I received my Alien Permanent Resident Certificate yesterday. It took about two months to get everything done. I had my wife do most of the hard stuff, so I’m not really sure about all the requirements. I know I had to get reports of taxes paid to Taiwan for the last three years. I had to be able to prove that I had been in Taiwan for 183 days a year for the last five (or seven, I forget which) years. I’m glad I kept my old passport.
I had to get the CCRD. I needed my sister’s help for this one. I got it through the mail from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and paid them with a credit card. But then you have to send it to the TECO office to be certified. So I had them send it to my sister’s house in Broken Arrow and they faxed her a copy, which was unsatisfactory, so I had her take care of getting another one and sent her a self addressed envelop. TECO also wanted copies of passport, wedding papers, original birth certificate, and I don’t know what all. We used the TECO office in Houston and it seems every time you call them, they tell you something different. Hassle city. You just have to keep jumping through their hoops.
The health exam was not a problem. I went to Yang Ming Hospital because it’s by my house. They have a guide in English that tells you where to go and what to do. (There is a pooper scooper involved.)
I had an interview at the police station and they said come back in two weeks with 10000NT and another photo and bah-boom I have it.
As far as any difference from the old one. The color is red instead of green. They cancelled my reentry permit because the APRC will act as a reentry permit. If I leave Taiwan I need to have to APRC to get back in. Still need to get a work permit. They said the APRC will be cancelled if you are out of the country for half a year. But I think you can request a leave and not have it cancelled if you tell them why you have to be away so long. The only other difference is that I can now run faster and jump higher. Don’t know why.
What benefits does the APRC confer that you did not receive with your JFRV ARC. As far as AI can tell, the APRC is only useful if your wife is not in the picture (divorced or passed away). Otherwise, it’s better to have a JFRV ARC because there’s no requirement of a certain number of days a year that one has to reside in Taiwan.
Yeah, I never had a JFRV ARC so I couldn’t say. The residency requirement will not be a concern for me.