What is the legal procedure for a visa run? I know I need to go to Hong Kong or somewhere, but what do I do while I’m there? Do I need to find the taiwan representative in HK and fill out the paperwork in HK? How long does it take to get the visa? I’m sure there is an easier and more efficient way? Any help from anybody would be great!
Thanks!
Crazy Laowai
so this is secret information? I know everyone knows how to do it… How about letting a fellow laowai know… come on, I won’t tell anybody…
crazy laowai
If you want a 30 day visa you just need to turn around at the airport and pay some money when you come in. You need to have a return ticket though or at least some money or a credit card to shwo that you can afford one. I forgot once and it was a major hassle.
If you want a 60 day visa you can do it in a day if you really hurry. You have to drop off the application in the morning and pick it up after 4 or 4:30. Usually the 60 day visa is for study and you have to have all the documents form your school with you and a return ticket. It’s in the Lippo building in central. Otherwise just dot he 30 day landing visa.
Bri
Crazy Laowai
This is the way I did it
Have the following before you leave for HK
A valid air ticket
out of Taiwan to somewhere els…maybe to your home country, Thailand, Philippines etc. The officials in the visa office in HK want to know that you have the means and are leaving Taiwan before the time limit expires on the visa. I always went to the British Airways desk in HK airport after changing the date of my flight…and got the sticky thingy on my ticket to say I was leaving within thirty days (I am not too sure if this is a requirement though)
Two photos
Passport
Plane ticket
Go Thai Airways usually 9000NTD, leaves in the morning at around 7.00(it is the first flight). Arrive HK at 9.15. Get off the airplane and go quickly to immigration.
Then get the airport train to HK. Buy return ticket to CENTRAL STATION.
When you arrive in CENTRAL STATION, you can either make a dash for the MTR(equivalent of the MRT) …have some change with you…and go to ADMIRALTY station…be careful which train you get on in CENTRAL station. The MTR is more complicated than the MRT. Alternatively get out at central station and walk to the LIPPO building. It is this skyscraper that was featured in the Van Dame
One more thing…correct me if I am wrong…if you do the turn around at the airport… you recieve a landing visa when you arrive in CKS… This is only valid for 15 days I think…and you can’t transfer it to a resident visa.
Bangkok…stay clear of that place for a visa…some people get it easy but others are refused point blank…depends on the person on duty…I heard it is a nightmare…
Bu Lai En
You are right…30 days can be gotten on a landing visa
Go to Lippo in HK for 60 days
Thanks guys!
Crazy Laowai
The “Chung Hwa Travel Service” (more evidence that the government can’t spell anything correctly 
: ) is located on the 40th floor of the Lippo Building. The phone number is 2525-8315.
As for money, that depends on what country your passport is from, at least for a vistor’s visa.
Of course, if you have a multiple entry visa, you don’t even have to leave the HK airport. When you apply, you might as well ask for one; maybe you’ll get lucky, like I did.
Has anyone tried to get a visa in Macau?
–Cranky (glad I don’t have to mess with visa runs any more)
Oh, I thought I should point out that the 30 landing visa is only available to some nationalities, but it’s most of the main western ones I think.
Actually I’m not sure why you’d want to go to the visa office in Hong Kong if you can just get the landing visa, unless you have soem way (such as being a student) of getting a 60 day visa. They are normally very strict about giving these out in Hong Kong (and most other places).
Bri
Regulation of Visa-Exempt Entry and Landing Visa for
Foreign Nationals
I have read the information Bu Lai En posted about the 30 day Landing Visa and have a specific question about it.
I arrived in Taiwan on 1/13 of this year on a Visitors Visa. With the extensions, I can stay up to 7/13. I had hoped at this point to have my work permit, but my potential boss didn’t cooperate. I’ll have to start over and look for work elsewhere.
That brings me to my problem. I have purchased a ticket to go back for a visit in the USA. My ticket is for 8/13. I had hoped to have my ARC by that time, but instead I will have to find another way to extend my stay in Taiwan.
My question: If I was to go to CKS airport on 7/13, turn around, and apply for a 30 day landing visa, would the last day on my landing visa be 8/13? I would assume so, but the only reason I ask is July has 31 days so I fear it expiring on 8/12.
I would be greatly thankful if anyone could share their experience in getting this 30 day landing visa at the airport. Is it really possible to go into the airport and simply turn around and go through immigration? Do you need some kind of outgoing ticket in order to clear immigration on the way out?
I know this is a very specific question, but it’d be great if someone could shed some light on this.
Thanks,
Scomargo
Another way to go the the Lippo Towers if you want to spent a few days in Hong Kong and look around is to do the following. When you get to Hong Kong only buy a one way ticket on the airport shuttle. It stops in three places, Tsing Yi, Kowloon, and Hong Kong. Get off in Kowloon or whatever the second stop is, take the Holiday Inn shuttle bus, it’s free. Get off at the Holiday Inn. Walk to the Chung-King Mansion. If you cannot find it ask someone, when you are near it don’t worry someone will get in your face and ask you if you want a room. Say yes, check it out, if you dont like it go back downstairs and wait for another to jump you. Don’t be too picky, they are much the same. I didn’t see any cockroaches when I was there. The place is not bad, and it’s cheap to stay there compared to a hotel. Around $150HKD a night, I think. You can then take the Tsim Sha Tsui MTR, which is right across the street from the Chung-King Mansion, to the Admiralty stop, once there go to EXIT no. 4. Madmax has explained the rest very well.
Go get your visa the first thing in the morning, then go up to Victoria’s peak and hangout until whatever time they told you to come back. It’s really close to the Lippo Towers. Just be careful not to get lost in the bridge, you will see what I mean when you go there. It’s the most complex walking bridge I have ever seen. So after you get your visa just do the reverse back to Tsim Sha Tsui. After you have had enough of HongKong, take the bus across from the Chung-King Mansion, as I remember it was a red bus, A1 I think… It’s written in English and you can ask the person you get your room from at the mansion which one it is. The bus is only $17HKD and you get a little tour of Hong Kong, I think it was an hour to the airport.
Remember before you leave Taiwan you need three tickets. To HK and back to Taiwan, and then from Taiwan to another place. If you go the the Visa office with out it they will reject you immediately! And you should pay an arm and a leg in HK for another ticket. Madmax covers it pretty well. When you get back to Taiwan if you can get your visa, then just go to the airline office in Taipei and cancel your ticket and get a refund. Anyway good luck and have fun!
I think you won’t make it as the Landing Visa is 30-day, not one month, and you don;t want to take a chance. Your options are probably to either change your flight or just stay a day or two in Hong Kong. Check your dates very very carefully. Are you sure you have until 7/13? Best to play it safe. As for turning around at the airport, you have to go through immigration of course. If you go to the HK Visa office, you definitely need to show a ticket out of Taipei, but not necessarily if you’re doing the landing visa. I’ve done it several times. Teh guys at Taipei airport never give me any hassle, but the airline won’t let me on at Hong Kong until I show them a ticket, some cash or a credit card to prove I can leave Taiwan. This caused many hassles once as I hadn’t brought any of these, but I managed to pull them off by bullshitting them abotu my girlfriend coming to meet me at the airport and how she was going to give my credit card to the airline staff there, before they let me through. I spent too much on cellphone calls and worried her a lot, but told her not to come knowing that the Taipei airport guysa are no worries. Please don’t take any of this as a sure thing though as anyone wioth experience of this knows that these things change all the time and you never know whgat someone may pull on you.
Bri
Thanks for your help, Bu Lai En. I appreciate your reply. I agree that the best thing to do would be to just stay a night or two in Hong Kong. It’d be a good excuse to see the city. Thanks again.
If you have all your paper work, Bangkok shouldn’t be a problem. Make sure you bring a financial statement from your bank and papers from whatever organization that’s backing you up (school or work) in Taiwan. I hear Bangkok’s not so easy if you don’t have connections of some sort in Taiwan already.
I got a 60 day visa for free with no hassles, but, unlike Hong Kong, it takes two days. You do all the paperwork in the morning and pick it up the next afternoon.
You do all the paperwork and stuff at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in this big office building with silver-mirrored windows on the Chorng Nansi Sky Train stop. It’s nice.
On KLM, a flight to Bangkok is about 9,000 NT. You can stay in Thailand for about a month if you want.