jlick, we already married here in taiwan. My first post was before marriage. You can see big time gap between my second and third post.
I only ommited mariage notification, everything else i already explained. I haven’t problem in communication with people who can speak english. May be here it looked i little bit messed because i tried to say in coupe of posts what happened in whole day.
You said, that i don’t need to provide marriage certificate from my own country if i married in Taiwan, but it’s not true. It’s written even on BOCA’s page very clearly. and if you will call BOCA and ask what document you have to provide they will tell you that u need marriage certificate from YOUR country. BOCA doesn’t recognize taiwanese marriage certificate. And bad things is that no where it’s written clearly. Even this forum didn’t mention such very important things clearly.
If you don’t believe me - call BOCA and you will get the same answer.
Marriage procedure was very easy and i could get single certificate in russian consul here in taiwan. That’s why i didn’t ask any questions about it. Problem started when i tried to start to change visa.
We can talk by phone and i can explain you what is unclear for you. You may call my phone i wrote before or provide me your phone if you wish.
If boca could follow their publicised rules then i wouldn’t have this problem and wouldn’t post all this here.
By the way, today, when i came to boca office i didn’t mention about “can i apply without leave or not” at first. And only when i start to hear that “sorry, you can not apply here. you have to go to your country and apply there” i started to argue with clerk. Note: he started to say so, not me. I only asked what documents i need to prepare to apply.
[quote=“jlick”][quote=“sandman”]I’m still not sure why you’re actually talking to the BOCA people, by the way – I didn’t contact them at all when I was going through the process.
The only officials I talked to were the MOFA counter clerks, the immigration office counter clerks and the foreign affairs police.[/quote]
If by MOFA you mean the second floor visa office in the MOFA building on Ji-nan Road, that’s BOCA. BOCA is the part of MOFA that handles issuing of visas.[/quote]
All I know is that I now need a big cup of MOCCA. 
may be i forgot to mention one important thing:
everytime i call boca and before talk with me they ask “What is your nationality”. Even before tell me what documents they need.
may be that’s why you don’t understand my problem. we just enter to different “virtual” doors when talk with boca depending on “password” we tell. that’s why my boca’s answers don’t match with yours.
Try to say password “Russian” when you call boca and ask them usual questions. Then may be you will understand me better.
sandman, i will do this. I will just submit all required OFICIALLY documents when i will get them. I simple have no other option. I don’t want retire from work and look for another without income. but i’m sure everything will be the same and they will force me to leave taiwan if for that moment chief of visa department will be the same.
If there’s no miscommunication and this is really because you’re Russian, I suggest you contact Richard Hartzell on this site and ask for his help in filing an administrative appeal.
First, though, you have to submit your application. If they reject it – and remember, the counter clerks don’t have the authority to reject it – THEN you start your administrative appeal.
Hartzell knows much more about this than we do and has done this for other people many times.
Don’t give up hope.
Can’t you ask your boss for help? Tell him that you’re being forced to resign by the BOCA.
jlick, you’re not right when say that i’m not picking up ideas from people gave me here. I read EVERY post and taking EVERY idea/advise which i didn’t use before. I also tried to use my wife to communicate with them.
sandman, thank you for advise. I will prepare all documents and then depend on result will contact Richard Hartzell. Thanks to him in advance. At least i know where i can go to appeal.
Your wife needs to DEMAND to see the document that says you cannot apply in Taiwan. She needs to go there in person. She needs to show them their instructions and point out that NOWHERE does it say the rules are different for Russians. She needs to ask WHY the rules are different for Russians. She needs to DEMAND as a REPUBLIC OF CHINA TAX-PAYING citizen to see someone higher up on the food chain than this Mr. Lo.
YOU need to contact the Russian trade office, let them know that you’re facing this discrimination and ask them to find out why Russians are being singled out.
sandman, can You, me and my wife meet to talk and try to find strategy? I agree with you, that my wife has to fight with boca instead of me. My fighting with boca can be ended very bad for our family. Actually, she’s only studying and call her as tax-payer is a little not correct. She is future tax-payer. Actually, i’m tax-payer. Looks like boca think it would be better if i retire from work and will not able to pay taxes. Very smart move for them.
If it really is a matter of nationality, it’s easy enough to test. Call them up pretending to be American or if you have an accent, try German (they probably don’t know the difference) and ask them the same questions.
I’m sorry if my last post was a bit harsh, but I was just trying to help.
Not me. Hartzell. Contact him by PM. He has the experience, I do not.
It is true. Myself, as well as others here trying to help you, have done it. One of my best friends in Chiayi did it last month.
No, no, no. NPA website wrote:
If you were married in Russia your marriage certificate must be authenticated by an ROC representative office stationed in Russia. You were married in Taiwan. Your Taiwanese marriage license is acceptable.
Yes, they do.
jlick, i already thouth about to call and introduced myself as American, but i guess all boca already know me and my voice. May be tomorrow i will ask my friend to do so.
funkymonkey, you wrote this:
[quote]
It is true. Myself, as well as others here trying to help you, have done it. One of my best friends in Chiayi (Jiayi) did it last month.
One original photocopy of certificate of marriage registration issued by the government of applicant’s country, (certified by a R.O.C. embassy or representative). (If applicant’s home country does not have marriage registration system, the certificate of marriage should be delivered.)[/quote]
so, did you provide some proof of absence registration system in that country? There is no mention about where people married. it’s explicitly written “applicant’s” country. not country where marriage done.
OK, I think I understand the confusion now. You are being asked for a marriage registration certificate from your home country. This is not the same as a marriage certificate.
In Taiwan there is a household registration system whereby each person is registered as to where they live, who they live with, and who they are related to. In the case of marriage, Taiwanese are required to register their marriage in the household registration to make it officially recognized.
Most western countries do not have any such system of registering your household or your marriage. Once you obtain a marriage certificate, you are considered married.
If your home country does not have any system of registering marriages then you don’t need to provide any such marriage registration certificate.
However, a check with the Moscow US Embassy web site shows that there is something called the Zapis Aktov Grazhdanskogo Sostoyaniya (ZAGS) where marriages to Russian citizens must be registered. Therefore it appears that Russia does have a system whereby marriages must be registered. If this is accurate, then you will need to get your marriage registered there, get a certificate saying so, and get it authenticated in the Taiwan representative office in Russia.
At this point I would suggest that you consult with the Russian representative office here to find out if overseas marriages of Russian citizens need to be registered, and if you can register through the representative office or can have a proxy back home register for you.
jlick, ZAGS is the organization where you can marry and your marriage will be officially written on marriage certificate and in my russian passport. But they don’t provide registration of marriage certificate. I’ve been recently in Russia and tried to register my taiwanese certificate - they said “no. we don’t provide such service. Your taiwanese certificate already translated to russian and notaried by russian consul is already legal in russia. you don’t need any other documents.”
Also, in Russia we have Household registration system. But it’s completely independent from marriage and not connected to it. So, i can register in my appartment in Russia any person i like if i’m owner of appartment. But if this person is foreigner then he/she has to have resident russian visa which is not suitable in my case. Even if i could register my wife in my appartment in Russia, then what they could give is that she registered in my appartment without any words that we married.
currently, i’m trying to get more info about this issue.
i think, may be it’s better if i will wait till next summer when i will go to Russia again. Then, may be i will just agree with my employer that i will not break contract when i cancel ARC and will change to TS visa in Russia. At the same time, being in Russia, i will gather all documents required for JFRV more easily. I only not sure one thing: According to Taiwanese Laws if i married on taiwanese i have to live in Taiwan 5 years before apply for APRC. From what time these 5 years will be started to count?
- From begining of my working visa?
- From date of our marriage?
- From starting of JFRV visa?
by other words, will working time before JFRV included in these 5 years?
No. I simply told them that my country doesn’t have a marriage registration system. They said, “Ok.”. They accepted my Taiwanese marriage license instead.
Ⅲ An alien is qualified for a permanent residency application if he/she:
A. Has reached the age of 20 and has legally resided in the ROC for 7 consecutive years, during which the applicant was physically present in the ROC for more than 183 days annually; or
B. Is the spouse of an ROC citizen who possesses a domicile in the territory of the ROC, has reached the age of 20, and has legally resided the ROC for more than 183 days each year for at least 5 consecutive years; or
C. Is a foreign national and the child of an ROC citizen who has registered permanent residence in the ROC, attained the age of 20, and legally resided in the ROC for more than 183 days each year for at least 5 consecutive years; or
D. Is the spouse of an ROC citizen who has registered permanent residence in the ROC, has reached the age of 20, and has legally resided in the territory of the ROC for at least 10 consecutive years, which must include more than 183 days a year for 5 years; or
E. Is a foreign national and the child of an ROC citizen who has registered permanent residence in the ROC, has reached the age of 20, and has legally resided in the territory of the ROC for at least 10 consecutive years, which must include more than 183 days a year for 5 years; or
F. Has legally resided in the ROC for more than 20 years prior to May 31, 2002, which must include more than 183 days a year for 10 years; or
G. Has made exceptional contributions to the ROC; or
H. Possesses technical knowledge or talent that is needed in the ROC.
[quote=“tairus”]According to Taiwanese Laws if i married on Taiwanese i have to live in Taiwan 5 years before apply for APRC. From what time these 5 years will be started to count?
- From begining of my working visa?
- From date of our marriage?
- From starting of JFRV visa?
[/quote]
The simple answer is “Yes”. 
Seriously, there are threads about this (search for APRC or PARC or whatever it’s called).
By the way, I’m not sure why you are so unwilling to enlist other people’s help in calling BOCA/MOFA. It’s definitely worth a try, especially since they are giving you the run around.
Having a JFRV and not having to rely on your employer for your ARC can be incredibly liberating, depending on your job situation. Good luck.