accident insurance, and national health insurance. However, those employed under overseas contracts are only provided with commercial insurance, which offers limited protection. The report recommends amending laws to include social insurance coverage for migrant fishers, thereby narrowing the gap with ILO-C188 standards. Many foreign crew members on distant water fishing vessels board their ships abroad and work at sea. Even if they contribute to Taiwan’s labor or health insurance programs, they usually return to their home countries after their contracts end and do not access Taiwan’s medical services, making these benefits ineffective. For labor insurance, fishers often sign contracts for only one or two years, leaving them unable to accumulate sufficient years of service to benefit from long-term insurancelinked benefits. “The C188 Convention specifically requires that fishers within a country's territory be ensured social insurance coverage,” notes Lin Dingrong. However, due to the unique nature of distant water fishing vessels, the topic has been widely debated: “Does labor and health insurance provide better protection, or is commercial insurance more suitable?” Lin compared the death benefits of the two systems. While domestically employed fishers have access to multiple types of insurance with combined benefits totaling around NT$1.2 million, the coverage for overseasemployed fishers has been explicitly raised to NT$1.5 million through commercial insurance. “Upon verification, the family of an injured or deceased fisher may receive a lump-sum payment of NT$1.5 million. While it cannot fully compensate for their loss, it provides critical financial support to the affected family. Similarly, where there was no reimbursement-based medical insurance, there is now a minimum coverage of NT$300,000. For distant water fishers, vessel owners are fully accountable for ensuring this protection. They must bear all medical expenses if no insurance is in place.”58 58 NHRC (March 16, 2023). “Interview Record with Fisheries Division Chief Lin Ding-rong.” 63