Prostitution in Taiwan was made illegal under a law. Legislation was introduced in to allow local governments in Taiwan to set up "special zones" where prostitution is permitted. Outside these zones prostitution is illegal. As of no "special zones" had been opened. During the period of Japanese rule — , geisha houses and brothels were authorized to operate in certain districts of Taiwan.
Later geishas evolved into "hostesses". As late as the s, many girls who had been indentured by their parents into prostitution for financial reasons did so willingly, out of a feeling of filial piety. Korean women came to work as prostitutes for the Japanese in Taiwan during this period.
When the Republic of China took control in , the Chinese Nationalist government initially banned most hostesses and prostitutes, labeling prostitution an immoral practice encouraged by the Japanese.
At the same time, however, the Ministry of Defense maintained official brothels on outer islands to provide sexual services to the many single military men who arrived from China in In , the government revived the policy of registering and licensing prostitutes under the Measures for the Administration of Taiwan Province of Prostitutes.
Rapid industrialization in the s brought an influx of young people into the cities, giving rise to a coffee-house subculture, where female hostesses catered to young male workers.
