I am an (Chinese) Australian citizen, married to a Taiwanese girl. We married in Australia almost one year ago. I have returned to Taiwan with her. Presently I am on a visitor’s visa, because when we approached the Taiwan Cultural Office in Sydney, we where given the advice that if I wanted to work it would be better to come on a Visitors visa, becuase if I applied for a spouse visa I would be restricted from working.
We have not registered our marriage in Taiwan because again we where given the advice that we didn’t need to register it in Taiwan. But now in Taiwan, we are told we need to register it back at the Taiwan Office in Australia.
What my question is, is what type of visa catagory should I select, so as I may, stay in Taiwan with my wife & not “do a visa run” and be able to work legally.
Am I able to apply for a JFRV (joining family resident visa), & what is the benefit of this visa over an ARC?
Please help! I feel so lost in all the Taiwan Legal Laws 
I am a NZ citizen married to a Taiwanese. We have been married 2 years and have a son who was born in Taiwan. I am here on an ARC, but this restricts me to one legal job and my reason for staying in Taiwan is just for work. I don’t like my resident status and being able to work being dependant on my employer. From what I understand I need to be married for 5 years before I can apply for an open work permit. This permit allows you to work any number of legal jobs. Please correct me if I am wrong. I also would like to know if I have any other options.
Both of the above postings show serious confusion about the actual situation of the local laws here in Taiwan.
I would go into a lengthy explanation of EVERYTHING, however it has all been posted on this website many, many times before. Could you consider browsing through the old postings?
If you want to come in for a one-on-one chat session, I will be happy to talk to you over orange juice.
Hybrid: if you want to work, you need to get an ARC based on marriage (yi1qin1). Then you can apply for an Article 51 Work Permit (also referred to on this board as an “Open Work Permit”). You may be able to apply to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to change your Visitor’s Visa to a JFRV, but you will need to check this with the Ministry. What you were told in Australia is incorrect. Spouses of Taiwanese citizens can get Article 51 work permits after they obtain a marriage-based ARC. The law changed recently, so the representative office in Australia may not be aware of the existence of Article 51 work permits.
All of this assumes that you are not a Chinese citizen.
Bassman: You can apply for a work permit now IF you have a marriage-based ARC. There is no five year rule. However, if your current ARC is work-based, you will need to change it to a marriage-based one. This will involve registering your marriage in Taiwan if you haven’t already done so.
Also, while I believe that the law is SHOULD allow you to work multiple jobs with an Article 51 work permit, the CLA has not issued an interpretation on this. I don’t want to alarm anyone, but I do think it is important to realize that this is a grey area especially since the police have the power to deport you without any kind of judicial review if they think that you are working illegally.
These issues have been discussed extensively in this forum. Please check the archives for more information.
I am A Dane married to a Taiwanese.
I have an ARC based on my marriage and an article 51 work permit. No employer is mentioned on that permit. Moreover, I applied for it myself. As a matter of fact I believe that it is impossible for your employer to apply for you, if it’s an open work permit based on marriage, you are applying for.
When I asked the CLA if it was possible to get the police to write on my ARC that I was entitled to work here, they told me to put a photocopy of the ARC in my wallet, so I could produce it if need be. That sounds like rather sound advice. Moreover, they told me that the details about my work status would be available to the police via an electronic system. That should do away with any fears about being deported by some ignorant cop.
As far as I remember, getting the work permit was the easy part. the hard part was getting the paperwork together for the resident visa. That’s best done in your home country. to the guy from Oz: Get some piece of paper stating that your marriage is recognized by the Australian Authorities. An Aussie colleague of mine got married in Taiwan and is now busy sorting things out, so he can get his visa based on marriage.
Hybrid, I can tell you this after countless emails to numerous sources who know a bit about this situation. I am also an Aussie who will marry my Taiwanese girlfriend in Australia quite soon.
As you are in Taiwan now, you can get your brother or someone back home, to go into your local department of births, deaths and marriages to get your wedding certifice. You’ll need this for your visa purposes here. You’ll also need a clean crim record certificate.
bdm.nsw.gov.au/overseas.html
This is the Sydney Department of Births, deaths and marriages link. It answer how to get your wedding certificate from abroad. Or go here, www3a.maxi.com.au/devs/Main.maxi to get it sent to you from maxi.
The crim record certificate is called a ‘Consent to Check and realease nation police record’ . Here it is here. Download the form, send it in, and get someone from home to pick it up and take it in to be translated and verified.
knowhttp://www.sofweb.vic.edu.au/itb/ts … onsent.pdf
Of coarse it’d be easier to do this yourself back home, but it looks possible to do it from this end too. Don’t forget, you’ll need to get both these certificates translated into Chinese, and then verified at your local (Sydney ) Taipei Economic and Trade Office. Someone you know could do this for you.
Cheers Amos.
To begin thanks, everyone for sharing your stories & for your most helpful suggestion to my situation. Thank you, Feiren & Hartzell for you time & help, very much appreciated. 
I’ll go to the ministry & try to change my visa status to an ARC. I’ll keep you updated on my progress & situation.
Also I have just recently found work, it’s a full time job. Am I able to actually work, or is it illegal for me to work at this point?
My employer knows I am currently on a visitors visa, will he automatically apply for a working visa for me?
Sorry if I sound ignorant, but is their a differance between an ARC & an working visa?
What will my employer be obtaining for me?
Finally, how long does a standard ARC take to get processed?
Again, thank you all for your thoughts & sharings. 
Hybrid, I hate to be snappy but you have obviously still not bothered to read the archives on this subject. You don’t have a work permit, so you will be working illegaly if you start at your new job before you get a work permit. You will also be risking deportation if you are caught.
An ARC allows you to live in Taiwan while a work permit allows you to work. They are different.
Now please go read the archives!
OK! for beginners the procedure is like this:
- get resident visa based on marriage. (A visa is the thing they put in your passport). You get that at BOCA, ministry of foreign affairs.
- Use the visa to get an ARC. (Kind of ID - better keep it in your wallet. If it’s green you’re ok, if not you go to the army
). You get that at the police station. - Use the ARC to get an open work permit. You get that at the CLA. Keep the original permit at home and a photocopy at your office. Your employer has nothing to do with it. You can work for as many buxibans as you like - legally.
In case you have further questions, please do not post them. Read the old threads instead. I managed to get all that without posting too much.
Where are the websites for me to read about article 51 permits. I want to read up on this for myself. Anyone know???
bassman, try the legal archives. It used to be the lead thread. Possibly still is. But you can go and check it yourself. Cheers, Amos.
Amos,
thanks for the links. I’m in a similar boat and though everything’s looking smooth I have one final query. I contacted the NSW police records, Taiwan’s foreign affairs the Oz de-factoe consulate and the Taipei econo office in Sydney - which has to authenticate it… but as yet noone has been able to tell me which of the two services Oz cops offer that I require.
These being:
- “Police Certification on a name basis for people currently residing overseas.” Which, though significantly cheaper than option two is emblazoned with
“PLEASE NOTE THIS CERTIFICATE COVERS NSW ARRESTS ONLY” - sorry, copied straight off their page.
or; - POLICE CERTIFICATES ON A FINGERPRINT BASIS FOR PEOPLE CURRENTLY RESIDING OVERSEAS
- again sorry for the officious caps locked but it was copied straight from their form.
Any ideas?
I note you said you got yours from the Vic coppers and then authenticated in Sydney(?) That implies the fingerprint job which I’m told has to be performed by Taiwan police. Call me paranoid but I’m not one to front to the local constabulary and say “Righto’ lads, If you wouldn’t mind just getting my prints for me…”
What confuses me is that while I’m damned sure that the TECO office in Sydney will authenticate something from the NSW police (option 1) it takes only one smart-arse to raise the logical question “of what relevance is this form since it doesn’t cover the rest of Oz?” I note that my sole status certificate was performed (and botched) by the NSW registry of birth’s deaths and marriages and authenticated but it too implied that it was only relevant for NSW. I was trembling at the prospects of dealing with five of these hopeless outfits but it was approved.
PS: for any other readers looking to track down their convict past or hopefully lack there of… try this link http://www.consular.australia.or.jp/police.html
Cheers,
Guang Chen - also in Yong Ho (BTW)
Guang Chen, I’m not married yet, but have a pretty good schedule of what I’m doing when I head back to Australia.
Just on the Police Certification. Although I haven’t appled for it yet, but I do have the the application in my hand as I type. I’m from Melbourne, so need a Victorian one. The Sydney advice was to the guy who asked something about Sydney earlier on in the thread.
Due to it saying (I’m reading exactly from the form) - Do you want ;
a) National name check $A24 or
b) Police and fingerprints record search $A103,
I’d say ‘a’ will do the job. My advice is that if your state says it’s going to say New South Wales only, then just get a National one from Victoria. It can be done from the internet.
If you download that form ‘Consent to Check and Release National Police Record’, you’ll find that you don’t need fingerprints at all. Just your drivers license number and a copy of your drivers license or passport or birth certificate.
You said that what "confuses me is that while I’m damned sure that the TECO office in Sydney will authenticate something from the NSW police (option 1) it takes only one smart-arse to raise the logical question “of what relevance is this form since it doesn’t cover the rest of Oz?”
That’s a good question. My advice is when you get it translated, providing you haven’t already, tell them to write in National rather than New South Wales on the translation form. (the guys in Taiwan probably won’t pick the New South words on the English form, but will look more closely at the meaning of the translation - my guess only.
Again, the Victorian form is a National form. I don’t why New South Wales isn’t the same, but heed the advice and get a Victorian one. Tell them that you need a National check, and New South don’t offer the service.
You asked in the personal note why I’m doing it back home, well many reasons mate, but one benefit is by doing that I will not need a Singles Certificate. Just marriage certificate and Clean record certificate.
Hope this helps some, cheers Amos.
Amos,
thanks for the reply.
A quick point. My sole status cert. wasn’t actually translated, just chopped - approved. This makes me think the local TECO’s have, surprise, surprise, no idea of the point I raised earlier.
Hope I’m not the smart arse!
I agree though, and will probably do the cheaper NSW option as that’s where my birth certificate, and I think passport, say is where I’m from.
Cheers,
GC
To Feiren, thanks for clarifying my work situation. I have declined the teaching position & will first apply for the JFRV. So at this moment I am awaiting a reply from the Federal Police in regards to the Police check. So that I can then proceed with the application for JFRV.
Also Thanks Herzell, I located your old posting which outlined the steps to getting an JFRV, then ARC.
Again thanks all for your helpful advice & sharings.