TARC Questions

I am familiar with the topic and the information I gave was accurate.

He said he was Chinese, he didn’t say he was Taiwanese. That is a fact look at his post.

There is no such thing as a Taiwanese national. The OP already is an ROC national, so he cannot become an ROC national, or reclaim his nationality. When talking about this topic in English people usually equate establishing household registration in Taiwan as gaining ROC citizenship rights, not nationality.

You can only apply for a TARC if you enter on an exit entry permit. But like I said you dont have to hold an ROC pasport to get an exit entry permit. It can be issued to ROC nationals who do not have an ROC passport. In that case it is a stand alone piece of paper.

Yes Taiwanese immigration is very complicated. I have been through similar hoops to the ones you describe.

I might also add, again, that he was not asking about establishing nationality, getting an id, getting household registration or any of those things.

He wanted to know about the TARC, and the health insurance.

I see what you are saying, but the language is confusing (which is no one’s fault, except possibly Taiwan’s and that of the people who translate the immigration laws into English).

There are no ROC or Taiwanese citizens, nor is there citizenship. Everyone is a national, either with or without housing registration, and they have nationality. I believe this has something to do with Taiwan’s complicated political situation, though I’m not an expert in this area. However, I do think because this distinction is very subtle, most people use the terms interchangeably.

When people who have at least one Taiwanese parent, but were never registered in Taiwan (because they were born overseas or to Taiwanese women and foreign men), talk about going back to Taiwan to get full nationality rights, it’s referred to as “reclaiming nationality”. Even the immigration agency uses this term. You are right that by definition a national shouldn’t need to reclaim nationality, but this is often how this process is described in English. Indeed, it really just means getting that ID number, and then having all the rights that an ordinary Taiwanese person might have.

Based on what you are saying, it seems there are a few ways for different kinds of people to apply for a TARC. However, I will repeat yet again, anyone who has an ROC passport (without household registration), must enter Taiwan on it to apply for the TARC. They check for the stamp and confirm it in their system when you make the application at the immigration office. Now, maybe someone who has an exit/entry permit and NO ROC passport can make an application for a TARC, but an ROC passport holder cannot.

Yes, the poster said he was an “overseas” Chinese. He didn’t need to say he was Taiwanese, because it’s very clearly implied: He has an ROC passport (but without an ID number). That means he’s an overseas Taiwanese. I suppose there may be exceptions to this rule. If you know of any, please share. But very usually, anyone with an ROC passport, but no registration, has a blood connection to Taiwan, or some special political connection (such as the KMT fighters from China who fled to Thailand after the civil war). And in any case, if you have an ROC passport, of any kind, and you are not in Taiwan, you are very much an overseas Taiwanese, by definition. I wasn’t being careless in this claim.

Now, perhaps you differentiate between being “Taiwanese” and being an “ROC national”. That’s a rather political matter, but I do feel that most people do not make this distinction. For the purposes here, I am using the terms interchangeably.

Indeed, this conversation of the TARC has strayed to one of establishing nationality (which is the same, bureaucratically-speaking, as getting an ID card/number or getting household registration). This is not an illogical progression, despite being a diversion. The poster mentions that he cannot at this time spend the year needed to get full rights, so clearly, he has considered it.

I have already argued that I don’t think it’s worth it for someone who does not live in Taiwan to bother getting a TARC, unless they were planning to put in the time to get full nationality rights. Perhaps you can move the conversation forward with reasons why it would be worth it.

I agree with the bulk of what you say there. And yes the language is very confusing and full of contradictions.

I also find it hard to imagine though why someone would want a TARC if they aren’t resident in Taiwan. Other than speedy immigration and the nice feeling of having an official resident permit, then I don’t know what other benefit it might have.

With regards distinguishing between “ROC national” and “Taiwanese” bear in mind that:

All PRC nationals are ROC nationals - according to ROC law. That’s 1.4 billion ROC nationals who are highly unlikely to describe themselves as Taiwanese. Some PRC citizens in Taiwan have TARCs, the biggest demographic is that of mainland wives. That is hundreds of thousands of ROC nationals in Taiwan right now who are unlikely to identify as Taiwanese.

They used to issue ROC overseas passports to people of Chinese descent, provided they had a foreign passport, and didn’t have a Chinese passport or household registration. I met one Chinese American who told me that this was her status in Taiwan. No connection, other than being Chinese by descent and not having a PRC passport.

Some people who were born in China and came to Taiwan from China after the war still identify firstly as Chinese and/or according to their home province in China. I only ever met one old man who spoke about his background to me in this way. But hey, that apparently was his identity: ROC Chinese.

My wife and my son are ROC nationals but have no connection to Taiwan other than the fact that we are living here now.

Fair enough. Though it’s still amazing how the Taiwanese government will cling to this notion that all PRC nationals are ROC nationals, even though they make it hard for them to settle in Taiwan, and they need that purple booklet just to visit. (I think that’s still the case. On the other hand, the PRC makes it very, very easy for most ROC nationals to visit, live and work on the Mainland).

You’re spot on about the identity thing, though. Eddie Huang, the American who wrote the book that become the TV series “Fresh Off the Boat”, calls himself “Chinese-Taiwanese-American”. In my family, we all identify as being Chinese, but whenever it comes to official documents we’re Taiwanese (so pragmatic this way). And in the PRC, where I spend a lot of my time, people will say I’m Chinese, but have a Taiwan hukou (and rarely will say I’m Taiwanese), and one step further, proud Shanghai people will insist I’m “half-Shanghaiese” (and only that!) because my 老家 is Wuxi (not even Shanghai!).

I have heard that in the past, basically anyone with Chinese blood could get ROC passports, but I guess that changed awhile ago. Ironically, when I was born, I was not eligible for nationality because the laws then dictated only the children of Taiwanese fathers were Taiwanese, and it was my mother who was born there.

I think they are forced into keeping the nationality law more or less fixed because it would be seen as a step towards declaring formal independence if they changed it.

The purple book is issued by the PRC, So that is a control put in by the China side.

The Taiwan side controls it with the requirement to get an ROC entry permit, and the various hoops to jump through to get a TARC, and Taiwan household registration. Basically an all you can eat red tape buffet.

I guess the mainland authorities generally want to encourage Taiwanese to live and work in China for economic and maybe political reasons, so they give as many or more rights with a Taibaozheng, as they give with their own household registration. Not to mention the people in China who have no id. Whereas on the Taiwan side they are wary of all sorts of bad things that could - and definitely would - happen if they opened the gates that wide.

Yea that’s crazy about the gender clause with the nationality. They also had something like that in the UK, but in reverse.

Hi!

I am flying to Taiwan this October using my entry/exit permit with my ROC taiwan passport that has no ID Card. I would like to apply for my TARC but I have few concerns:

My father (he has a Taiwan Passport with ID Card) died in 2004 in the Philippines, he did not include us in his Hukou when he was in Taiwan. So, we have no residence permit.

I would like to apply for TARC but the TECO told me they do not issue TARC and therefore could not tell me for sure the requirements that I would need to apply for the TARC.

Thanks!

Hi!

Unless you have an employer sponsoring you, applying for the TARC can be complicated and is not recommended unless you intend to stay a long time (at least a year without leaving or two years with a total of 270 days in Taiwan) and eventually apply for the ID card. Keep in mind you will not have full working rights during this time unless you are living with a direct blood relative, so it’s better if an employer sponsors you.

If you try to apply for the TARC using your parents, you would need a minimum of:
-Birth Certificate, translated and both certified by TECO in the country it was issued at.
-Foreign Passport or Foreign Residence Permit.
-Criminal Background Check from the country you currently have citizenship or residency for. Will need to be translated and notarized in Taiwan. This may take a long time depending on your country.
-Health Inspection Certificate. Medical checkup is done in Taiwan and takes about a week.
-Hokou/Huji Certificate of your parents
***Hukou “expires” once you’ve been out of the country over 2 years and need to be re-established when you return. Since your father does not have an “active” hukou (as he’s been away from Taiwan since 2004), I’m not sure whether you can go this route.

I highly recommend you go to the immigration agency when you arrive in Taiwan. Make sure you enter Taiwan using your ROC passport or you will need to exit and re-enter before applying for the TARC.

If you can read Chinese, here are the classifications of people that can apply for TARC:
https://www.immigration.gov.tw/ct_cert.asp?xItem=1088341&ctNode=32596&mp=1

The supporting documents will vary depending on the classification you apply under.

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I can’t really add a lot more to coldcoffee’s reply, except applying for a TARC doesn’t really have anything to do with getting work sponsorship–it’s a complicated process no matter what. Also, AFTER you have a TARC, you CAN apply for a work permit and work without sponsorship–you do not need to live with a blood relative.

As coldcoffee said, enter Taiwan on your ROC passport, then go to the immigration agency to start the process. (Don’t waste time with this–the entry/exit permit is valid for just 90 days, I believe.) Take all the documents you can, including your father’s official documents (including passport, Taiwan ID, and death certificate, notarized and authenticated, just in case). You will probably need your parents’ marriage certificate, notarized and authenticated, also.

You WILL need to find someone who will let you register at their hukou, but this can be any friend, or relative, or even a landlord (it just has to be someone who has property in Taiwan).

If you have an ROC passport, it means you are in the system somehow, so even if your father did not register you at his hukou, at some point, you were recognized as his child. I’m pretty sure it will be possible for you to get the TARC, it’s just a question of producing the correct documents and being very, very patient and persistent.

Here is an earlier thread that details the TARC application process. It will give you a better idea of how the process works. 29 year old Hapa with Taiwanese Mom claiming Citizenship

Good luck.

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Thanks!

Do I need to have the translated documents for the Criminal Clearance and authenticated in the country where it was issued at or in Taiwan?

Do I pay for anything in the National Immigration Agency (taxes, or other fees)? How much would this cost me?

Thanks!

Do you have any idea what are the tests for the Health inspection Certificate? Do you remember the ball park figure of the costs?

It doesn’t matter where you get the translation, BUT the documents MUST be authenticated wherever they were issued. Ask your local TECO about this and they should be able to explain how to get the authentication, and what the associated fees are.

As for costs once you arrive in Taiwan, another poster wrote that the TARC application fee was 1000 NTU, and the health check, in Taipei, was 1600 NTU. (If you go back to the link I posted earlier, scroll down to the response that carefully details each step, including fees.) That was from a couple of years ago, so I don’t know if there have been any changes.

There were also some small fees involved at the end of the process (to get your national ID card), but I can’t remember what they were (I think there was another medical check, a fee for the certificate you need to prove you stayed for at least a year, and then a fee for the ID card itself and the new passport.)

Nothing was very, very expensive along the way. It just required a lot of patience and time getting everything together. Don’t worry if you have to visit the immigration office MANY times before you can submit a complete application. :blush:

The test requirements varies depending on your home country, but they are pretty standard. Below is the link to the actual form you will use and it lists the tests.

The cost will also vary depending on what tests you are exempt from. I would use a ballpark of around 1600 to plan your budget. I just had my final exam and it was 1425 NTD, but I was exempt from two of the tests and opted in for an optional test.

Translation you can do on your own (cheaper) or hire someone to do. The translation should be notarized in Taiwan. I was charged 750 NTD for notarizing my background check translation. Authentication should be done in the country the documents are from.

For the TARC fee, plan for around 1300NTD. They had three different fees listed, 1300, 1000, and 500 NTD. The fee is based on where you started your application and your classification. I fell under the 500.

How did everything go?

Hello Dadapunk. Is there a restriction how many times I can go in and out of Taiwan within 2 years? Or is doesn’t it matter as long as I stay for 270 days each of the two years?

It’s best to confirm this with a call to the NIA, but I don’t think it matters how often you enter and exit, as long as you are on the island for 270 days a year, for two consecutive years.

Be sure to come in and out on your Taiwan passport! When you apply for your ID (after the two years), you will have to get a certificate that proves you’ve been in Taiwan for the required time. This document is processed by NIA and I believe they determine the total time based on your travel (entries and exits at the airport).

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Hi everyone,

I’m currently at a dead end and feeling overwhelmed with all the different information that I’ve been getting. I’m praying someone can help me with my situation.

My family and I live in US. We are ready to take kids back to Taipei next month. My husband has a US passports only. The rest of us US passports and a Taiwan passports (without household number). I was told we need that in order to get a resident ID. And without a resident ID, I can’t enroll my kids into any public schools. How do I go about getting this household number? Do I really have to wait for one year? If so, can kids start school first? My parents have a Hu kou but not in the same district of the local school we want to go to. Does that matter?

Ultimately I want to know the fastest way to enroll my kids in a local school with our current situation.

Hope there’s a way and someone has been in our same situation. Thank you in advance!

kids with any kind of ARC (ARC, APRC, TARC) can enroll in a school. No need of household registration or national ID.

Thanks for your reply!

But I read one of the requirements for ARC Is to have household number. Or parents household number. Do you know what the requirements for ARC if I have taiwan passport?

I know this thread is a couple of years old, but I’ll post an answer in case anyone else is in a similar situation as you.

ARC are for foreigners such as your husband (it stands for Alien Residency Certificate). You and your children will only need to apply for TARC (Taiwan Area Residency Certificate) to live, work, and attend school in Taiwan. You do not need ID cards or household registration (although you will probably want to get that later on).

You and your children already have ROC passports (without household registration), so the next step is to apply for an entry permit which is a sticker they paste into your ROC passport stating you are allowed to enter Taiwan as a tourist for 90 days. You can do so with the TECRO/TECO (which is part of the Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs) in your current country of residence.

Once your family moves to Taiwan, the clock starts ticking and you have 90 days to apply for a TARC for you and your children via the National Immigration Agency, which will allow you to live and work and attend school in Taiwan for up to three years.

NOTE that the application of each of the above mentioned documents is a whole lengthy and complicated process in itself, so you’ll need a lot of patience. It took me 9 months to do my ROC passport application, entry permit application, move to Taiwan, and then TARC application. And now I begin my one-year wait for my ID/household registration.