Getting Married and having a Baby

Have read various posts on this forum about getting married and naming babies in Taiwan, it all sounds quite complicated and far from straightforward!

My Taiwanese fiancee and I have decided to get married in Hong Kong to avoid me flying back to the UK for the non-impediment certificate. I can’t afford to take 3 weeks off work. I’ve organised the wedding through a Hong Kong Civil Celebrant for September.

Our baby is due in January of next year and will be born in Taiwan. We’re keen for the baby to have my western surname as we will not necessarily stay in Taiwan longer term and may indeed return to the UK. I’d obviously also like the baby to have a standard Chinese surname all the time we are in Taiwan, my future’s family name is Liu. I don’t actually have an official Chinese name myself, I’ve never needed one. I’m quite happy to become a Liu too. My future wife comes from a family of girls, having read posts on the website that seems to be a potential sticking point.

Will it be possible to get a birth certificate for the baby with my western surname for the English version and the Chinese character for Liu for the Chinese surname?

[quote=“Taiwaneil”]

Will it be possible to get a birth certificate for the baby with my western surname for the English version and the Chinese character for Liu for the Chinese surname?[/quote]

Yes, just let the hospital staff know that you need an English copy, they will most likely ask you first though. You may have to officially change your last name to Liu before the baby can take that name. These rules were about to be changed but I’m not sure how far along they have come.

That’s actually a point in your favor. If the mother of a child has no brothers and if the father consents, the child can use the mother’s surname. As navillus says, there have recently been proposed changes to the law to loosen up the naming restrictions, but for now this is the only exception. You will need to choose a Chinese name before your marriage can be entered onto the household registration.