…Like I said, I was talking figuratively. Everyone knows what I mean.
Basically, you are right: you do need a visa to justify your stay. As a married folk, that means ypur visa,tied to your reason to be here, is marriage. So you have a join family type of visa.
To be honest, you scared the bejeesus out of me and I bet some of us too. As you are asking the expertise of fireigners who have been here a longer time, we worry when someone is not aware of the pesky details if visas and arcs.
First of all, the arc`s date is just decorative. Would your spouse be hit by a bus or decide to leave you tomorrow, there goes your reason to stay, your visa and your arc. In general, your life in Taiwan would be in great jeopardy and there is a high possibility of being deported, no matter if you have paud for your house or have children. I dare to say even more. So that is why we URGENTLY ask everyone to get an APRC the soonest possible. It is not automatically given to you. There is no interest from the authorities to do so. With an APRC you have the right to stay and live here the way you wish. You will not depend on anyone, whether boss or spouse. And many people do not like that.
Finally, you call the ARC an ID. As anyone who has lived here can tell you, it does not fully function as ID. Annoyingly, most bureocratic procedures and everything else will require your passport as ID. Arc again is mostly disregarded.
For any further questions, we are at your service. Con mucho gusto.
…I do know about ARC, just I ask others who are either married here or just plain got the APRC by paying their taxes for 3 to 5 years continuous and being eligible to receive one. There are other ways to get the APRC without being married, as just mentioned, being single and proving you paid taxes for a certain amount of years. I just want others experiences of how they got it that’s all.If any hassle they had, so I could avoid. Yes, it’s far better the second option, but I can still get my APRC by my self without being dependent on the wife, even through I’m married. I do have a child, and I think it’s human rights abuse if I happen to get divorced or whatever and have to leave the country, I would have to take my child with me and this would upset my 8 year old daughter as she is in 3rd grade and would have to start in another country, no more speaking Chinese too. This is truly not right. Welcome to Asia.
…Actually, on my ARC card, it states passport number, but I agree, they still want the passport, they don’t trust ARC as proof.
Eligibility means you can apply and succeed. As for the government not doing it automatically, if you believe that’s a human rights abuse, you can petition for change. We also have a dedicated area for discussing these issues.
Taiwan charges fee for renewing ARCs, it is simple as that. Charging fees to foreigners for renewing residence permits is not very uncommon either. The issuance fee of an ARC is always at least 1000 NT$. This also applies in cases where an ARC has to be issued because of changed information. There are a few exceptions, such as Overseas Chinese students, who can benefit from a discounted fee. Address changes are also generally free of charge (I am not entirely sure if there is a legal basis for this - on the other hand, the fee standards are just a regulation and therefore fall into inner-agency discretion). You can look up the regulation on the MoJ database. The MoJ database also provides English translations.
外國人入出國許可證件規費收費如下：
一、外僑居留證：每件每一年效期新臺幣一千元。但持停留簽證入國申請
者，加收新臺幣二千二百元。
二、外僑永久居留證：每件新臺幣一萬元。
前項第一款證件居留期間之延期，每件每一年效期收費新臺幣一千元。
第一項第一款及前項規費，依僑生身分申請者，減半收費。
第一項第一款及第二項外僑居留證之效期，未滿一年者，依一年效期收費
(Standards for Fees Charged for Entry, Exit and Immigration Documents, art. 5)
因證件污損、滅失、遺失或資料變更重新申請補發者，應依新領證件標準
收費。但下列證件收費如下：
一、外僑居留證：每件新臺幣五百元。
二、外僑永久居留證及移民業務機構註冊登記證：每件新臺幣一千元
(Standards for Fees Charged for Entry, Exit and Immigration Documents, art. 7)
If you are unhappy about this, why not apply for ROC nationality? You will no longer be charged for ARC renewals.
Another factually incorrect and overly generalising statement from Silversurfer. There are cases where one may enter visa-exempt and directly apply for an ARC.
Uhh…right!
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I’m surprised nobody has pointed out the disproportionaty high fee for an APRC… plus all the paperwork, etc. Changing my work-based ARC to a marriage-based ARC was very easy, and it currently costs $1000/year for this type of ARC.
Maybe with an APRC, you don’t have to pay as much when you renew it after 5 years? I don’t know.
Anyway, a visa is not a human right, it is a privilege. The Taiwanese government does not seek out visa holders to offer us various options. They will charge us if we overstay, and take our money gladly when we apply for any number of visas available to us.
Be glad that curiousity finally got the better of you, so now you know you CAN apply for an APRC! 
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No reason to renew it as it does not expire, hence the “P”. It’s a one-time 10,000 NT fee.
I see! So renewing the card is just a technicality, without expenses involved? That’s nice…
Not even a technicality. As I said, no reason to renew it as it does not expire.
I thought the cards have an expiry date on them…?
Not the APRC
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ARC does, APRC does not.
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I would even say that an ARC and APRC cards are a good base for identity theft, all one needs to be you is written on the front of the card. Have a good look at it. Not much more needed for a con-man, con-woman to use your identity.
The only thing that saves us is our lovely atoga faces and the fact that anybody with a foreign sounding name is,already regarded as a thief/scammer/cheat by anyone in the bank or business sectors, hence limiting any potential damage.
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…being eligible, could be interpreted in many ways, if for example, you are from mainland China, they could make it not eligible, you know what they are like here and think about Chinese mainland people. “being eligible” in the past tense ok. Yeah, let’s start a petition as you say, you want to be the first to sign after me?
I didn’t say let’s start one.
Before I sign a petition, on any issue, I need an explanation of why it’s worth signing.