arrests, prisoner transfers, prisoner returns, communication surveillance, production of investigation reports, assistance in public prosecution in court, and other investigation and evidence collection tasks.
• Work at designated locations: Agents shall gain comprehensive knowledge of the state of their jurisdictions to collect data and uncover clues for cases involving national security, corruption, voter bribery investigations, drug enforcement, and economic crimes.

Q: What is the future work environment like for qualifiers of the Grade Three Special Examination?

A: The work environment of investigative agents includes:

1. Characteristics of both teamwork and independent assignments: Cases often require teamwork and working at designated locations requires independent intelligence collection in the jurisdiction and interacting and establishing relations with different kinds of people.
2. Dangers and physically-demanding: For instance, agents are often required to conduct surveillance, waiting, taking people into custody, arrests, and other covert investigation operations in mountain areas or by the sea in the night or early in the morning.
3. Agents must often perform field work and must be on standby 24 hours a day.
4. Long hours: The investigation of cases and the management of conditions in the jurisdiction must be completed continuously. Therefore, the time required for the performance of missions often start early in the morning and end late in the night. Missions may sometimes continue for days or more than one week.

Qualifiers must therefore be fit and have high levels of endurance to complete the rigorous training courses (in addition to professional courses, the training also includes out-and-back runs, 3,000-meter runs, pull-ups, push-ups, sit-ups, mountain training, and other physical training) to meet the demands of future field investigative work. Candidates are advised to consider all these factors carefully and make preparations before registering for the examination.

Q: What are the differences between the qualifiers of the Grade Four Special Examination and Grade Three Special Examination? What is the future scope of the services to be provided by qualifiers of the Grade Four Special Examination after they are assigned?

A: Qualifiers of Grade Four Special Examination must receive a training program in the Cadet Training Office of the Bureau for six months in which qualifiers shall not occupy any posts. All personnel qualified in the training, regardless of gender, shall be assigned to field units of the Bureau (including mountain areas, remote islands, and other remote areas) to provide services. Their main tasks are to assist with administrative tasks and entry-level investigation tasks. As a principle, assistance with administrative tasks accounts for more than 80% of their personal time and they shall be assigned flexibly based on the requirements for the Bureau's missions.

Qualifiers of the Grade Three Special Examination are qualified for Associate Grade Six appointments after they qualify in training; Qualifiers of the Grade Four Special Examination are qualified for Junior Grade Three appointments after they qualify in training;

Q: If Qualifiers of the Grade Four Special Examination mainly perform entry-level assistance tasks, why is physical examination required for the examination and why must they be trained for six months?

A: The employees of the Bureau are judicial police officers defined in the Code of Criminal Procedure. Therefore, Qualifiers of the Grade Four Special Examination are still required to support investigative tasks such as searches, seizures, and other field missions in accordance with mission requirements. They perform administrative tasks that are different from those provided by regular civil service personnel and must therefore meet the requirements for expertise and fitness for basic investigative tasks.

Q: Are dangerous missions such as surveillance, taking people into custody, and making arrests conditions that only drug enforcement agents must face?

A: Physically demanding and dangerous operations for investigative agents are not restricted to drug enforcement. Investigative agents are responsible for first-line investigative tasks. Regardless of case categories, their missions include onsite surveillance, monitoring and waiting, taking people into custody, arresting suspects, and other field work. All these tasks consume massive amounts of energy and require agents to respond quickly.

Q: Can qualifiers freely choose their service units for assignments?

A: The Bureau operates units across Taiwan (including mountain areas, remote islands, and other remote areas). The actual work place for qualifiers shall be determined by the Bureau's operational requirements which shall be the top priority. The Bureau will then reference the training score rankings, preferences of the qualifiers, and openings and requirements for talents in each unit for assignments. Qualifiers may only apply for transfers to other units of the Bureau after working at least two years after the assignment. However, the assignment shall still be determined by the openings and requirements of each unit. Therefore, there is a higher level of uncertainty with regard to the actual work place.

Q: Can qualifiers choose the categories of missions based on their interests and preferences after acceptance and assignments?

A: As a principle, the Bureau assigns work based on the requirements and work arrangements of the units as well as the expertise, strengths, and preferences of the qualifiers to account for individual differences and work targets. However, investigative agents must obey orders and accept tasks assigned by the Bureau. They cannot choose their operations with complete freedom. Candidates are advised to carefully consider whether they truly intend to become a comprehensive investigative agent of the nation.

Q: What personal traits make people suitable for investigative work?

A: The Bureau is open to young people with passion for investigative work and ambition for greatness. However, as investigative work often requires contact and communication with others and requires compliance with laws, discipline, and teamwork, the work pressure can be immense. Therefore, people who do not like communicating with others or those who have a low tolerance for pressure are advised to carefully consider whether they can adapt to the work environment in the Bureau.