My wife and I are planning on coming to Taiwan in August 2010 and are going to stay about 1 year. We have been looking at plane tickets that have a 1 year open ended return date. Which means that for up to 1 year, I can pick any day to return back to my home country (US).
My question is, will this be acceptable to get into the country. I know that you cannot just buy a 1-way ticket. Will they want to see an exact return date that is less than 60 days after my arrival, or will an open ended ticket be ok?
Well i was on a 60 day visa (student) and my return date was 4 months after my visa theoretically expired. However; i had confirmed enrollment at university which said i would be there for a while… so why are you coming to taiwan? just for a holiday? if so i think it may be difficult to extend your visa… and you will def need a return date within that 60days. But if it is an open ticket you can just change the date when you arrive… thats what i do. Is your wife taiwanese? are you planning on working, studying? It depends on what you want to do, and wether you can provide proof that you have gainful employment or studies to justify your late return date.
Sorry, no dice. They will check when you arrive, even if you have a visa. According to boca.gov.tw/ct.asp?xItem=144 … e=116&mp=2 you must have proof of return ticket or onward travel.
However, there’s a way around it, depending upon your selected airline. China and EVA Airlines both allow up to six months expiry on a ticket, so you can just go ahead and book a return (or onward trip to say, H.K.) for a day not more than 60 days from your arrival, and then change it down the line. I actually got China Airlines to extend my return ticket to one year, even though I had booked it to stay in TW for 58 days. Get them on the phone and ask, ask, ask…
…or you can ask the airline about it’s change of itinerary policy, i.e. can you book the ticket that’s good for one year (remember, to set the return date for 58-59 days or less) and then call them and say you want to change the date. This is very common and most Asian carriers will not penalize you or at least have a nominal charge.
Finally, the other thing to to do is just book the one year return flight and prior to arriving at TPE, book a cheapy “visa run” type flight to Manila or Kotakinabura (both are dirt cheap right now, Kotakinabura, especially) as your proof of onward travel. Don’t show them the one year itinerary. Again, with this ticket you can change it at will and besides, I have a feeling that you’re going to either have to leave the country at least once during that year, or going to WANT to leave the country at least once during that year.
The bottom line is: show them something that says you’re leaving within 60 days and once you’re in the country, start playing the game.
We are both American (white) but have been learning chinese for a little over a year. We are going there to help us get better at chinese. The plan is to study at a university, at least while we can afford it (studying is more expensive than I thought), and then to try to get a job. My wife should be able to work because she has a BA in English, and we both have TESOL’s.
The ticket that the travel agent offered us was $1340 per person round trip to Taipei from San Francisco, CA. You can choose your return date up to a year away, and if you choose a return date and change your mind, it is $100 to change it. About how much is a “visa run” type flight cost? Less than $100? If so that sounds like an option. Thanks for the tip super_lucky.
99999 times out of 100,000 they never check at Immigration in Taiwan if you have an onward ticket. Having an open ticket valid for a year should be fine.
what he said…there have been acres of cyberspace wasted on this question…i have never been checked in 20 years of travel in and out of Taiwan. If they did check and you didn’t have an onward ticket they would escort you to the China Airlines counter where you could buy a refundable ticket to HK for NTD8000.
[quote=“super_lucky”]
Finally, the other thing to to do is just book the one year return flight and prior to arriving at TPE, book a cheapy “visa run” type flight to Manila or Kotakinabura (both are dirt cheap right now, Kotakinabura, especially) as your proof of onward travel. Don’t show them the one year itinerary. Again, with this ticket you can change it at will and besides, I have a feeling that you’re going to either have to leave the country at least once during that year, or going to WANT to leave the country at least once during that year.
The bottom line is: show them something that says you’re leaving within 60 days and once you’re in the country, start playing the game.[/quote]
I’m in a similar situation but am not sure if I want to attend school four consecutive semesters. Since a visitor’s visa lasts longer than a student visa, do I just leave the country and re-enter before the 180 days?
Okay, where is heck is this Kotakinabura? I googled it and the only link sent me right back to your post. Which means that now there are exactly two links in the whole of cyberspace that have the word “Kotakinabura” in it.
I am desperate for a cheap visa run seeing as I have two weeks from tomorrow to be on a plane leaving this island with no money for a plane ticket unless I get an advance from my now former employer (apparently they knew on Thursday when I called them with concerns about a student whose family is going through some hard times, but they didn’t have the stones to let me know then and waited until most government offices were an hour from closing to have me come in).
Okay, where is heck is this Kotakinabura? I googled it and the only link sent me right back to your post. Which means that now there are exactly two links in the whole of cyberspace that have the word “Kotakinabura” in it.
I am desperate for a cheap visa run seeing as I have two weeks from tomorrow to be on a plane leaving this island with no money for a plane ticket unless I get an advance from my now former employer (apparently they knew on Thursday when I called them with concerns about a student whose family is going through some hard times, but they didn’t have the stones to let me know then and waited until most government offices were an hour from closing to have me come in).[/quote]
I believe that would be Kota Kinabalu, in Malaysia.
[quote=“ImaniOU”]Thanks for the info, Chris. I will check it out now. Anything to save some of the money I don’t really have for this.
That makes this three posts on google about this fictional place now, you know.
Edit: The flight is $100 USD more expensive than HK and $200 more than Manila.[/quote]
Also try looking at Macao and Seoul. They seem to have prices similar to HK.
I went to Lao Ag from Kaohsiung real cheap too. IT was a charter and included two nites hotel and flights for something like 5000nt. IT was with Makung Airlines (now part of UNI Airways - EVA air). Now Mandarin airlines have taken over that route.
Malaysian Airlines also does Kota Kinabalu from kaohsiung.
Sometimes visa runs are cheaper from Kaohsiung rather then Taipei. Or also look into TAichung to HongKong with Mandarin airlines. The flights could be discounted as it is not a preferred airport (taichung) versus Taipei.
