I think even inconsistent new system will be a bit better.
Apparently they want to change the second letter to a number for ARC ID’s. Those won’t be rejected anymore where the checking software expects a number there.
The whole issue is that besides gender they try to encode what type of ID it is (TW National, Chinese, Foreigner)
Cheers. It was supposed to have been implemented by June 2019
They are quoting the last 2 paragraphs of this article:
https://topics.amcham.com.tw/2018/11/taiwan-embraces-southeast-asian-immigration/
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The second letter will be changed to a number however it won’t be the same number as national ID cards which use 1,2,3 to identify gender it will be 6,7,8 or something so any website which checks for gender will reject ARC numbers unless modified, in the same way the second letter is rejected, unless modified…
TL;DR; New ID numbers will be more widely accepted by current automated systems due to how the checksum is calculated!
I implemented the ID check just recently by myself to understand how it works and why it fails with ARC numbers.
With the current system you convert the first letter to a specific number and calculate a weighted sum with the rest to get the checksum, which is last number of the ID.
For ARC you had to do same thing for the second character because it is a letter! Most implementations don’t do that!
In the future, if gender code is a number, it can be handled the same way as a normal TW ID number to calculate the checksum.
So I assume it will work in most cases with new ID numbers! (unless the checking system additionally checks the gender to be only 1 or 2, then they need to update and allow the new gender numbers, but the checksum issue will be gone)
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You are obviously Taiwanese or haven’t been in Taiwan very long to assume that it will probably work with the new ID numbers.
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Did you read my post? It is about the automated systems that check if ID number is valid. Not about the people who refuse ARC’s on sight.
The most chabudou implementation will be able to verify new ARC ID’s without changes.
Here are some generated ID numbers with the new system. You can check if they validate:
A345678907
A456789011
A567890125
A678901239
B345678908
B456789012
B567890126
B678901230
Some will still fail if they additionally check the gender code to be 1 or 2.
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They were being a pain opening a credit card account for me in bank of taiwan with an arc. xenophobic bunch
Other than that, I haven’t had a lot of trouble, I just put everything under my wife’s name, which admittedly is not a real solution.
Did you get a Bank of Taiwan card in the end?
I’ve applied every year and they keep moving the goalposts. The first time the ARC wasn’t long enough. The next year they wanted a 1 year arc and mine was 11 months and 27 days long, then the next year they wanted a years worth of salary with no breaks. The year after that they didn’t like my employment and told me to open an account for a few months and then they will see.
They will take all your documentation and forward it to the credit Dept who will reject it without telling you and the branch wont tell you unless you ask. I don’t want the card anymore but apply every year for fun to see what new excuse they come up with. I should try again with aprc
Your are quite patient!
I would have pushed harder and harder but for the first couple of times. Then, select other credit card bank.
I can usually get what I want with a letter to management naming someone in the letter like a CEO however their offering isnt as good as what I have now.
I just like to see how a government bank really thinks of foreigners while at the same time telling everyone that they want more foreigners to come here
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Looks like the EZ Way app sponsored by Taiwan Customs does not accept ARC (See Taobao Real Name Verification )
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Send a message on https://bossmail.immigration.gov.tw/mail-box/mailindexEN.jsp and they will take it up with the department involved. They’re usually quite good at keeping you up to date with developments.
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For reference, I’m just adding to the thread so it’s recorded. It would be best if someone who needs the service to make the report. It looks like the Customs Administration and Taipei Customs also have English-language enquiry forms.
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I’ve definitely used my ARC with EZ Way, unless this is a recent update.
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There was some note in the thread about a new 實名認證 (real name verification) system. I have no idea about this stuff - perhaps you can help the OP to find out more?
Hi, I’m the OP of the aforementioned thread. Were you verified (real name verification icon selectable) on EZ Way. I actually managed to contact Taobao shipping and a customs company, both of whom said ARC is registrable but not verifiable on EZ Way i.e. the customs won’t see the account. Parcels may come through but it has nothing to do with EZ Way since the account isn’t verified. Is yours verified? Please advise if so
Yeah I’m not sure about that. I’ve never used that section of the app nor has a shipping company ever cared. This must be a new requirement.
HSR is very foreigner unfriendly. They do not allow foreigners with disabilities or seniors to get the discount unless your a Taiwanese citizen. (At least it was the case a few years ago); not surprised at all that we can’t get rewards either.
I never take the hsr , I use the bus but just leave earlier and sleep on the way
Just hit this EZ WAY wall now, forwarder refuses to ship the purchased development tools, without that “real name authentication”, which is not available for non-citizen in this crap app. As an APRC holder who lives > 10 years here, I can see this as a pure discrimination. Just out of the blue this idiotic nonsense is limiting the ability to shop online for the things that are hard to find in Taiwan.
Anyone interested to gather and file a complaint regarding this discrimination? The relevant regulations can be found here:
https://law.moj.gov.tw/ENG/LawClass/LawAll.aspx?pcode=D0080166
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