I left Taiwan in September leaving my girlfriend who is now my x-gf in charge of my refund. She has recently said that no refund has made it to her mail box. Does anyone know around what time she should receive it?
I’ve found different answers on this website and I’m currently wondering if any agent has recieved a non-resident refund as of yet…
Are you talking about the taxes you filed last May (filed May 2005, on 2004 earnings)? Generally those refunds come out by Aug-Sep at the latest. (Sorry, I don’t have any info on ‘agents’, but I wouldn’t expect it to be any slower.) Sounds like she should call the tax bureau for you; there might be a check waiting for sb to pick up; they’ll mail it but sometimes it takes a phone call to remind them to mail it. I’ve had to do that 2-3 times in the past 11 years.
I filed my 2005 tax return the day before I left at the end of August. These are the returns I’m waiting for, sorry for my unspecified blurb above. Does this mean I have to wait until Aug/Sept to receive my 2005 return or should I give the tax bureau a call anyway??
Cheers
I live in Pingtung (south), so it may be different here, but I always get my refund back a month after I file. I have acted as an agent on two ocassions for friends, and it was the same amount of time, just a month.
Well, I guess I’ll have to look into this. If anyone from Taipei (or Taipei County, Banciao area) has received their 2005 tax refund please drop a line. I’ll let you guys know if my ex took my loot and had a nice holiday on it… AHHHH!
[quote=“danbing1”]I filed my 2005 tax return the day before I left at the end of August. These are the returns I’m waiting for, sorry for my unspecified blurb above. Does this mean I have to wait until Aug/Sept to receive my 2005 return or should I give the tax bureau a call anyway??
Cheers[/quote]
People often say the year they filed when what they should say is the year of the earnings, which is why I was trying to be so precise. If you mean 2005 earnings, those aren’t normally filed until May 2006, so if you filed in August, that’s way way early; I wouldn’t expect the Tax Bureau to begin processing until a couple months from now.
You are correct, I do mean my earnings for 2005. Nevertheless the paperwork was submitted in August 2005. I was not aware when people began filing from the previous year. For now I’ll just assume that a couple months after May 06 refunds will be ready.
I got my 2005 return 2 weeks ago.
I will be leaving this July and asked my accountant about when my return would come once I filed. She said 2 weeks to a month. They don’t wait till the following May to issue it.
I hate to ask, but how much do you trust your ex with your money??? 
Well she has convienently ‘just’ received my check. It may be a little suspect but I trust her. She says it takes 2 weeks to process and then she’ll send it over.
BTW - I’m sitting behind a desk wishing I was back in Taipei. Thanks for the input and live it up out there!
It doesn’t take two weeks to process. You simply deposit it in an account and it clears within 2 to three days, then you can access your cash.
Good luck!
Well, I havent received my refund yet as my proxy has been dilly-dallying.
Once the refund is obtained by the proxy and cashed (im assuming it is given in the form of a govt check) how can this be mailed to me in the US?
Do they have cashier’s or bank checks in Taiwan that can be cashed at a US Bank?
Has anyone done this?
The check will have been made out in your proxy’s name. Once it is cashed, s/he can wire the money in US$ to your US account or purchase a bank draft in US$ (or any other currency) and mail it to you. Dead easy.
My instinct tells me that your ex-girlfriend has probably already cashed the check and gone shopping for a nice new LV handbag. 
Anyway, I hope I’m wrong about that. Good luck!
I’ll find out soon enough if she screwed me.
So its a bank draft in US$… She has a good command of english but can anyone translate that into chinese?
If not, no worries, thanks for your help…
Will update soon…
The bank draft is essentially like a money order. You can get one in any currency. I have purchased them before at Shanghai Commercial Bank, and I think they cost about nt250. They are also “insured” in the sense that if the check gets lost in the mail, it can be cancelled and replaced.
If you want to go the safer route, have it wired into your account. She can simply go to a bank with cash in hand, and the bank can wire it. She would need the name attached to the account (your name), bank name and address (of your branch), your home address and phone number. The money should come through in 2 or 3 days. If I were you, I would probably ask her to wire it. If you trust her to send a bank draft, she could say she mailed one when she really hadn’t, and you wouldn’t know if it got lost in the mail or if she was lying about purchasing it in the first place.
To make sure she doesn’t screw you, how about saying that you may be back in Taiwan in a few months for a visit (but that you need the money now)? That way, she may be fearful of being tracked down by you if you came back and tried to get your money back! 
Best of luck, mate.
The saga continues…
She wont get my check. Just being a b*tch, getting back at me anyway she can for breaking up with her. Its hard to belive i’m speaking of someone who is almost 40yrs of age.
I called the tax office. The money is there. They wont let me change proxy’s unless i go in person. So stupid right, if i could go in perosn id just get my own damn check. Anyway I’m looking for ideas and if anyone is willing to throw rocks at my xgfs house, ill give you the address.
Kinda didnt want to get my school involved, feel pretty embarressed about the whole thing. However, that is my next step, unless another way can be found…
An update:
I got my tax refund from her. Not exactly like that but I do have it now.
Part of me was worried that since the check wasnt in my name it wouldnt be able to be cashed. Well, that wasn’t the case. A friend easily cashed it and then transferred it to me.
Cheers!