oh no. I just submitted the contract and pay slips yesterday…
So I need to ask for the company letter ASAP.
But I think I will experience the second time of additional document supplement 
If I apply under Science & Technology and I have a US Patent, will they require any other documents? Do I need to be currently employed?
I guess it depends on the subcategory? You might want to be more specific. I don’t remember simply having a patent being sufficient for any of the ca. 10 subcategories - most of them seemed to require additional things like international awards, publications, etc., where having a patent is only one of several items on the checklist.
Requirements for categories other than Economy are quite obscure. My advice is to attach as many documents as you can/have to prove how “outstanding” you are. Better more than less. From what I read, the assessing Department really digs deep into that.
Not necessarily. Last year’s tax statement (or those from the last three years even better) should do.
If anyone in this thread has been approved for Technology or other categories that are not Economy, please come and share which documents you attached 
It can help newcomers understand more about the process.
There are official lists available for at least some of the other categories - those would be a good place for them to start.
The requirement states “Verification of domestic or foreign work experience in a relevant field for 3 or more years” and then “Verifying documents must consist of proof of service or proof of resignation made out by the employing organization”
So, I just need a letter from the employer? Not even tax statements?
Again, it depends on which subcategory you’re intending to apply under, so you need to clarify that if you want an accurate answer. If you’re applying based on salary, you probably need those. If you’re not, you probably don’t.
The subcategory I’m thinking of applying is the “Those with unique talents or outstanding R&D or design ability or original achievements in such cutting-edge technological fields as software applications, software technology, …” as I have a US patent in software technology & security.
For this subcategory, it then has 2 options for documents, both of which include: “Verification of domestic or foreign work experience in a relevant field for 3 or more years” and then “Verifying documents must consist of proof of service or proof of resignation made out by the employing organization”
Sounds like I just need a letter, and not tax statements?
Where this comes from is: Taiwan has a type of formal document called a “proof of service” certificate. Throw 服務證明書 into google and look at the first few document results. Like many regulations in Taiwan, it’s written with an expectation that life outside of Taiwan is not dissimilar to within
Obviously this wonderful grid format with ID numbers and a space for a corporate stamp isn’t going to be something your non-Taiwanese company has as standard. Add “英文版本” (English Version) after that search term and you can find something like this one from Taipei Medical Association. Look at that one, see the details it lists and make sure you’ve got a document on your company letterhead that has those details and you should be OK!
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That seems to be the second subcategory on the list I posted above. It’s possible that I’m misunderstanding/misreading something here, but the issue I see from the list is the “attach all documents required for the selected item” part. This seems to imply that you need more than just the verification of work experience letter (for >3 years) and patent certificate (note the word “certificate” here - from talking with the WDC during my previous application in this category, it seems that they really do want a copy of the actual certificate, rather than just a printout of the published patent).
Specifically, you would also seem to need to submit either (1) your PhD certificate and details of your academic research during the last 3 years (and it’s strictly 3 years, it seems) or (2) documents showing the receipt of major domestic/international awards in your professional field. I can imagine that the latter two of those at least might be difficult if you’re not actively working in academia (and they do seem to be strict on having all rather than some of the items on each list).
Also, if you do have a PhD and it happens to be from a top 200 university, or if you’ve been doing teaching/research for >5 years and you happen to have worked at a top 500 university in the last 5 years, it would seem to be easier to apply under the Education category (which is what I eventually did).
I applied for the Gold Card on 9/3. I’m currently in the Passport check phase and also selected TECO SF as my passport verification and Gold Card pick up.
However, it sounds like it might take a month even after passport verification to get the Gold Card? Is there a way to speed this up? Earlier, I looked at potentially changing the pickup to be in Taiwan, but it seemed like the form suggested that your passport verification and pick up locations should be the same.
Do I have any other ways to speed this up?
Update from my previous post.
9/24 - Status changed to IC Card in Process and I received an email
9/28 (today) - It shows “Completed” when I do a status query. I assume this means the card is issued and in the mail and that the 21 working day clock has started
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You can travel to Taiwan with just the authorization PDF that you should get quickly after submitting your passport for verification. I’d recommend getting the card in Taiwan. I did that and it was a quick and frictionless process
I looked around https://coa.immigration.gov.tw/ & https://taiwangoldcard.com/ for more about “21 working day clock” but didn’t find it. Would you please point me toward that?
The email notification I received when the status changed to “IC Card in Process” said
Remind you that if you apply for choosing < outside receive > employment the gold card in this system, it needs at least 21 working days or more to be delivered to your choice of roc overseas missions. And then you will be informed. Therefore, please reserve the required time.
The folks at the Atlanta TECO had already told me to expect 21 days for it to arrive once issued as well.
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I’m going to try switching it to getting the card in Taiwan, but the website is blocking me from doing so. Is there anyway to get the authorization PDF if my pick up is currently in San Francisco?
@zacstewart or anyone who has gone through this process => Can you guys share a bit more details about the Passport Verification step. Did Atlanta TECO hold on to your passport after you went to verify it or do they give it back to you after verification?
PS: I don’t plan on getting a visa stamped on my passport but instead wait for the Gold Card and then use it to fly to Taiwan, however long it takes.
They didn’t keep my passport. She just took it behind the counter and examined it for a few minutes before returning it.
This is interesting…my application for Gold Card just went from “Professional Review…” to “IC Card in Process”. I was never asked to verify my passport. Maybe because I applied within Taiwan and arrived here on a visitor visa.
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