I’ve had enough of Rainy England and I want to come to Taiwan to stay with my girlfriend for 6 months in Taipei.
I believe I need to apply for a Multiple Entry Visitors VISA here in the UK and then get two extensions later in the year there. e.g.(Visa Run)
But I don
I would say that you could (1) get a two copies of your girlfriend’s household registration document, (2) have your girlfriend (or her parents as appropriate) buy two copies of a “rental agreement” at a local Taiwan stationery store, and write those up to say that you are renting a room in their house for NT$ 7000 per month, (3) get an official bank statement showing that you have adequate funds to support yourself for six months in Taiwan and will not be working.
These are just my suggestions. I believe that some people may not need any or all of the above in order to get a visitor visa. However, in my experience, it pays to be prepared.
I agree with Richard, you’re probably going to have to offer a lot of ‘proof’. I advise going to the ‘embassy’ in England and asking them what they need to visit your ‘fiance’ for six months and if they still won’t let you go back another time, change your story, tell them you want to study Chinese and arrange for your girlfriend to help you enrol in a school.
Bri
Thank you for your response. I’ll give it a try but after my first talk with the Embassy they said they would only issue a Visitors Visa if I
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But it’s a small company and I don’t think they fully understand the implications. Because Im sure that before a company can employ an overseas national they must get approval from somewhere.
yeah, but you just need a job OFFER right?
Bri
I think the problem may be that you are looking for a multiple entry visa. The only thing the London TRO seem to be able to do without question is issue 60 day single-entry visitors visas. Forget about multiple entry. They (almost) never issue them.
It’s hard - but not impossible - to believe that they can’t grasp the concept of you visiting someone here.
Personally, I’d come in on a 60-day visa and sort it out here via a “fake” job or study, or even just a visa run. Get a changeable plane ticket with a return date within about three weeks and change it when you get here. There are one or two Taiwanese travel agents in London and an open ticket will be just GBP50 or 60 more expensive than a normal APEX. Don’t confuse the TRO with too many details. They HATE that!
Also, be aware that if you apply for anything other than a straightforward visitors visa there is a chance they’ll just sit on the application and do nothing. If they don’t “like” an application they just put it aside and do nothing until you come to make an enquiry.
The problem with applying for school is that you’ll need health (incl HIV) tests to get that processed. I’m less sure about job offers. It would depend on which ministry oversees the business and you can bet it’s complicated.
It’s pointless arguing with them or quoting rules. They will be indescribably rude and inflexible and you will be frustrated to the point of tears.
Sadly, Taiwan’s visa rules themselves are seldom logical. Even then their application is inconsistent.
It can be difficult to sort out visa stuff here but, in my experience, still many, many times easier than using the London TRO!
So, I’d just tell them you’re coming to visit your “fiancee” for a few weeks and show a letter of invitation and some bank statements and get as long as they’ll give you. Don’t shorten you life by thinking that discussion/negotiation/explanation will help! 
Good luck!
P.S. These days in Taiwan you’ll probably also need something to prove you aren’t a drug dealer intent on supporting yourself here by importing and selling ecstasy. That’s what most of us “foreigners” do here, if the local media is to be believed (which, of course it’s not!) 
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Originally posted by duckdodgersuk: I've had enough of Rainy England and I want to come to Taiwan
Aha. Ha. Haha… BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!
Oh boy, you’re coming to the right place!
Ahahahahahahahahahahah!!!
My wife, son, and I spent a month in London, England, during the summer of 1997 and found the weather delightful. London is fantastic!
It makes me laugh that with all this bureaucracy that you cant visit a loved one with out getting permission first.
And even if you have the evidence to back it up, they
quote[quote] My wife, son, and I spent a month in London, England, during the summer of 1997 and found the weather delightful. London is fantastic! [/quote]A month! You were lucky. When I was there in 1998 Summer lasted 10 days.
Bri
Just tell the TRO that you’ve decided to study Chinese, put 60 days on your length of stay and go. Only US passport holders can get multiple entry visas. Visiting your girlfriend is an irrelevant reason to visit Taiwan, in the eyes of the TRO.
Obtaining multiple entry visas from the UK TRO is reasonably easy thing to do.
All that is required is a letter in chinese and english from a bona fide company here stating that they are inviting you over for Business / consulting activities.
This will normally get you a 60 day (per entry) multiple entry visa which will only take a couple of days plus posting time to complete.
We have done this on many occassions without any trouble whatsoever.
You can go personally but they require at least 24 hours to complete.
Up until november 2000 this was the method of application that i and a number of my then colleagues adopted successfully many times.