Lin Chuan (; born 13 December 1951) is a Taiwanese economist, lawyer, and politician who served as the

Premier of the Republic of China The premier of the Republic of China, officially the premier of the Executive Yuan ( zh, 行政院院長), is the head of government of Taiwan and leader of the Executive Yuan. The premier is nominally the principal advisor to the President ...

from 2016 to 2017. He was the first cabinet head under the

Tsai Ing-wen Tsai Ing-wen (; pinyin: ''Cài Yīngwén''; born 31 August 1956) is a Taiwanese politician and legal scholar who served as the seventh president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 2016 to 2024. A member of the Democratic Progressive Party ...

government. Before his premiership, he had also served as the Minister of Budget, Accounting and Statistics and

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

during

Chen Shui-bian Chen Shui-bian ( zh, t=陳水扁; born 12 October 1950) is a Taiwanese former politician and lawyer who served as the fifth president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 2000 to 2008. Chen was the first president from the Democratic Progres ...

's presidency.

Early life and education

Lin was born in

Kaohsiung Kaohsiung, officially Kaohsiung City, is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsiung City has a population of approximately 2.73 million p ...

to a ''

waishengren ''Waishengren'', sometimes called mainlanders, are a group of migrants who arrived in Taiwan from mainland China between the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II in 1945 and sometime following the Kuomintang retreat at the end of the ...

'' family on 13 December 1951. His ancestral home is in

Jiangsu Jiangsu is a coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province in East China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its capital in Nanjing. Jiangsu is the List of Chinese administra ...

and his family had ties with the

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...

. He graduated from

Fu Jen Catholic University Fu Jen Catholic University (FJU, FJCU or Fu Jen; or ) is a private education, private Catholic university in Xinzhuang District, Xinzhuang, New Taipei City, Taiwan. The university was founded in 1925 in Beijing at the request of Pope Pius XI and ...

with a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

(LL.B.) in 1974 and obtained a

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is a postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in another subject. In many jurisdi ...

(LL.M.) from

National Chengchi University National Chengchi University () is a public research university in Taipei, Taiwan. First established in Nanjing in 1927, the university was subsequently reestablished in 1954 in Taiwan as the first reestablished "National University". The u ...

in 1978. Lin then pursued graduate studies in the United States, earning his

Master of Science A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medici ...

(M.S.) in 1982 and his Ph.D. in economics from the

University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...

in 1984. His doctoral dissertation, completed under economist Jan Brueckner, was titled, "The Incidence of the Property Tax."

Career

He served as the Minister of the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics of the

Executive Yuan The Executive Yuan () is the executive (government), executive branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Under the Additional Articles of the Constitution of the Republic of China, amended constitution, the head of the Execut ...

from 2000 to 2002 and Minister of Finance from 2002 to 2006. After stepping down as finance minister in 2006, Lin served on the board of multiple companies and led two think tanks. He also served within

Taipei City Government The Taipei City Government is the municipal government of Taipei. History Taipei was known as Taihoku during Japan's rule of Taiwan, which started in 1895. Initially, the city was directly controlled by the Governor-General of Taiwan. In ...

as head of the city's . Following

's victory in the 2016 presidential election, Lin was selected as a co-convener of Tsai's transition team set up to manage the transfer of power from the outgoing

Ma Ying-jeou Ma Ying-jeou ( zh, t=馬英九; pinyin: ''Mǎ Yīngjiǔ''; ; born 13 July 1950) is a Taiwanese politician, lawyer, and legal scholar who served as the sixth president of the Republic of China from 2008 to 2016. A member of the Kuomintang (KMT ...

administration. Soon after his appointment to the transition team, Lin became the subject of national media speculation linking him to several government posts within the Tsai administration. In February 2016, Lin was chosen to lead a task force that explored the possibility of joining the

Trans-Pacific Partnership The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), or Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA), was a proposed trade agreement between 12 Pacific Rim countries: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietn ...

Premiership (2016-2017)

On 15 March 2016, president-elect

named Lin as the premier. He was confirmed by the

Legislative Yuan The Legislative Yuan () is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for four-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a ...

soon after and took office on 20 May 2016. On 4 September 2017 he resigned as premier reportedly to bolster Tsai's declining popularity. Shortly after stepping down, Lin was awarded the Order of Propitious Clouds. On 15 January 2018, Lin Chuan took over the Chairman of TTY Biopharm Company Limited.

Personal life

Lin married Wu Pei-ling in September 2002 and has two daughters from a previous marriage.Alt URL
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References

1951 births Living people Fu Jen Catholic University alumni National Chengchi University alumni Academic staff of the National Chengchi University Academic staff of the National Taiwan University Politicians of the Republic of China on Taiwan from Kaohsiung Premiers of the Republic of China on Taiwan Ministers of finance of Taiwan University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni Recipients of the Order of Propitious Clouds {{Taiwan-politician-stub