Does an expatriate married to a taiwanese woman need his wife’s
permission to become a taiwanese Resident ? What if she refuses
to go to the office and get Taiwan Household Registration Certificate necessary
for applying for Residency ?
If your marriage has been registered, you can present your certificate of marriage to the HR office and request a print-out of your wife’s HR information. That should mention your name in a column next to your wife.
However, the NIA will require your wife to accompany you when you apply for your ARC the first time.
I’m genuinely hoping these are hypothetical questions.
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Hi, Thankyou for answering my questions. Please kindly explain if the following occurs, My Wife for whatever reason, May NOT be able to appear with me to apply for the ARC. In that case, can you explain to me what my options are ? Can a local appear with me to apply for the ARC ? Can one of her “family members” appear with me to apply for the ARC ? Can you please tell me all of my options. Thanks for your help.
外國人申請辦理或展延、補發外僑居留證或居留原因變更送件須知第五條之1：外籍配偶第一次辦理外僑居留證或因結婚變更居留事由為依親時，須有國人配偶同行辦理，並核發一年效期外僑居留證。（https://www.immigration.gov.tw/ct_cert.asp?xItem=1089258&ctNode=32598&mp=1）
According to Art. 5, sub-paragraph 1 of the ARC Application and Renewal Instructions, a first time applicant for a marriage-based ARC must be accompanied by his/her spouse. This is an administrative provision of the NIA and not part of the actual Immigration Act. However, the Immigration Act gives the NIA the power to specify application procedures.
I doubt the NIA will make an exception for you. The purpose of residence for foreign spouses is to protect the integrity of bi-national families. A non-cooperating local spouse is a sign of a failed marriage or a marriage entered into for immigration fraud purposes.
Thankyou for answering my question on Residency and ARC. I called the Taipei Economic and cultural office and they mentioned, that it is not usual, but in some cases the "Relative or family members of the Wife, brother, sister, mother, etc. Can go instead of the Wife to help with the Household Registration. Do you think this is feasible and do I have any other options ? Thanks again for your kind help.
Neither the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, nor the Bureau of Consular Affairs, nor any ROC overseas representative office are in charge of issuing ARCs. The sole agency responsible is the NIA. I have already posted the administrative regulation of the NIA for you.
The household registration on the other hand has nothing to do with applying for an ARC. But again: neither the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, nor the Bureau of Consular Affairs, nor any ROC overseas representative office are in charge of the household registration system.
If you do not care about the content of laws and administrative regulations, then just give it a try and see what happens. Nobody can predict or suggest what will happen. I would assume it is highly unlikely that you would succeed though.
While it’s always good to remind people of the importance of respecting the law, our default position is to give people the benefit of the doubt, not to assume they “don’t care” about the law. 
Dolphinsong, I would contact the NIA and the HHR office directly, to obtain official answers. If it’s possible for another family member to represent your wife, there may be special requirements (hospital records if she’s bedridden, written authorization from her, paperwork stamped by the TECO if she’s overseas, etc.).
Also, OP cannot apply for JFRV if his wife is not habitually residing in the Taiwan Area. People should read the Immigration Act as well as the administrative regulations - or at least not give suggestions before having done some reading. It’s all online and most of it is even available in English!
The couple interview will under no circumstance be waived by the NIA unless for extreme cases, such as the spouse being in a comatose state in a hospital ward. The NIA will visit OP and his wife at home if that’s what it takes. That is actually part of the official SOP anyways - even if OP and his wife show up together for the first time application.
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