Another flight and Visa Query!

Legal Visa & Residency
1

Hello all,

Im extremely new to this forum, but i must say it looks like its providing some good info to people who’s needing it.
Here’s my story. Im an English man who is to fly out to Taipei in late July. I am staying with my gf who is a citizen will be responsible for me (just in case i need to declare my whereabouts on my visa). While i am there i intend to look for work, i am even considering opening my own small business with my gf in Taipei too, so basically i do intend on staying long term.
I have enough money to support myself without work for a good year. And i can provide bank statements if required.
So, my first query is the type of plane ticket i need to purchase - will it have to be a return ticket to england ?? And if so, how far ahead can the validation of the return date be on it. Does the return date have to correspond with my visa time allowance ?
Secondly, i have been looking on the forum regarding type of visa. Do i only qualify for a 30 day visitor visa, or can i apply for the extended visitor visa (i think its a 60day visa which can be extended twice upto 180days) … If the extended visitor visa is applicable to me, where can i apply for it in England?
I think after reading previous sections in this forum im aware of how changing a visitor visa works when i have found work. Its just the initial start of my time in Taipei im confused with.

I would really appreciate peoples’ responses on this. The time is approaching fast :slight_smile:

2

You can apply for a 60 day visa at the Taipei Cultural Office in the UK for a 60 day visa. (Tourist visa).
As far as I know the ticket date doesn’t matter (year long ticket was fine for me).

If you want to do the 30 day visa free thing, thats possible too. You can cheat if you want by reserving a bullshit schedule from Taiwan to say Hong Kong at the 30 day mark. Ask for a printout of the itinery from the travel agent and use that as evidence of your ‘e-ticket’. But you will need to leave before 30 days or they won’t let u back in without a visa. (You get a naughty stamp in your passport and on their system)

3

For Taiwan, I don’t think you need a ticket back to the UK. I believe you only need an onward ticket. That being said, what does the place your ticket is for need? I mean, if you have to leave, can you get into the next place without an onward ticket from there? Most passport control guys in places like HK I’ve run across didn’t even glance at my boarding pass stub, although I placed it on the counter. That doesn’t mean that some won’t, or that the info - one way or return - isn’t coded on it. Maybe someone else could comment on this…

If you do the 30 day airport-issued visa thing, you won’t be able to turn that into a resident visa for your work permit. You’ll have to leave the country and get a new visa. That’s called a visa run, and they are fun - but cost money!

Best thing is just to apply for a 60 day visitor’s visa in the UK. The reason should just be travel. You probably shoudn’t mention work or study, unless you have some kind of official paperwork to back that up.

Another way is to get a job online with a language school like Hess or KOJEN. (They are the two biggest ones.) Once you are here, you can change jobs, if you don’t like it. It’s a bit of a hassle but it can be done.

You will need a valid uni degree diploma.

Getting a work permit for opening a small business with a girlfriend isn’t really allowed for in Taiwanese law, at least in terms of practical applications. If you are married to an ROC citizen, everything is much, much easier.

If you have a work permit for a language school, or other job, or as a student, and you are caught working illegally - i.e. for anyone else other than the one specified in your permit - you will either be deported or refused further work permits. I don’t know how being caught working illegally affects future student visa applications, but it can’t be good.

Bottom line: get the 60 visa in the UK, and look for a job here. OR Get a job with Hess or KOJEN (not too bad) and then look around when you get here. You can look for other job options through Reach to Teach recruiters. (Google them) They are considered fairly solid.

Hope this helps.

4

Many thanks for these responses people, they have defintely given me some clarity as to where i begin. I appreciate it. :slight_smile:

5

Hello to you all,

Ok, i have made slight progress … but there’s still a part that im unsure about. I booked my flight last night along with a 1 year maximum return flight option, which i was advised that it will be easy to change the return date for a fee of £50. Im ok with that.(we have to be)!!
Today i made contact with the taiwan embassy in england. A very friendly lady advised me that with my situation i only qualify for 2 month visitor visa, i must leave the country within 2 months, the visa will be issued with a 3 month life span.
The part i am still confused with is … if i sent her my details next week, and she issued me with my visa by lets say the 29th May. I dont fly out until July 9th. The visa will expire on me by August 29th and i wont have had my full 2 months. Is this right ?? If so then i realise i will need to request my visa closer to the time of me flying to Taipei.
The other query is, when my 2 months are up, can i fly to Hong Kong and get another 2 month visa there ? Or do i have to get it issued in England again ?

Sorry for all the Q’s and im pretty sure some of the answers might be obvious … i just appreciate hearing it from the people that have dealt with all this and can offer any hints, tips & advice.

Thanks In advance :slight_smile:

6

Hello all.

Ok, so today i made an enquiry about how my visa application is going with the embassy in london, i posted all documents there as i live 4 hours away from london.
The extremely unhelpful woman at the other end of the phone informed me that my 60 day visitor visa cannot be issued because my return flight (which i bought open ended to last for 12 months) states a return date more than 60 days which the visa is being issued for.
I explained to her that im going travelling around different countries and i dont intend to fly back to england after 60 days, hence the reason why the tickets return date doesnt reflect this, and that i wanted to book a flight out of taipei when i get there using one of thier flight agents. So she then told me that “this is not good enough” !!! and i must currently have a onward ticket to another destination from the 59th day of entering the country in order for my 60 day visitor visa to be issued…
So now i need to fork out umpteen more english pounds on another flight to somewhere which i havent even planned., and need to do this some how from my computer in england !!.
Also, if she goes ahead issuing my visa in the next few days … does the 60 days start counting down from when the visa is issued, or when i enter the country ??

If anybody can give any info to me regarding this … i really need it, im starting to pull my f**kin hair out with the stone cold b*tch at the embassy.

Ahhhhh, the delights of rules and regulations - where would we be without them … Utopia ??

7

Indeed it is not good enough. Your return booking is from Taiwan, not from anywhere else. They are only concerned about when you are going to leave Taiwan. They don’t care where else you may or may not be going, so they want to see either a return or an onward ticket booked to leave Taiwan within 60 days.

No big deal. It should be quite easy, in this global age, to purchase a one-way ticket from Taiwan to Hong Kong (or other destination), which you can eventually return, if necessary, and get a refund minus a handling charge. You don’t have to do it from your computer - try face to face with a travel agent.

From the day after you enter Taiwan. This is something you could ask the lady on the phone.

Stone cold, bitch - quite possibly - but it is not an embassy.

Where is your girlfriend now? It would help if she could phone the Taiwan office or go there with you, or write a letter of invitation if she is not in Britain now. I can tell you that my Taiwanese girlfriend’s application for a British visa in Vienna and her passage through British immigration at Calais (yes, it’s on the French side) went a lot smoother with my being there with her. Similarly, she went with me to the Taiwan office in Victoria and smoothed things along nicely with her sweet talk. On another occasion, a fax from her caused the haughty Taiwan rep in Singapore to reverse his decision to deny me a visa.

8

Hi Juba, thanks for the reply … i appreciate it.

Ok so it appears i have got my wires crossed about how this whole process works (i am clearly a first timer) … i was just trying to play it simple obtaining the 60 day visitor visa
I guess what i should have done is bought a ticket from london to taipei, then return ticket dated 59 days later from taipei to Hong Kong … maybe this would have been simpler.
Your right, i should have asked the lady in the “embassy”? about when the visa takes effect from, i forgot at the time, i was too concerned about my return ticket being invalid fo rthe visa. It didnt occur to me until i was writing the post.
My gf is in taipei at the moment and im going to have a word with her later about todays progress.
I will see if she can book me a return flight to hong kong and back to taipei any cheaper using one of Taiwans agents or websites.
Shes clued up on good sites/agents to book flights with over there, so i hope she can find me a good deal rather than me booking a flight from a UK agent/site.

Then after all this it will be the visa runs which i have heard so much about, well at least until i have sorted myself out eith something residency wise.

Thanks again. :slight_smile:

9

I wonder whether there is anything your girlfriend could say or write that might persuade them to make your visa extendable (up to 180 days). One can but try.

10

Yes, its something else we will need to discuss tonight, i just got the impression from reading through this forum that i need to try to keep things as simple as possible, just to at least get my foot in the door of taiwan for a couple of months then i could try to look at different ways of making my stay more permanent.
I know my girlfriend is also lacking knowledge regarding visa suitability for me. I am unsure about what type of things she could say or write that would enable me to obtain an extension. Especially if i have no job in place. And i admit, i did just want to chill/relax for 3 months out there just to adjust and decide what i want to do with myself . I’ve got enough cash to one side to last me a good while, i realise i will need it just to keep flying in & out …:slight_smile:

Just a question for anyone who can answer me regarding a work visa, i know i have asked this before in another thread but without a clear answer, i wondered if i funded a small business in Taipei, with my gf being the recognised owner of the business and everything in her name, could she then as the owner employ me as a worker, therefore enabling me to obtain a visa.??

I admit im not too keen of going down the english teaching route, and i do have the money to start a business, but i realise from other threads that unless i marry my gf then its complicated for me to open a business in my own name.

Thanks again, im so relieved to have found this forum. :slight_smile:

11

I agree keep it simple if only for your own sanity

Sounds like all you need is a flight out of Taiwan dated before 60 days. You gf should be able to get a ticket, with the itinary printed/emailed. You can use this to get the visa.

Use the visa, get to Taiwan and relax. 10 days before the visa runs out see if you can get it extended. You’ll probably need a good reason, especially if it has nonextensable stamped on it.

If you can’t extend, go to HK or BKK of Japan on a visa run to get another 2 month visa. Any hassle with that (likely if you go to HK), simply come back without a visa and get 30 days visa free stay, returning to HK or Thailand for a visa run if you want more time in Taiwan. Visa runs cost 100 pounds or less.

It will take time to set up a legal company in Taiwan - check out the other threads for people who have tried this.

You may find another job that might suit you while you’re here that’ll take care of the visa crap. Jobs in law firms, writers, editors have all come up recently.

Goof luck with the visa.

12

Marry a Taiwan bird and you can stay in Taiwan legally and work legally and even open a biz with her as a partner. They make it easy, but only IF you marry a citizen. Otherwise, they scrutinize your need to be there month by month.

13

Thanks again for the replies people.

Yes, my gf has now kindly sorted me a flight to HK, im just waiting for the electronic ticket to be printed off, and yes - hopefully the 60 day visa will be issued.
Wangdoodle, in your thread did you mean that its more likely i will run into difficulty requesting another 60 day visa in HK rather than Japan ? If so it’s something i will have to bear in mind for a future visa run.

Does anvone have any hints and tips about what excuses they have successfully (or unsuccessfully) used for trying to extend thier 60 day visas if they have not secured a job ?

14

I think its because in the past HK have been incredible c*nts. There have been countless times when people have been turned away on a whim.Last time I went to get a visa they nearly didn’t give it to me because I said my nationality was English and not British.

They now have a notice up on the wall that says you will be treated courteously (or words to that affect). So things may be changing…

15

You know, i have only been to HK once, that was 11 weeks ago … the guy who was checking me in was very rude, and when i was boarding my plane, the lady who was checking everyone on board was just the same … yeah, i hope it was a one off … guess im going to find out soon :slight_smile:

16

The people in the HK office are universally thought to be w*nkers, see the many many posts on the subject. However I reckon so long as you have everyhting necessary, they will give you the visa - thousands of people teaching illegally in Taiwan have done many thousands of visa runs in the past to HK - they know what occurs, nice little earner that one - not in anybody’s interest to stop. But that does mean they treat people who take them for granted like shit. The guy in front of me once didn’t have a ticket out of Taiwan so they wouldn’t give him a visa. He started shouting at them and swearing. I went up with a nice smile on my face, they were great. Japan on the other hand (I have no experience of Japan only HK many times) seems to be well run, polite, etc but I think they would probably go by the book which might mean having a darn fine reason for getting another visa.

I went to HK to get a new visa after the 30 day landing visa ran out. Explained I needed time to arrange my wedding - had to show my wife’s engagement ring to the oaf of a boss at the office - little git kept me waiting to just before closing before giving me the visa. Had to bloody leg it to the airport.