I just watched this video of a woman trying to get PR in Australia, and she’s failed the English test 15 times (yeah, 15). People say the test is too hard, but it’s been in place for years and clearly works—most foreigners I’ve seen in Australia speak great English.
This got me wondering… should Taiwan consider setting up a Chinese test for APRC applicants? Let’s be honest: a ton of foreigners here on an APRC love to complain about being treated like outsiders. But have you noticed how many of them don’t even bother learning Chinese? They’ve been here for years, some even decades, and can barely get past “ni hao” and “xie xie.” Yet they wonder why they’re not fully accepted? Maybe, just maybe, learning the language could help them integrate better?
I mean, how can anyone demand full acceptance into a society when they can’t even hold a basic conversation in the local language? Just a thought… maybe a Chinese test could help filter out the ones who are really committed from those who just want to live here without putting in the effort. Thoughts? Or is that too much reality for some to handle?
No need. Taiwan will be all bilingual in 2030!
Instead there should be an English test for all Taiwanese to make sure they integrate into bilingual society! /sarcasm
Let’s get real. A Chinese language test for APRC applicants in Taiwan isn’t necessary. Many foreigners have been contributing to Taiwan’s economy, education, and society for years without being fluent in Mandarin. Language alone doesn’t define someone’s ability to integrate. Look at Australia - they tie language to job market demands, but Taiwan benefits from a multicultural, diverse approach. Forcing a test would exclude valuable people and narrow Taiwan’s talent pool. Full acceptance isn’t about fluency; it’s about contribution and respect. Taiwan’s strength lies in its openness, not in creating barriers. Period.
you don’t need to speak English in the US/OZ/NZ/UK/CA or Italian in Italy or French in France. Language alone doesn’t define someone’s ability to integrate. it’s about contribution and respect.
Ppl come to a country and PRETEND to live in said country speaking a foreign language. FFS, double standards. lost in the sauce, I would love for a language test to give PR, many grifters would get lost (also some good eggs, I won’t lie, but well, such is life).
Let’s cut through the noise here. The idea that you need to speak the local language fluently to integrate is just a shallow take. Integration isn’t about whether you can string together a perfect sentence in the local language; it’s about your actions, your contribution to society, your respect for the culture, and how you interact with the community. Plenty of people contribute in meaningful ways without being fluent, and the notion that language alone defines integration is simply outdated.
Now, on the so-called ‘grifters’ and ‘double standards.’ Seriously? People who come to countries like the US, UK, or Australia and don’t speak the language fluently aren’t pretending to live there - they’re living real lives, contributing to the economy, and raising families. A language test wouldn’t magically filter out freeloaders; it would exclude good, hardworking people who might not have the time or resources to become fluent but are still integrating in other ways. Demanding fluency as the gatekeeper to permanent residency ignores the fact that integration is about far more than just speaking the language. If you think language alone determines someone’s worth in a country, you’re missing the bigger picture entirely.
Part of respecting the culture is not forcing the locals to spend hours upon hours of their lives to accommodate your choice to move here.
Can you imagine the reaction of English speakers if someone who spoke Chinese only or Italian only moved to an English country and forced everyone around them to speak their language?
Obtaining PR in Canada includes a language component. It has to be at least in one official language. Having both awards extra points
Oh, come on. No one’s forcing locals to spend “hours upon hours” accommodating foreigners. Let’s not pretend that every interaction is some huge burden. In reality, most locals are more than happy to interact, and guess what? Many foreigners do make efforts to learn the language over time. But here’s where you go wrong: You’re framing people who come to a new country, work hard, contribute, and slowly adapt as some kind of inconvenience. That’s absurd.
Imagine moving to a country, working, paying taxes, contributing to society, and still being told you’re the problem for not speaking the language fluently on day one. Honestly, your argument makes you sound like someone who’d rather close the doors and throw up barriers, instead of supporting integration and growth.
I’d be for that if an APRC actually conferred any rights (besides not expiring) beyond what a regular ARC does. But the APRC is basically a joke compared to the PR cards provided by most countries, so it seems stingy to make the requirements so strict.
Ah, so you’ve met a few foreigners who proudly say they don’t need to learn the language because they get “paid to just speak English”? Great, you found some outliers. But let’s be real here - basing your entire argument on a handful of people who don’t care about learning the language is like cherry-picking the worst examples and pretending they represent everyone. Most foreigners are here working hard, contributing, and yes, many are trying to learn the language.
And let’s not forget, those foreigners getting “paid to just speak English” are fulfilling a demand that exists in Taiwan’s job market. It’s not like they’re freeloading; they’re doing exactly what they were hired to do. So, who’s really the problem here? People doing the job they were paid to do, or your attempt to paint all foreigners with the same broad brush based on a few bad apples?
Hardly my argument. You’re putting words into my mouth.
Yeah I am one of them. Do you know that for me to learn Chinese and then get an APRC that it takes me SEVEN years instead of five because the APRC doesn’t count time on a student ARC? The extra work I put in was punished. I can understand being new to the country, but if you haven’t learned at least a little bit in a few years, then I don’t have respect for you.
I have not painted any group with the same brush. I do think there should be a Chinese test for Permanent Residence. I don’t think for a second I should be able to live in a country for a significant amount of time and force all the locals around me to speak English because I didn’t bother to at least respect the locals.
In English countries, if they found out you were there for a significant amount of time and demanded everyone around you accommodate you in your language. They’d probably tell you to gtfo. Fresh off the boat? Everyone is welcoming. Five years and still nothing? No respect.
Ah, so you’re suggesting that foreigners who haven’t mastered Chinese are somehow forcing locals to speak English? That’s a curious take. Tell me, who exactly is being “forced” here? Taiwan is a country with a rich mix of cultures, and guess what? English happens to be an important part of that global mix. No one’s holding a sword to anyone’s throat demanding they speak English.
Let’s not pretend that every foreigner who hasn’t become fluent in Chinese is running around disrespecting locals. Quite the opposite - most are here contributing to the economy, teaching, working, raising families. They may not have the time to become fluent, but they’re making an effort to integrate in their own ways. A Chinese test for Permanent Residence sounds fair on paper, but you can’t measure someone’s respect for a country solely by their language proficiency.
Respect is shown through actions, through contribution to society, through engaging with the culture, even if it’s not always in perfect Mandarin. To suggest that anyone who hasn’t passed a language test is somehow disrespectful or undeserving of being here… well, that’s a rather narrow view, wouldn’t you say? Perhaps you’re focusing a bit too much on the superficial and missing the bigger picture of what real integration looks like.
Let’s be honest: a ton of foreigners here on an APRC love to complain about being treated like outsiders. But have you noticed how many of them don’t even bother learning Chinese? They’ve been here for years, some even decades, and can barely get past “ni hao” and “xie xie.” Yet they wonder why they’re not fully accepted? Maybe, just maybe, learning the language could help them integrate better? 
Thoughts? Or is that too much reality for some to handle?
