Hi all, I’m a current student (language only, non-degree) who may have struck upon a full-time work opportunity here, not English teaching. I currently hold a yearlong student ARC; is it possible to obtain a work permit, convert this to work visa and then get a work-based ARC without leaving Taiwan?
Thanks for any advice!
Michael
From my understanding you can apply for permission to work up to 15 hrs/wk on a student visa but need to demonstrate financial need. But maybe that’s only if you’re a degree seeking student.
It’s a pain in the pigu to be sure. You need one year of grades already finished, they need to be somewhat decent, AND you need to demonstrate financial need (although this can be done by simply writing a note saying “I support myself and need money to keep on eating”). The 16-hour a week limitation can be somewhat avoided if you get a monthly paycheck. Just clock in at less than 16 hours. I was working more-or-less full time but with flexible hours, and my official worksheet said only 15 I think, but I ended up coming into the office probably a total of 30 hours a week for what I guess I could only legally call “hanging out with the coworkers.”
Thanks, following up on that, if I/my employer decide to do a full conversion to work permit/visa and I leave the country, can I obtain the work-based residence visa in HK or would I have to go back to my home country (USA)?
4 years ago, I tried to convert a student visa/ARC to a work related one, and they will not do this.
To answer your second question, you would get the work permit from the employer, and you could do a visa run to HK with this, you do not need to apply from back home.