Taylor was immediately taken into custody at the tribunal detention centre, after being flown by helicopter directly into the UN complex in the Sierra Leonean capital, Freetown, from neighbouring Liberia, a British diplomat told news agency AFP.
"It is a great day for Sierra Leoneans and Liberians," the diplomat said on condition of anonymity.
"Taylor once said that Sierra Leoneans would face the bitterness of war. Now perhaps he will test the bitterness of justice," he said.
Desmond Da Silva, the chief prosecutor of the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone, held a news conference at the UN complex.
War crimes
Taylor, a former guerrilla chieftain, is wanted by the court for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the Sierra Leonean civil war of 1991-2001, which claimed around 200,000 lives.
Prosecutors at the court allege Taylor sponsored the brutal rebels of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), which slaughtered, maimed, raped and enslaved tens of thousands of civilians during the civil war.
The Special Court has drawn up a 17-count charge sheet alleging crimes against humanity, murder, sexual violence and unlawful use of child soldiers.
Taylor is considered the single most powerful figure behind a series of civil wars in both Liberia and Sierra Leone between 1989 and 2003, which between them left around 400,000 people dead.
Taylor was captured in Nigeria early on Wednesday as he tried to flee the country following the Nigerian government's decision to hand him over to Liberia.
Hague trial proposed
The United States is pressing for Taylor’s trial to be switched to the Netherlands.
US officials said the importance of the trial meant that The Hague would be a better venue.
US President George W Bush said he had discussed switching the trial with Nigeria's President Olusegun Obasanjo during talks at the White House on Wednesday.
"There is a process to get Charles Taylor to the court in the Netherlands," Mr Bush said in Washington.
He added that such a move would require a UN Security Council resolution but added that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice believed it could be passed "relatively quickly".
At a US State Department briefing, spokesman Sean McCormack said: "There are some discussions about how to facilitate the prosecution of Charles Taylor. And part of that discussion is, because of the substantial nature of this case, physically, what is the best place to do it?"
But he said the International Tribunal on Sierra Leone still had jurisdiction.
"As for the possible movement to the Netherlands -- physical movement of the trial, that is certainly something that we are working on.
"The actions aren't yet completed, so I can't give you a definitive timeline on this, but yes, we are working on it." Mr McCormack said the judicial body would remain the same.
"Because of the nature of this trial and its prominence and a lot of other reasons, I think, so that we can best ensure that this trial proceeds in the way that it should, that's the reason why people were taking a look at another venue with the same jurisdiction."