Student visa questions

Hi there people. I know these questions have been asked in many different forms, but there is so much information for so many different circumstances and differing nationalities.

So are my particular circumstances: I’m a South African citizen (non visa-exempt) in Taiwan on a multiple-entry 60-day visa, valid until mid July. I’ve enrolled to study Mandarin at a university in Taipei and have my admissions letter in hand. The course starts in early June. As I’m nearing my 60 days, this weekend I’m taking a trip to Macau. What do I do when re-entering Taiwan? Do I need to visit a consular office in Macau to apply for a different sort of visa?

To complicate matters further, I’m taking the night classes as I’m job-hunting at the moment, and would ideally like to work during the day and study in the evening. Does getting a visa with “student” as reason for entry impact my chance of getting a work permit?

Any help with this would be hugely appreciated. I’m very confused.

The rules for getting a student work permit don’t really relate to your visa. The most recent discussion that comes to mind is the thread about the Dutch music producer. I’m not sure if anything’s changed since then.

If your multiple entry visa has an “enter before” date in July, you should have no problem re-entering in May.

Hi yyy, thanks for the reply. I have subsequently read that post and it offers a heap of information, but not much clarity. What I did garner from the discussion is that, as a student, I can work if I can prove that I have pressing financial need, or if I utilise a distinct skill (English, I suppose) to teach at the university or in a field relating to my study, for up to 16 hours a week. Apparently, “in a field relating to my study” can be a malleable concept.

I’m not too worried about coming back into the country in May. I should be able to do so, then leave and come back before mid July, granting me the right to stay until September. During that time I’ll be studying, and looking for work, and then hopefully working and studying.

What I’d like is to mitigate the amount of visa-running I have to do, really, and ensure a stress-free stay here for the duration of my studies, while keeping my options open for finding employment (not demanding at all, am I?).

What I want to know is if I should present my letter of admission now upon re-entry, or just wing it on my travel visa for the next two months and see what transpires work-wise. Should nothing concrete come up by July, my original visa will expire … do I then leave the country, re-enter with my admissions letter (dated April) and hope they give me a visa to continue my studies?

Sorry, I know I’m asking a bunch of questions here that you may have answered before, or that may be too specific or too vague, but the information overload on this is driving me batty.

Have you asked the NIA? They usually know what they’re talking about.

For the student work permit, I forget if they changed the one year rule or not…