Hey all - just wondering if anybody knows if Article 18 in the bill here ever got passed?
Full Draft Bill:
As I understand it, instead of APRC holders having to live in the country for half the year (or file an extended leave application as I’ve done), I believe the new rule stipulates you just can’t be out of the country for more than 5 years at a time.
yes, it got passed.
yes, if you got your APRC via work based ARC.
For completeness, the links to news articles in the first post refer to two different bills. The first has passed, the second has not.
Do you know how it works if it’s a marriage APRC?
It is having to live in the country for half the year (or file an extended leave application), iiuc.
If you got the APRC due to marriage or on a JFRV, it’s the normal gotta be in Taiwan 183 days a year or ask special permission from immigration for a year leave at a time.
I heard they were looking to rectify that in another bill but currently not.
Ridiculous as usual. People who got it from marriage have tougher time than people who have no family link in taiwan. Only in Taiwan policy makers mind, as always.
Oh I agree its stupid. I think the general thinking probably was that the government would have foreigner professionals able to come for a time to help the economy but still try to get them back if they had to leave for a while
Good to hear! Thanks for the answer and saving me a call to Immigration. 
While I also think it’s stupid that there’s even a distinction between types of APRC (you weren’t supposed to get an APRC “through marriage” or “through work”; you were supposed to get it through legal residency for a specific length of time), they do seem to be quite lenient on approving the applications for extended leave. I’ve just received approval for years 5 and 6, and while I’ve been back in the last four years I could just as easily have not returned once but still had the opportunity to return in future
You can do it online from abroad.
I’m assuming you mean the extended leave application/renewal (?) - yeah, been sorting that out online no problem.
I meant having to call Immigration to find out if the new (5 year visit) rule has gone into effect, but thanks!
I was just at the immigration office (last week) asking about this. They told me that as long as the JFRV remains valid, you can stay away for as long as you want.
I clarified this about three times with them. I even told them that I might be away for two full years before I returned and they said it doesn’t matter. As long as the JFRV hasn’t expired, it’s still good. They also told me I don’t need to fill out any forms or ask for special permission.
They also told me that I can only renew the JFRV a month before it expires so I have to make sure I’m back by August (three years from now) to renew it.
They told me if I had an APRC, then I would need to stay the 183 days, but JFRVs worked differently and you could stay away as long as you wanted (or at least until the JFRV expired).
Thank you for the clarification.
I looked back at my original comment but I wasn’t very clear. To clarify.
If someone had a JFRV now and then converted it to an APRC based on their marriage, then that APRC then has the 183 day rule. The JFRV has no such limitations but it also isn’t an APRC.
This is the irony. With a 3 year extension on your JFRV (spousal ARC) you can stay away for a year or two or whatever and then come back and renew a month before it expires. I’ve done this.
But with the APRC version, theoretically “permanent,” you need to be here 183 days. Only in Taiwan.
Expired? Once you get the APRC it doesn’t expire ever if you continue to live on the island for 183 per year. What’s this expiration about?
it is expiration of marriage based ARC, not APRC.