Planning on Leaving my Job...Need visa advice

First off, thanks to anyone who reads this post. I spent some time searching for posts that would help me answer my questions, and if i overlooked any i’d be grateful to anyone who sent them my way.

OK, I’m planning on leaving my job on August 30th. I have a plane ticket back to the USA (I’m American) on October 2nd. In the meantime, my girlfriend and I have been planning to travel around Taiwan and Asia. The thing that I’m worried about is re-entering Taiwan (in late September) to get all my stuff and head home. I know that my ARC is only valid for a short period of time after I stop working, and I no longer have 30 day visa-free entry until Feb 2009 (I accidentally overstayed my 60 day visitor visa by 11 hours).
Should I ask my employer to keep my ARC going for an extra month after I leave? I’ll be leaving on good terms, within the confines of my contract (I’ve given ample notice of my leave) but I’m not sure he’d be up for this. Otherwise, would I have to apply for another Taiwan visa at my destination immediately prior to my re-entry into taiwan? Or is this something I can get straightened out now? Can I apply for another visitor visa now, while I already have an ARC?

Any advice you can give me would be really helpful.
Thanks in advance,
J

I’ll give this a shot but I’m sure others can add.
I think your stuck. The only chance you have of sticking around under your circumstances is to ask your employer to keep your work permit going. Your probably right when you say he’ll be reluctant. You will no doubt have to leave by the 10th day after cancellation. Since you overstayed you probably have the little nastygram in your passport that says you can (EDIT - should read “can’t”) come back on a visitor visa for a year.
Perhaps seeing other areas of Asia would be the best way to go.

Yes.
And get it on paper.

Thanks for your reply Enigma and Josefus…
One quick thing to add: Enigma, you mentioned that my passport probably says I can’t come back on a visitor visa for a year. It actually says no Visa Exemption for a year. Correct me if I’m wrong but I think this means I can’t come here visa free (as most Americans can for a 30 day period). So I’m still wondering if I can get a visitor visa for my re-entry into Taiwan, should my ARC fall through. I plan to call the hotline for foreigners tomorrow, but I’ve never called before so I don’t know how reliable it is. If anyone has another avenue for me to search I’m all ears (eyes, actually).
Thanks everyone!
J

“Visa Exemption” means just as it says. If you want to come back, get a visa before you arrive or we will send you home without entry. You can’t come in without a visa in your passport, applied for and received before you get here. Period.

[quote=“tedturna”]Otherwise, would I have to apply for another Taiwan visa at my destination immediately prior to my re-entry into taiwan? Or is this something I can get straightened out now? Can I apply for another visitor visa now, while I already have an ARC?

J[/quote]
You’ll have to apply for a visa when you’re out of the country. Usually there is no problem - you’ll just have to write a letter explaining why you overstayed when you apply. I’m pretty sure you can’t apply for a visa while you’re in Taiwan.
Just in case they don’t give you a visa to get back in, I’d pack up everything and have it ready to be shipped out before you go sightseeing.

[quote=“bababa”][quote=“tedturna”]Otherwise, would I have to apply for another Taiwan visa at my destination immediately prior to my re-entry into taiwan? Or is this something I can get straightened out now? Can I apply for another visitor visa now, while I already have an ARC?

J[/quote]
You’ll have to apply for a visa when you’re out of the country. Usually there is no problem - you’ll just have to write a letter explaining why you overstayed when you apply. I’m pretty sure you can’t apply for a visa while you’re in Taiwan.
Just in case they don’t give you a visa to get back in, I’d pack up everything and have it ready to be shipped out before you go sightseeing.[/quote]

Bababa is quite right. You can get a visa while out of the country without much issue but you MUST have a passport stamped visa. Don’t just think you can just re-enter visa free as a tourist.
Also, of course you can not get a visa in Taiwan. You gotta go out.
Good luck

Does your ARC expire when you leave? If so, then you have to leave the country on that day, no exceptions.

If the ARC won’t expire then and you’re employer is willing to hang on to the ARC for that would work out best, otherwise when they cancel it you’ll get 14 days notice to leave, starting from when they cancel it.

You don’t want to get an overstay stamp in your passport if you can aviod it. I know of people who have gotten the stamp and had difficulty getting back in to Taiwan, one of them only overstayed by one day and the HongKong visa office refused him a visa to return.

No, my ARC expires in 2009. I’m going to pitch it to my boss, and if he goes for it, I’m good. If not, I’ll cancel my ARC, and apply for a visa somewhere else. If shit really hits the fan, my stuff will be all packed up and I can have my girlfriend’s parents send my stuff home. So I guess it’s a three tiered plan. I’ll post the result of this situation on here if something goes really wrong (or really right). Thanks to everyone for your advice.
J

[quote=“tedturna”] (I accidentally overstayed my 60 day visitor visa by 11 hours).
Should I ask my employer to keep my ARC going for an extra month after I leave?[/quote]

“Accidentally” overstayed?

I had a colleague last year who wanted to stay on a month or so after finishing his contract at work, but to do so he needed to get the school to renew his ARC for a year, then release him early. He was told that they can’t extend ARC’s month-to-month as it requires at least a year contract. Fortunately for him, the school was willing to do it.

Yeah, it was an accident, I didn’t check the fine print on the stamp in my passport notifying my departure date as carefully as I should’ve. I arrived at the airport on the day I was supposed to leave before, and realized it while checking in, and felt like a huge idiot because it was all avoidable…