Hi Folks,
My wife has been helping me get a local credit card. Finally got it yesterday and unfortunately the order of my english name was “chinese order,” i.e. “Last First Middle”. The bank is saying that they just copy whatever order is on my ID (ARC) and that the ARC is wrong because it is in “Last First Middle” order. So what order is your name on your ARC? I’d like to know who is really wrong here before I go too ballistic on the bank.
I had that problem too, they ran out of space before they reached my surname, then assumed my 3rd Christian name is my surname, so it ended up something like: 3rd 1st 2nd, or 2rd 3rd 1st, or something, completely wrong anyway.
It never caused any problems. When I had to get a new card, she just asked them to replace it with initials
My ARC is Last 1st 2nd 3rd, that’s not Chinese order, just Last name first.
I’m Last First Middle on My ARC. But my name is quite long - three given names and a two-word surname - so the banks didn’t know what to do, since my name didn’t fit on the alloted space on the bankbook. It took me 10 minutes of patient explanation before they could finally accept using just my most commonly-used given name and my surname. (They did put it in the correct order, though - given name, then surname).
OK then, time to go yell at the bank some more.
That’s never a good idea in Taiwan! Why yell? Go with the flow my man! Taiwan is a joke, once you realize that you will be happier. Today I was at the bank and signed a government check that was in my girlfriends name. You cant do that back home now can you?
checked for you…
mine: last name, first name, middle name
my much better half: first name, middle name, last name
I guess she wins again!
Last, first middle is fine. That’s pretty normal for official stuff right.
What’s annoying is when you’re registering for something and you write last, first, middle and then the intelligent clerk thinks ‘foreigners names are at the end so his family name is Thomas’ and then the computer system onll accepts 5 letters and so you get Thoma on your hospital registration card, which is a different name from that on your health insurance card which is different from the one on your ARC and the fascist nurse wants you to walk 2KM to the other side of the hospital and change your card before she’ll let you see the doctor (yes that happened to me, but I politely told her to fuck off).
That’s why I just use my Chinese name all the time now. Much less hassle. If you don’t wnat to do that, it might be a good idea to underline your family name.
Brian
I use Fubon bank and mine is First, Middle, Last. I guess I just had to be different from the rest of ya!