Really? Most gold card holders are just digital nomads. The rest are kindergarten teachers or other kinds of reprobates.
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From my side, it’s certainly not “angst.”
I do feel some anger however when the legitimate concerns raised about access to services (including disability services, as we saw with that recently deceased British man) are addressed but only in the narrowest of contexts in this proposed scheme. Put otherwise, this is not what we asked for.
I agree that the intermediate skilled workers who can flip into an APRC are much more important. But that was a Tsai era move, and now we’re into the Lai era and at least on my side I find myself wondering what his government / this new NDC will do.
Guy
Read @foc 's post again. He is not talking about Gold Card holders here. The key paths include getting recent international student uni grads to stay AND the intermediate skilled path to allow certain migrant works to eventually flip into an APRC. Both are liberalizations and in my opinion to be applauded.
Guy
There were about 30,000 ordinary professionals at the end of 2019 and about 800 special professionals (i.e. gold card holders). There are now 50,000 ordinary professionals and almost 9,000 special professionals. Plus an unknown number of new spouses with college degrees who are working as ordinary professionals. The number has doubled. Some are digital nomads but most are not.
Most of the growth is coming from SEA international graduates of Taiwanese universities. They are 37% of ordinary work permit holders now. A key part of the new program is a couple of incremental steps that will certainly increase their numbers.
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Of course. Some are kindy teachers or other layabouts.
It’s absurd to think that people are being employed locally with gold cards. Why do you need a gold card to be hired locally when its so easy for firms to get ARCs?
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My man once again please read @foc 's posts more carefully. You’re barking at a different tree.
Guy
Point taken.
I do feel some anger however when the legitimate concerns raised about access to services (including disability services, as we saw with that recently deceased British man) are addressed but only in the narrowest of contexts in this proposed scheme. Put otherwise, this is not what we asked for.
yeah, I understand that this seems like the latest of a series of many slights. My reading is that we have kind run out of things that we can ask for and get help from the technocrats from the NDC with. In principle, there are plenty of good people there who would like o help but they operate in the world of the civil service that has its own priorities and needs to manage the politicians. It’s very Yes Minister. Also, they can’t help with things like benefits and dual natiomality. Only the Legislature can.
I will try to share something later that might allay concerns about the benefits Michael Boyden needed. That was a wake up call for those of us who came in the 1980s like Michael did.
I agree that the intermediate skilled workers who can flip into an APRC are much more important. But that was a Tsai era move, and now we’re into the Lai era and at least on my side I find myself wondering what his government / this new NDC will do.
Couple of points here. The first ISWs will not be eligible for PR until the summer of 2027. An important test for the Lai admn will be if they at least make sure that some of the ISWs can actually get PR.
Second, Lai was premier when the foreign professional act was drafted and implemented. My understanding is that this program had his persomal support. He knows was demographic decline has done to Tainan.
So far it appears that his NDC is going to take steps to get Taiwan the workers it needs. These are low-end foreign professionals and high-end migrat workers. Those of us a bit higher up the food chain will have to fend for ourselves. Arguably, that’s the way it should be.
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Thanks for the careful reply. I appreciate it.
Guy
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Yet he could have naturalized and resumed UK nationality and been a citizen and had help. I know it’s wrong not to give this care to all ARC holders… just saying many people have options and fail to avail themselves. Since this health care case several of my friends some who have been here longer then I have and are aged like me are now naturalizing so they do not miss out on services only available to citizens.
I know some UK citizens who refused to naturalize on “principal”
Well that’s effing great then they complain they cannot treated as citizens. They prefer to play the victim when a simple few acts on paper could resolve those issues.
Some came here in 84 I got here 88. The good old 80’s.
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Well if they have money to invest, good on them!
Guy
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Don’t need money to naturalize here. Don’t need a lot of money to live here either.
At least, not in principle
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I can’t argue with that. I am happy they will give PR to those who study here. Other countries have been doing the same for international students who graduate and stay on to get employment and residency.
However many people are now finding that there are many not enough of the skilled trades people. The push for people to get higher education has meant a loss of people working in other areas or starting their own businesses.
Many of the international students here are enrolled in the vocational / “technology” track of Taiwan’s university system.
I agree however that it’d be nice to have more skilled trades on the island. I’ve always felt this was a neglected and undervalued profession here.
Guy
If only Taiwan would stop making more and more categories of everything. The more they do it, the higher the chance that some people just end up in situations that aren’t fully covered by the laws, and when that happens, the officials usually go with the safest route (for them) and put that person in an unfair position. My entire experience in Taiwan has just been that.
You are from x, but you are married to a y, so you can’t do z, that’s only for a’s who are b’s or some shit like that. I can’t even express it properly.
It’s not just me. I know so many others in situations like these. They are more common than you think.
The number of people trying to immigrate here is so low, that it would help to just consolidate everything. Make things simple. Instead, they keep fragmenting things further. Each time there’s a relief in the laws for foreigners, it only applies to a narrow set of foreigners. I used to think advances and improvements made for Gold Card holders would eventually trickle down to other foreigners. That’s even a reason I fought for some of these things. Now, I feel it’s unlikely for that to ever happen.
Meanwhile, I’ll eagerly await for “good stuff” to pass down from “Elites” to us “Specials”, hopefully in my lifetime. Maybe one day my parents can stay longer, and in turn, “not-special” “naturalized citizens” will get the 6-month visas that I have now.
It makes me sick when they try to cater to and fool new foreigners with false promises, while they can’t even take care of those who have already been here for years.
Let’s not even talk about those at the lowest end of ARC ladder, those on blue-collar ARCs. They have nothing, literally.
Last weekend I talked to my wife’s friend, she is about to be kicked out after nearly 12 years of working here in a factory. She was a young girl when she came here. She feels used and abused. She gave away her youth, standing 12 hours a day in the factory (getting varicose veins), and many other issues caused by the brutal work hours. Nearly everyone she knows has some issues with their legs from standing all day.
Still, she said she loved Taiwan because she got used to her life here. She doesn’t want to go, because it will be so hard for her to adjust to life in Philippines after 12 years in Taiwan.
But nothing can be done.
I told her about the program govt launched for migrant workers to get APRC. She said they set a high salary requirement which almost no factory is willing to pay. So they have no path to stay.
All this is because of the stupid 12-year limit Taiwan puts on them. It’s on purpose, bring young women here, work them to the bone, and then kick them out and get a fresh batch.
These people are already in tune with Taiwan and its culture. Many of them can speak Chinese. They would be ideal candidates for permanent integration into Taiwan. Unfortunately, Taiwan doesn’t want them.
They only want “Elites” and “Specials”. Good luck filling your population gaps with just that.
These days I throw up every time I hear them talk about foreign immigrants’ loyalty when it comes to renunciation law. Look at how you treat your foreign workers who help run your factories. Where’s your loyalty to them?
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Why? Does HSBC Premier filter down to general level customers?
I do agree too many classes of this or that for ARC’s is not helpful.
Good thing there is an alternative.
I think these people should be allowed to naturalize
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NO TRUER WORDS HAVE EVER BEEN UTTERED MY BROTHER!
but this is the MO of most East Asian govs, just have a concept of a plan (sorry for the unfortunate Musk quote) try to concoct something which might somehow address the issue, making everything difficult in the meantime as you can’t really step on anyone’s toes, and then call it a day without actually achieving anything besides a press conference, a few pics and a lot of smiles!
Further, how TW treats SEA blue collar workers is appalling and modern day slavery to be honest, we do the same in Italy with illegal immigrants coming with no papers, so criminals (since this is what they are) just “collect” them and then put them to work in the fields and farms of the south for basically no pay, just enough food to keep them going and some roof over their heads. What is kinda worse here in TW is that this scheme is actually RUN BY THE GOV and completely legal, whilst technically that is not in Italy (just tolerated as they can’t give a flying damn about these poor folks coming ashore).
Disgusting
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Welcome to South east asia where having cheap labour is common. IT’s also common for people to have domestic servants. When I was in Brunei I had a live in domestic from the Philippines. It’s was great. When my sister and her family visited she was damn this is great, washing and ironing done, no need to wash the dishes.
India Pakistan Bangladesh Thailand Malaysia Singapore all do this.