I can’t really add a lot more to coldcoffee’s reply, except applying for a TARC doesn’t really have anything to do with getting work sponsorship–it’s a complicated process no matter what. Also, AFTER you have a TARC, you CAN apply for a work permit and work without sponsorship–you do not need to live with a blood relative.
As coldcoffee said, enter Taiwan on your ROC passport, then go to the immigration agency to start the process. (Don’t waste time with this–the entry/exit permit is valid for just 90 days, I believe.) Take all the documents you can, including your father’s official documents (including passport, Taiwan ID, and death certificate, notarized and authenticated, just in case). You will probably need your parents’ marriage certificate, notarized and authenticated, also.
You WILL need to find someone who will let you register at their hukou, but this can be any friend, or relative, or even a landlord (it just has to be someone who has property in Taiwan).
If you have an ROC passport, it means you are in the system somehow, so even if your father did not register you at his hukou, at some point, you were recognized as his child. I’m pretty sure it will be possible for you to get the TARC, it’s just a question of producing the correct documents and being very, very patient and persistent.
It doesn’t matter where you get the translation, BUT the documents MUST be authenticated wherever they were issued. Ask your local TECO about this and they should be able to explain how to get the authentication, and what the associated fees are.
As for costs once you arrive in Taiwan, another poster wrote that the TARC application fee was 1000 NTU, and the health check, in Taipei, was 1600 NTU. (If you go back to the link I posted earlier, scroll down to the response that carefully details each step, including fees.) That was from a couple of years ago, so I don’t know if there have been any changes.
There were also some small fees involved at the end of the process (to get your national ID card), but I can’t remember what they were (I think there was another medical check, a fee for the certificate you need to prove you stayed for at least a year, and then a fee for the ID card itself and the new passport.)
Nothing was very, very expensive along the way. It just required a lot of patience and time getting everything together. Don’t worry if you have to visit the immigration office MANY times before you can submit a complete application.
The test requirements varies depending on your home country, but they are pretty standard. Below is the link to the actual form you will use and it lists the tests.
The cost will also vary depending on what tests you are exempt from. I would use a ballpark of around 1600 to plan your budget. I just had my final exam and it was 1425 NTD, but I was exempt from two of the tests and opted in for an optional test.
Translation you can do on your own (cheaper) or hire someone to do. The translation should be notarized in Taiwan. I was charged 750 NTD for notarizing my background check translation. Authentication should be done in the country the documents are from.
For the TARC fee, plan for around 1300NTD. They had three different fees listed, 1300, 1000, and 500 NTD. The fee is based on where you started your application and your classification. I fell under the 500.
Hello Dadapunk. Is there a restriction how many times I can go in and out of Taiwan within 2 years? Or is doesn’t it matter as long as I stay for 270 days each of the two years?
It’s best to confirm this with a call to the NIA, but I don’t think it matters how often you enter and exit, as long as you are on the island for 270 days a year, for two consecutive years.
Be sure to come in and out on your Taiwan passport! When you apply for your ID (after the two years), you will have to get a certificate that proves you’ve been in Taiwan for the required time. This document is processed by NIA and I believe they determine the total time based on your travel (entries and exits at the airport).
I’m currently at a dead end and feeling overwhelmed with all the different information that I’ve been getting. I’m praying someone can help me with my situation.
My family and I live in US. We are ready to take kids back to Taipei next month. My husband has a US passports only. The rest of us US passports and a Taiwan passports (without household number). I was told we need that in order to get a resident ID. And without a resident ID, I can’t enroll my kids into any public schools. How do I go about getting this household number? Do I really have to wait for one year? If so, can kids start school first? My parents have a Hu kou but not in the same district of the local school we want to go to. Does that matter?
Ultimately I want to know the fastest way to enroll my kids in a local school with our current situation.
Hope there’s a way and someone has been in our same situation. Thank you in advance!
But I read one of the requirements for ARC Is to have household number. Or parents household number. Do you know what the requirements for ARC if I have taiwan passport?
I know this thread is a couple of years old, but I’ll post an answer in case anyone else is in a similar situation as you.
ARC are for foreigners such as your husband (it stands for Alien Residency Certificate). You and your children will only need to apply for TARC (Taiwan Area Residency Certificate) to live, work, and attend school in Taiwan. You do not need ID cards or household registration (although you will probably want to get that later on).
You and your children already have ROC passports (without household registration), so the next step is to apply for an entry permit which is a sticker they paste into your ROC passport stating you are allowed to enter Taiwan as a tourist for 90 days. You can do so with the TECRO/TECO (which is part of the Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs) in your current country of residence.
Once your family moves to Taiwan, the clock starts ticking and you have 90 days to apply for a TARC for you and your children via the National Immigration Agency, which will allow you to live and work and attend school in Taiwan for up to three years.
NOTE that the application of each of the above mentioned documents is a whole lengthy and complicated process in itself, so you’ll need a lot of patience. It took me 9 months to do my ROC passport application, entry permit application, move to Taiwan, and then TARC application. And now I begin my one-year wait for my ID/household registration.
