Hey guys, I’m thinking of making the move to Taiwan and could use some help on figuring out the VISA/residency situation.
I’d like to work PT while i’m there, bout 14 hours a week just to support myself, and study Mandarin 15 hours a week as well at a uni like NTNU.
From my research, it seems that I can’t come in on a visa-exempt entry (30 days for US citizens) and then secure a visitor visa without doing a visa run. Is this correct? (I thought I read that some had managed to get a visa without leaving).
What type of visa should I go for? Some have said that one can’t turn a study visa into other types of visas, and that one can’t work on it either. Should I apply for the visitor visa then, and turn it into an ARC once I get a 14hr/week job?
How long would that ARC last, before I have to do a visa run? I’d like to take short trips to HK, Singapore, etc. so visa runs aren’t a problem. But after I come back to Taiwan, how many days before I have to do another visa run?
Right now I’m planning to work/study 3 semesters of the year in Taiwan and then spend the summers in China. So Im guessing I have to give up my visa when I leave Taiwan for that long and get a new one to return after the summer?
First, full-time in Taiwan is 14 hours/week. Ridiculous, but there you go.
Based off the idea that you are an American citizen:
Exempt entry: You get 30 days free. But that’s EXACTLY 30 days. You NEED to get your ass off the island at the 30th day or expect real problems. You can do this indefinitely. But it will quickly become costly, inconvenient, and exhausting.
Visitor Visa: Must prove you have legitimate reason to be in Taiwan (eg visit family, studies). To get the visitor visa for school you would need to first have your acceptance letter mailed to your US address and then bring it to your TECO. You’re guaranteed 60 days, but you probably won’t get 90 days. $140usd. You have to go back to the immigration office in Taiwan to extend this every time it expires. You must also pay $140 every time and you need to prove you are actually studying (attendance record/tuition receipt).
You are not allowed to legally work until you have studied 6 months and have permission from the gov’t and the school. You are then only allowed to work a max number of hours. Probably less than full-time (14 hours).
Furthermore, your ability to extend your visa is dependent on your grades and attendance, so if you fuck up in class because you’ve got better things to do, say goodbye to the island.
After 4 months of study you may convert visitor visa to Student Resident Visa (ARC) but all working restrictions still apply.
Working Visa (aka work permit + ARC): You could do this a variety of ways, but the simplest is enter on Visa-exempt 30 days and frantically search for full-time job (14 hours) that will employ you legally with a work permit. Take work permit to immigration, pay about $50usd, and they give you ARC which is valid for the time you are working with that employer.
On this visa, nothing is stopping you from studying anytime you’d like.
