My wife is Taiwanese with a household registration whereas my son (under 18) is a Malaysian citizen. My wife had originally intended for our son to have Taiwan citizenship with household registration. However, there are 2 stumbling blocks – mandatory military conscription and the fact that Malaysia does not permit dual citizenship after 21 years old. For the time being, we’ve decided not to register him at the Taiwan Household Registration office and would let him decide on his nationality when he comes of age.
In my son’s case, would it be possible for him to be a citizen of Malaysia & a PR (APRC) in Taiwan at adulthood? I’ve come across some folks here saying it’s not possible given that he is a Taiwan citizen by birth. Would a APRC necessitate him to attend military conscription?
Your son may be eligible for Overseas Chinese Status (歡迎蒞臨僑委會全球資訊網 – 申請護照加簽僑居身分答客問 for more info), assuming he did not grow up in Taiwan. This would make him largely exempt from the military, unless he lives in Taiwan for two full years.
But as for your exact question, it generally is possible for someone to get PR in Taiwan, despite being strictly speaking an ROC national. Look at Steve Chen (one of the co-founders of YouTube): he was born in Taiwan yet received a Gold Card from the government.
Thanks. Does having a Taiwanese parent automatically make one a TW national or just eligible for it? When applying for Taiwanese PR, do they require details on the applicant’s parents? I suppose without knowing who the parents are, they can’t refuse PR on grounds of a parent being Taiwanese.