[quote=“monokuro”]You can only have one prepay number per company (or maybe 2, can’t remember) but you can have different numbers with different companies.
I use fareastone and Taiwan mobile.[/quote]
Moreover, I guess they just declare it but not always acually check.
I bought a CHT pre-paid SIM card, used it for a while, then left Taiwan for more than half a year.
Then I returned and found out that my SIM card became inactive so I just bought a new one from CHT office in Taoyuan Airport.
Then I bought a tablet and needed an extra SIM card for it. I went to a CHT shop in Da’an, showed them my first (expired) SIM card and told them I wanted a new one. They checked something on their computer and offered me to just re-activate that SIM card (it even had some money left unused).
I agreed. Now I have 2 pre-paid SIM cards from CHT, both are voice+data (450NT/week unlimited) and fully functional.
So don’t ask them “Can I have two pre-paid SIM cards from one provider ?”. If you ask they will tell you that of course you can’t. Just go to another shop and buy one more SIM card.
[quote=“nonredneck”][quote=“Abacus”]
For the life of me I cannot understand why this is important to you. I do not in anyway consider registering a sim card as an invasion of privacy. There is also no restriction on getting one since EVERY SINGLE FOREIGNER in Taiwan must have a passport. Perhaps it’s a little bothersome since you have to do an extra 5-10 mins of paperwork but you spent way more time running around town trying to find an unregistered burn phone.[/quote]
I came to Taiwan twice before and got a prepaid sim both times, once at 7-11 and once at Taiwan Mobile. Both times they wanted my passport and one other form of government ID. Both times it took over an hour to do the paperwork, and I didn’t have to wait in line. More than a little bothersome especially if you forget a second form of ID.[/quote]
Your passport and your Driving License is enough. Better buy the pre-paid SIM cards in Taoyuan Airport, they are used to dealing with foreigners. I did it 3 times over there, it takes 10 minutes max.
At least that’s wrong for Washington and Hawaii where you can still buy a burn phone without any type of registration.
[/quote]
Which provider did you use in Hawaii ? In July 2012 I was buying a pre-paid SIM card from T-Mobile at Walmart Waipahu, it took me ages to register (30+ minutes) and (as far as I can remember) they wanted to see/did a copy my passport. They even wanted to know my address in Hawaii where I was going to stay. Maybe I chose the wrong carrier ?