In addition to renouncing your previous citizenship(s), which in the case of the US you cannot do in Taiwan as there’s no real embassy here, you must also be a relation of a Taiwanese person, through birth, adoption, marriage, etc. I imagine there are provisions for people with extremely large amounts of money to do it as well, but they probably also have to renounce their previous citizenships. Then again, being extremely rich, they can probably just as quickly purchase another passport.
I only know of one other person besides myself to have actually done it. He’s a British man, over conscription age, who was born to missionaries in China. There might be many others I haven’t heard of, however.
NOTE: I left out some countries that do take immigrants. This is not meant to slight those countries but to only talk about the ones I am familiar with.
The problem with immigrants is that they come in different categories. Some are refugees, political, economic migrants, or people who want to move to a different place. The term immigrant is mostly for a nations benefit. The US, Australia and Canada take in a lot of immigrants. They have laws to protect them and do make some attempt to bring them into society. They are not perfect, nor will they ever be. Taiwan has few immigrants due to the fact that they don’t have laws taking them into account. This is for a number of reasons.
I think the foreigners in Taiwan are in the classification of migrant worker. We work here, live, some of us pay taxes, yet we do not choose to become a citizen for a number of reasons. Some of these reasons are in relation to Taiwanese laws in regard to citizenship. This is endemic of Asia however.
I would be a big proponent of dual citizenship. I will never under any circumstances give up my US citizenship, especially for Taiwanese citizenship. This will keep me in the category of expat/migrant worker till Taiwan changes its laws or I leave.
I don’t have a high opinion of the UN. They do good things, but are too afraid of making hard decisions. I do have a high opinion of The Economist. I wish that most American magazines were half as good.
ROC Nationality Law allows for the naturalization of any Alien Resident Certificate holder after a 5 year residency period in general. This requires the renunciation of the foreign citizenship in reality of actually relinguishing it under the laws of their former nationality, only if naturalized under ROC laws. In contrast, Taiwanese descendants can retain dual nationality because they obtain their ROC nationality by their parents. For the naturalization process, it is a heated issue of double-standards. :!:
The crux of this insult to injury is that the noted hypocritical majority are Taiwanese-Americans. They obtain their US citizenship, retain their ROC nationality, and then form an influential lobby for utilizing US servicemen to protect them under the Taiwan Relations Act. Probably the best example is TECO Chairman qualifications for US citizenship under the TRA…yes, the Taiwan “Ambassador” to the USA is qualified for US citizenship under TRA and US nationality laws. This occurs via the E-1/E-2 executive status of TECO under TRA and 1946 US-ROC Treaty of Commerce, Navigation, and Friendship. Adjustment of status is made from “nonimmigrant status” E visa to the EB-2 “executive status” of immigrant visas. It seems that the AIT Chairman Douglas Paal is denied equal protections by the same treaty in regards to the ROC Nationality Laws.
I’m notopposed to TECO Chairman’s special treatment under TRA, but I really detest the idea of double-standards. The practice of ROC renunciations aimed at US citizens in particular is a security issue, too. :x
Taiwan Govt:You don’t look Chinese so you’re not Chinese.
Taiwan Govt: Wait a second, we’re not Chinese here?
Taiwan is partly controlled by different groups of Overseas Chinese who use it as a great place to get around many laws and ship money in and out of. Also a useful backup passport if things get hairy in Malaysia, Indonesia etc.
I often hear Taiwanese people say Australia is racist cos quote ‘they don’t like Asians there’. I’d like to see what would happen if a black person with Chinese ancestry tried to immigrate to Taiwan.
I suppose that is why Sydney has Asian faces everywhere and Japanese control half the Gold Coast.
They are really two faced about it. Mostly cos they can’t understand why any foreigner would want to immigrate to Taiwan (this is a very common question I’m asked-- Why Taiwan?)
[quote=“headhonchoII”]Taiwan Govt:You don’t look Chinese so you’re not Chinese.
They are really two faced about it. Mostly cos they can’t understand why any foreigner would want to immigrate to Taiwan (this is a very common question I’m asked-- Why Taiwan?)[/quote]
Yeah, I get that question a lot; it seems a lot of Taiwanese are really lacking in self-confidence. Most people, however, seem pleased that a white person would immigrate from the US to Taiwan.
As I understand it, Taiwan has a huge number of immigrants. It didn’t become the second most densely populated territory on earth just through a high birthrate. It is full of first-generation immigrants – people who were born in another country but have transplanted themselves to this one. Many of them are from China, and most of the others are from various countries in Southeast Asia. The one thing they all have in common is that they are ethnic Chinese.
The key criteria for determining who should be accepted as an immigrant and who should not is ethnicity. In the past, it was like that to a large extent in Australia, and Australians have been rightly condemned for this shamefully racist practice. But that was far back in the past, when the world was very different from how it is now. In this day and age, it is inconceivable that any advanced Western country would adopt such a policy. Taiwan aspires to be accepted among the ranks of advanced nations, so it should act accordingly. I cannot understand why its exclusionary immigration policies based on race are not condemned more loudly by the international community.
As for me, I’ve transplanted myself to Taiwan, put down roots, adapted to the climate and soil, and given my fair share of pollen to this ecosystem. I’d love to be able to root firmly and grow freely, but can never be sure how long I might be allowed to do so. At any time I could be forcefully uprooted and tossed back to where I came from. That’s not fair, not just, and not right. I’m glad that the same thing could not happen to the millions of Asians who have emigrated to my home country during my lifetime. I’m deeply disappointed that it could happen to me.
An immigrant has a local “TAIWAN Cession” Passport.
(That will be the nomenclature on the passports after the world community declares once and for all that Taiwan is not an independent sovereign nation. Taiwan is merely a territorial cession . . . . . )
[quote=“Hartzell”]An immigrant has a local “Taiwan Cession” Passport.
(That will be the nomenclature on the passports after the world community declares once and for all that Taiwan is not an independent sovereign nation. Taiwan is merely a territorial cession . . . . . )[/quote]
And pray tell what makes you think that the international community would ever make such a declaration?
The United Nations, United States, and most leading countries of the world maintain that “Taiwan is not an independent sovereign nation.” So that option is out.
Taiwan is not currently part of the PRC. Hence, the Taiwanese are not going to have PRC passports in the near future.
The “Taiwan cession” passport is the only viable remaining option.
“According August 2004 statistics released by the Ministry of the Interior Immigration Office, there are 300 thousand foreign nationals and Chinese spouses in the country, 110 thousand of which are foreign nationals and 80 thousand of which are within the country’s borders and have a valid residence permit; 190 thousand are from China, 130 thousand of which are in the boundary of the country.
One-hundred-thousand foreign nationals and Chinese spouses are qualified to work in the country, of which 50 thousand are currently employed, averaging under 35 years old, and most with an education below high school.”
The passport I have now works just fine. The last one, without the “Taiwan” on the front, worked just fine as well, Hartzell’s delusions notwithstanding.
