I’m American and my parents are Taiwanese. Last year I applied for my ROC passport/visitor’s visa in order to enter Taiwan to apply for my ARC. Now that I have received and held my ARC for over 183 days and my visitor’s visa on my ROC passport has expired. Do I still need a visa (visitor/resident) on my ROC passport in order to stay here? Or is a ROC passport with ARC good enough and I can stay as long as my ARC is valid?
Another question is, do I need to fill out any papers or report to an official in order to leave Taiwan for a short vacation? How about entering Taiwan? Will my ARC info show up when I go through customs allowing me to enter Taiwan without a visa?
I’m American and my parents are Taiwanese. Last year I applied for my ROC passport/visitor’s visa in order to enter Taiwan to apply for my ARC. Now that I have received and held my ARC for over 183 days and my visitor’s visa on my ROC passport has expired. Do I still need a visa (visitor/resident) on my ROC passport in order to stay here? Or is a ROC passport with ARC good enough and I can stay as long as my ARC is valid?
Another question is, do I need to fill out any papers or report to an official in order to leave Taiwan for a short vacation? How about entering Taiwan? Will my ARC info show up when I go through customs allowing me to enter Taiwan without a visa?[/quote]
You have a visitor visa and now an ARC for Taiwan in an ROC Passport?
You certainly don’t need a visa for an ROC Passport unless you don’t have an ID Card. If your six months is up then you will have overstayed afaik.
You have a visitor visa and now an ARC for Taiwan in an ROC Passport?
These are two different things. The temp visitor visa I had in my ROC passport was good for about 6 months. Within this time period, I applied and received my ARC ID card which is equivalent to a Taiwanese ID. I assumed that after getting my ARC ID, I wouldn’t have to deal with the visa anymore since I’m considered a resident.
I think I don’t need a visa after getting my ARC ID but it would be assuring if someone knew and could post. I’ll ask the authorities as well.
[quote=“abtguy”]> You have a visitor visa and now an ARC for Taiwan in an ROC Passport?
These are two different things. The temp visitor visa I had in my ROC passport was good for about 6 months. Within this time period, I applied and received my ARC ID card which is equivalent to a Taiwanese ID. I assumed that after getting my ARC ID, I wouldn’t have to deal with the visa anymore since I’m considered a resident.
I think I don’t need a visa after getting my ARC ID but it would be assuring if someone knew and could post. I’ll ask the authorities as well.[/quote]
Hi abtguy,
It sounds like you have an Overseas ROC passport (one that does not have a Taiwan ID number) as you require a visa for entry and an ARC for stay. It also sounds like you had a single-entry visa. If so, you will need to get another visa and this time, make sure you get a multiple re-entry visa. It also sounds like you will also need to go through the ARC process again.
In spite of your ROC passport, you are treated as a foreigner. ARC ID is NOT the equivalent to a Taiwan ID. The basic rules that apply to non-Taiwanese nationals and passport holders apply to you too. In other words, think of yourself as a foreigner with a special passport, not as a Taiwanese with a special passport. [/code]
I made some phone calls and the lady on the other end told me I’m ok in my current situation. The visa is only for entering and exiting and I entered with a valid visa last year. It doesn’t really matter if it expired because I’m already in the country. I would have problems if I tried to leave the country now but that should be solved easily by just applying for a visa. I would only need to get a new visa if I were to exit/enter the country again. I think this makes perfect sense.
It sounds like you have an Overseas ROC passport (one that does not
have a Taiwan ID number) as you require a visa for entry and an ARC
for stay. It also sounds like you had a single-entry visa. If so, you will
need to get another visa and this time, make sure you get a multiple
re-entry visa. It also sounds like you will also need to go through the
ARC process again.
Yes, I have a passport without Taiwan ID number and I had a multiple-entry visa for 6 months. Within these 6 months, I obtained my ARC ID.
As you indicated, visa for entry and ARC for stay. I was confusing “entry/exit” with “stay” since I was used to entering with my US passport with ROC visa. In my US passport, the ROC visa stamp says “Duration of Stay: 60 days” No where in my entry/exit visa in my ROC passport does it say duration of stay, so indeed, it is only for entering and exiting. Since I entered with a valid visa I have legally entered. And ARC for legal stay as long as it remains valid. As of my current ARC ID, I’m good until next year which I can easily extend.
Now why would I have to go through the ARC cumbersome process again? The visa is only for entry/exit (if I want to take a vacation I would re-apply), it doesn’t have any affect on my ARC status. The ARC status should be dependent on my lineal relatives, not whether the entry/exit visa is a valid or not.
But I will make a trip downtown to their office and ask them in person with my documents just to be 110% sure.