the spa treatment.
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OK. thanks.
Putting the temporary pandemic restrictions aside for a moment, you can come back to Taiwan under a tourist visa or visa-exempt status, no? Actually, prior to the pandemic, Iād say Taiwan was one of the easier places to come and go for extended periods without residency.
Iām pretty sure I read on Forumosa about people doing visa runs for years without questions being asked, and I know it was possible to find landlords willing to rent to people without ARCs.
There are other places with good weather where permanent residency and even citizenship can pretty easily be purchased. A number of them cater to foreigners and have very favorable tax regimes.
Not so sure what the benefits would be? In terms of passport power, Taiwan wouldnāt be a step up for Americans, Canadians, and most EU citizens.
Citizenship comes with both rights and responsibilities. The government people here are generally friendly, but thereās a ton of bureaucracy and not all of the offices you have to deal with as a foreigner are very user friendly.
I guess from where I sit, Iād want to see that the issues with government, banks, etc. were dealt with before I decided that I was interested in becoming a citizen. In other words, Taiwan would have to sell me on long-term residency (APRC) before I ever got interested in citizenship.
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With Taiwan itās an all or nothing proposition .
As an APRC holder, you get pretty much few rights other than the ability to work where you want (but even thatās a crock, Iāve been told by large companies here no citizen card no job) but many responsibilities of a PR. You get citizenship and magically you are now a different person with every single right afforded to you since you have a card.
There is no middle ground.
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For travel yes, but one, while the government has been generous, they didnāt have to do this. They can, at any time just do what the Schengen countries do and limit it at 90 days visit per 180 day period.
Oh yeah, and those who abuse it to live here unofficially certainly have earned my ire because itās abuse of what is generally easy-going policy and when people abuse the governmentās goodwill, then Iād expect things to get tighter. If the government suspects that large amounts of people are living here unofficially, they may get the idea that theyāre working illegally. Also, who wants to be middle aged and in a legal limboland like a 21 year old.
Easily isā¦relative. I certainly do not have six figures in a bank account at the moment. But again, I want something from the country I put time and taxes in. Iām workin on that. 
But, as long as the place is allowing dual citizenship, then itās not exclusive.
Wellā¦ This is why weāre advocating for multinationality. At the current moment, yes, if it doesnāt fit with your life plans then yes, you might not find it to be of value.
However, with multinationality, it is not subtractive, itās additive. If weāre attaining a nationality without losing one, then it is not a step down but only a step up. Citizenship confers rights instead of privileges and knocks down walls. Sure, the online nomad might not care and hops around from country to country on visa-free because itās fun. But with multinationality attained from simply being in Taiwan, itās just an extra set of rights with no effect anywhere else. Iām a dual citizen myself, on the surface the Italian and the Canadian passports may look the same, digging deeper, switching passports offers, in many cases some differences. For example, Macau gives me 90 days if I present myself as an Italian. 30 for Canadians.
South Korea affords me 60 days as an Italian, 6 months if Canadian. Obviously Italians can run all over the EU. Canada gets more time in the US. Taiwanese and Italians, funnily enough can go to Iran, a country not easy to get to for westerners. Thereās also the working, living and travelling rights in China as well. Politics aside, maybe that might not be you, but some might find it important. For others, itās for living here. For some, it is for easier cross-border business and trade. Not needing any sort of visas or paperwork or fees for the rest of your life. All sorts of reasons. But whatās the most direct access you get with an (extra) Taiwanese passport? Taiwan!
Thatās right, and foreigners do encounter bureaucracy in other countries too, but itād be a hell of a lot easier pill to swallow if I only need to put up with bullshit for a few years max, especially as I became more established. Scotiabank certainly made my ex girlfriend put down a C$12000 deposit when getting her credit card because she was a foreigner. Yes, there are established human rights commissions to take care of things like blatant discrimination at the stores etc because many western countries are multicultural now and know what to do in a situation. Taiwan, South Korea and Japan are late to the globalised multicultural party and Taiwan being one of the best in Asia is certainly an accomplishment too.
Well, I guess we have a chicken and egg scenario. Again, like I said, many of us are already or are approaching eligibility for citizenship here, ending all of these issues that we face. We just donāt have the means to give up places like Canada for very good reasons. Weāre current and future APRC holders because itās not feasible to take the loss of one or more home countries. Some of us need to have that entry home because of things like, easier cross-border business with our home countries, especially if we wanna sell Taiwanese stuff in our home countries, (Cause we know our markets) or things like taking care of family if they get sick. Mumās not gonna be in a good position to go to Citizenship and Immigration Canada to sponsor me if she is sick or incapacitated and I canāt just go for 180 days. This traps us in PR by consequence. I certainly said āextraā citizenship. All these issues become moot when the citizenship is attained.
This is why fighting for C40Ā¢ is not a good use of our time. For us, to band together in attempt to help nudge the government forward towards the big thing that ends these issues for all of us when getting the extra passport. Then us foreign-born people can become constituents and become a voting bloc that pushes for a better and more effective human rights commission for the rest of us. We get into the club with one hand out the door to pull the rest of us in.
Sure, in your eyes, Taiwan has to sell you on the idea of PR or citizenship. Maybe thatās true, but youāre already here and have been sold into spending SOME time. If you find yourself approaching your five years, you just get it anyways because PR and (hopefully multicitizenship) is not a loss to you and only adds doors and choice. I like choice Even if you never use the doors. Itās nice to have. I cannot see myself going to Croatiaā¦but I can. Maybe I will want to. Maybe you will want to come back in the future and retire by the seaside in Pingtung, I dunno. Having the full option is nice. BTW, Taiwan doesnāt have a retirement visa at the moment. The selling aspect is a two way street, country needs to sell you the idea if they want you to come here and you need to sell the country the idea that you are good for the country if you wanna come in. Once we can get multicitizenship and our rights, then nobody needs to sell anymore and like I said, itās additive.
Hope this helps!
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Continue here.
Some hospitals charge differently to nationals and foreigners. Iām not sure how NHI holders are treated there, but some hospital say NHI holders or not, so they might mean all foreigners.