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- Moving to Taiwan 🇹🇼: Part 2
This is Part 2 of a series about moving from Japan 🇯🇵 to Taiwan 🇹🇼, detailing how to move to Taiwan. You can also read Part 1 which dives into the process of moving out of Japan. As I alluded to earlier, my goals are to reconnect with my roots, get closer to my extended family, and establish a life in Taiwan.
Table of Contents
Journey to the East
First, as a side, I was recently introduced by my friends to Journey to the East, a community for Asian diaspora interested in moving back or who have already moved back to Asia. They host regular community talks and have social media chat groups to connect with others in the community. So far it has been an engaging community, and I would encourage people to join if they fit this category.
US Tax Treaty with Taiwan
In expat tax news, the US House recently passed a tax treaty bill with Taiwan (source Reddit). This is not fully in effect yet: the Senate still has to pass the bill, and Taiwan would have to adopt a reciprocal bill for the changes to happen. However, the bill has strong bipartisan support and is likely to pass. Previously, the US One China Policy prevented a tax treaty between the two countries. Anyone who is subject to dual-taxation from Taiwan and the United States is likely to benefit.
Motivations to Move to Taiwan
After spending almost 4 years in Japan, passing N2 of the JLPT, building a wide community, getting work experience, obtaining permanent residency and buying a house, I feel pretty established. I still love my life in Japan, but I felt like it was time to start spending more time in Taiwan, another place deeply in my heart.
My parents are Taiwanese, and I grew up surrounded by the culture. I went to a Taiwanese Chinese school, and participated in various Taiwanese-American organizations college and on. I would also travel back to Taiwan at least once a year, increasing in frequency after moving to Asia, and even spent 3 months in Taiwan as a COVID refugee.
Now I’d like to establish a life in Taiwan as well, improve my Mandarin, get closer to my extended family here, and build a longer-term community here of my own.
Moving to Taiwan
To move to Taiwan long-term, you need permission to reside there. There are a number of options depending on your status.
You’re non-Taiwanese. You need some sort of visa.
You’re a Taiwanese national without household registration. Generally this is any descendant of a Taiwanese national, even if they also don’t have household registration.
Taiwanese citizens can already live in Taiwan so there’s nothing to write here.
Chinese nationals residing in China.
Chinese nationals not residing in China.
Non-Taiwanese
You need a visa! Visitor visas are usually 3 months and up to 6 months; you need a resident visa for stays longer than 6 months. There are various options outlined in articles online, but the most common ones are:
Long term study.
Work visa - you have a job offer.
Working holiday if your country has an agreement with Taiwan.
To become a resident of Taiwan, you need a resident visa, and then also an Alien Residence Certificate, otherwise known as ARC (外僑居留證). You would enter Taiwan on the resident visa, then go to immigration and pick up your ARC, which becomes your legal identification in Taiwan along with your passport. You generally don’t have to leave Taiwan to do this if you are already in the country.
The Taiwan Gold Card is a good option for those who qualify. It allows you to live in Taiwan without being tied to a job, giving various immigration, work, and tax benefits. It functions as a residence certificate and work permit combined. There’s a dedicated government office and surrounding community to support the program and Gold Card holders.
Taiwan Gold Card
Generally, you had to be in a few specific fields like science, technology, arts, academia, and business to apply for the Gold Card. However, there’s now a new Digital Field category for Gold Cards, which is intended to apply to anyone who could be considered working in the digital economy, like digital nomads. There’s currently an incentive program to pay for the costs of flights and lodging if you engage in relevant activities on a visit to Taiwan, such as attending a tech conference.
Gold Card for former Chinese citizens born in China
There is additional scrutiny for anyone born in China, even if you no longer have Chinese ID and do not reside in China. See Note 2 on the Official Gold Card page. Essentially Taiwan wants you to prove that you are not a Chinese nor have stayed there for extended periods of time.
Taiwanese (or more accurately Republic of China) nationality follows a jus sanguinis principle, where if one of your parents are nationals (even without house registration), you are also a national. However, there are various steps to actually obtain a Taiwanese passport so you can enter on it, and you can read about the process in a previous writeup.
Once you have a Taiwanese passport, you still can’t directly enter Taiwan. Either you need to get an entry permit, with stays generally no longer than 90 days, or you need to get a Taiwan Area Resident Certificate, or TARC (台灣地區居留證). As of January 1, 2024, you can also directly obtain household registration without the residency requirement, which makes you a full Taiwanese citizen with ID (身分證) and residency permissions (see Reddit). This procedure must be done in Taiwan.
Gold Card for Taiwanese passport holders
I’m actually a Taiwanese passport holder, but I don’t have household registration. I chose to use a Gold Card to stay in Taiwan as I am of military draft age, and I thought it would be more clear-cut this way, even though I wouldn’t be spending more than 6 months a year in Taiwan anyways. Normally, Taiwanese would not be eligible for a Gold Card, but since I never had household registration I was still able to apply. To be approved for the Gold Card I was required to submit the following statement, acknowledging that I needed to use my US passport to enter Taiwan, and if I used my Taiwanese passport to enter Taiwan while I held the Gold Card, it would be revoked:
To the Gold Card Office,
有關若之後申獲外籍人士就業金卡，該居留期間不得使用中華民國護照入境我國，若違反，就業金卡將被註銷。
This is a bit contrary to the law, which states that Taiwanese passport holders must use their Taiwanese passport to enter Taiwan, but this isn’t enforced.
Chinese nationals
Unfortunately I do not know enough about this category to give specific advice. For those living in China, you need a Exit & Entry Permit (中華民國臺灣地區入出境許可證), however issuance is currently suspended. Short term business visits are permitted, as well as tourist visas if you live outside of China (see article by Focus News Taiwan).
Residency permits may still be possible through study, marriage, or your job.
Conclusions
This is a brief overview of a few common options to stay in Taiwan. Look forward to Part 3, where I talk about practical tips on the ground for getting settled into Taiwan.
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