what’s the limit anyone got any stories of people staying for years and years withour perminate
also i am thinking once you been there for 5 years you can just apply for a criminal check in taiwan to complete your perminate residentary?? thus avoiding the need to have to get on from u.k
You could but your time doesnt count towards residency I think if staying only on tourist visa.
You can do visa runs for as long as you have money. But to get the PARC after five years you need to have had a regular ARC for previous 5 years. And it MUST be continuous.
I just met someone that has been here for 5+ continuous years but hadn’t done the PARC paperwork. He lost his job unexpectedly. He literally took the first available job an hour outside Kaohsiung because if he lost his ARC then the 5 yr wait would have restarted.
Since joecool223 brought up the question: what’s a tourist visa in Taiwan precisely. Being a european citizen, do I need to make one, how long does it last ? Is it possible to exit the country and come back right after with another tourist visa ? Or is there some legal time between the two ? For example, one could imagine staying 6O days with a tourist, leave to another country a few days, then come back with another tourist visa ? Would this even work ?
It works just fine. (One country I know of, India, puts a restriction on tourist visas that once you leave India, you cannot reenter for 60 days. At least that’s what is posted in the Indian Economic Office in Taipei. Taiwan does not have such a restriction.)
So for example since i’m an European Union resident, as soon as my exempt-visa travel of 60 days (or 90 days I don’t remember) is over. I can just fly over to HK or elsewhere a few days, then come back without any troubles for another 60_90 days or so ?
Yes that is correct. Come in on Visa Exempt and leave (without overstaying) and come right back in , even in same day for another period.
I’ve been doing it for 3 years 
I will say this though - before Taiwan reached the agreement with the UK about the 90 day visa free entry, I used to apply for the 60 day Tourist visas. After about 8 months, I was told I had too many and couldn’t apply for any more after that at that Embassy (Bangkok).
As it turned out, I didn’t need to as that was when the switch was made - but just some food for thought.
first - it’s called a visitor visa and the important thing is to make sure that you get a multiple entry visitor visa for the longest duration possible. Most are 60 day visas and you can go in and out as many times as you want for a specific time period. My first was good for 1 yr and my second was good for 6 months.
second - Most EU countries can use the 90 day visa exempt status which would be better since it’s longer, it’s free and it’s less hassle (going to a TECO office).
I used to know someone (he is still a friend of a friend) who is still in Taiwan. He’s been here for five years and has been doing visa runs the entire time.