For a sentence of up to two years' imprisonment, short-term detention or a fine, a court may suspend execution for two to five years if the statutory history conditions and its assessment under Criminal Code Article 74 are met. An intentional offense committed before or during suspension, followed by a final sentence of more than six months' imprisonment within the suspension period, requires revocation under Article 75; other specified grounds may permit revocation under Article 75-1. If the period expires without revocation, the sentence pronouncement loses effect under Article 76. Separately, Article 6 of the Police Criminal Record Certificate Issuance Act lists seven categories omitted from the certificate, including an unrevoked suspended sentence. The certificate's contents and underlying judicial records are different questions.
When may a court suspend a sentence?
Where the sentence is no more than two years' imprisonment, short-term detention or a fine, a court may suspend it for two to five years if temporary non-execution is appropriate and either the person has not previously been sentenced to imprisonment or more for an intentional crime, or five years have passed after execution or pardon of such a previous sentence without another such pronouncement. The period begins when the judgment becomes final (Criminal Code, Article 74(1)).
Meeting the listed criminal-history conditions does not guarantee suspension. The court must make a case-specific sentencing decision; no result is predicted here.
受二年以下有期徒刑、拘役或罰金之宣告，而有下列情形之一，認以暫不執行為適當者，得宣告二年以上五年以下之緩刑，其期間自裁判確定之日起算：一、未曾因故意犯罪受有期徒刑以上刑之宣告者。二、前因故意犯罪受有期徒刑以上刑之宣告，執行完畢或赦免後，五年以內未曾因故意犯罪受有期徒刑以上刑之宣告者。（刑法第74條第1項）
Unofficial English summary (not an official translation): Article 74(1) permits, but does not require, a two-to-five-year suspension for the specified sentence and criminal-history circumstances when temporary non-execution is appropriate.
What conditions may accompany suspension?
A court may order the defendant to apologize, write a statement of remorse, compensate the victim for property or non-property loss, pay a sum to the public treasury, perform community service, complete addiction treatment or meet other appropriate measures (Article 74(2)).
The obligations must appear in the judgment. Compensation and treasury payments can serve as titles for civil compulsory execution (Article 74(3)–(4)). Suspension does not extend to accessory penalties, security measures or confiscation (Article 74(5)).
Does another offense always revoke the suspension?
No; the statute distinguishes mandatory from discretionary revocation. If an intentional other offense committed before or during the suspension produces a final sentence of more than six months' imprisonment during the suspension period, the suspension must be revoked. The request for revocation must be made within six months after that judgment becomes final (Criminal Code, Art. 75(2)).
Under Article 75-1, discretionary revocation may apply if an intentional other offense committed before or during suspension results, within the suspension period, in a final sentence of six months' imprisonment or less, short-term detention or a fine; if a negligent offense committed during suspension results, within that period, in a final sentence of imprisonment; or if the person seriously breaches an ordered condition. The court must also find that the original suspension will not achieve its intended effect and that execution of the sentence is necessary. That assessment depends on the facts.
What happens when the suspension period expires?
If the period expires without revocation, the sentence pronouncement loses effect. The rule has an exception where revocation is made after expiry under Article 75(2) or 75-1(2) (Criminal Code, Article 76).
This legal effect is not the same as erasing a judgment or all government records. Separate rules govern the police certificate and the retention or retrieval of other records.
緩刑期滿，而緩刑之宣告未經撤銷者，其刑之宣告失其效力。但依第七十五條第二項、第七十五條之一第二項撤銷緩刑宣告者，不在此限。（刑法第76條）
Unofficial English summary (not an official translation): Article 76 makes the sentence pronouncement ineffective after an unrevoked suspension expires, subject to its stated post-expiry revocation exceptions.
What is a police criminal record certificate, and who may apply?
A police criminal record certificate is prepared from data about final judgments and execution of criminal cases from judicial or military judicial authorities (Police Criminal Record Certificate Issuance Act, Article 3). A person who currently has or previously had household registration, residence or stay records in Taiwan may apply to a municipal or county police bureau with an application and identity documents (Article 4). The bureau generally issues it within three working days from the day after acceptance, except where an inquiry to judicial or military authorities is needed (Article 5).
Which records are omitted from the certificate?
Article 6 lists seven omitted categories. They include qualifying juvenile matters under Juvenile Justice Act Article 83-1(1); a suspended sentence that has not been revoked; a sentence of short-term detention or a fine; exemption from punishment by judgment; exemption from execution; a penalty abolished by law; and certain completed conversions to a fine or community service under Criminal Code Article 41(2) where no sentence of imprisonment or more is pronounced within five years.
An ordinary imprisonment-sentence record outside these seven categories is recorded on the certificate. Whether a particular record falls within an exception must be checked against the Act and the person's facts.
警察刑事紀錄證明應以書面為之；明確記載有無刑事案件紀錄。但下列各款刑事案件紀錄，不予記載：一、合於少年事件處理法第八十三條之一第一項規定者。二、受緩刑之宣告，未經撤銷者。三、受拘役、罰金之宣告者。四、受免刑之判決者。五、經免除其刑之執行者。六、法律已廢除其刑罰者。七、經易科罰金或依刑法第四十一條第二項之規定易服社會勞動執行完畢，五年內未再受有期徒刑以上刑之宣告者。（警察刑事紀錄證明核發條例第6條）
Unofficial English summary (not an official translation): Article 6 excludes seven categories from the police certificate, including qualifying juvenile matters under Juvenile Justice Act Article 83-1(1), unrevoked suspended sentences, and certain completed conversions to community service under Criminal Code Article 41(2).
Does omission from the certificate mean all judicial records disappeared?
No. Article 3 defines the certificate as a document made from case data, while Article 6 governs what the certificate records. Neither provision directs police or courts to destroy or delete all underlying case data. The certificate's scope is separate from the continued existence of a judgment or another agency's records.
Other rules may govern court access, retention and the use of past judgments for particular licenses. Those rules are not surveyed here. Seek individual advice if the distinction matters for an application.
When might legal advice help?
Before or after a judgment becomes final, advice can help assess suspension eligibility, obligations that must be met, and what a police certificate may show. This is general information, not advice or an outcome prediction for an individual case.