Taiwan passport

Republic of China (Taiwan) passport
Cover of the Taiwanese biometric passport.
Issued by	Taiwan
Type of document	Passport
Purpose	Identification
Eligibility requirements	Republic of China nationality
Expiration	3, 5, 10 years

The Republic of China passport (Chinese: 中華民國護照; pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó hùzhào)^[1][2][3][4] is the passport issued to nationals of the Republic of China, commonly known as Taiwan.

The status of the ROC passport is complicated by the political status of Taiwan. Taiwan's nationality law considers not only residents of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu, but overseas Chinese and Chinese residents of mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau to be nationals of the Republic of China.^[5] Persons in the latter categories may be eligible for a ROC passport under certain conditions, but do not have household registration in Taiwan and thus do not enjoy the right to reside in Taiwan.^[6][7] Countries granting visa-free privileges to Taiwan passport holders often require that a National Identity Card number be imprinted on the passport, signifying that the holder has household registration in Taiwan.

Passport appearance

Cover

The current ROC (Taiwan) biometric passport was issued since December 29, 2008.^[8] An ordinary ROC (Taiwan) passport is in dark green, the national emblem – Blue Sky with a White Sun is represented in the middle. On the top is the official name of the country "REPUBLIC OF CHINA" in both Traditional Chinese characters and English. Below the national emblem printed "TAIWAN" in English and "PASSPORT" in both Chinese and English. At the bottom is the symbol of biometric passport ().^[9]

An official passport is in brown and shows "OFFICIAL PASSPORT" on the cover, a diplomatic passport is in dark blue and shows "DIPLOMATIC PASSPORT" on the cover.

Request page

The first page of the passport is the passport note page and printed the following request, with anti-counterfeiting printing shows the shape of Taiwan at the top and word TAIWAN at the bottom
In Traditional Chinese

中華民國外交部部長茲請各國有關機關對持用本護照之中華民國國民允予自由通行，并請必要時儘量予以協助及保護。

In English

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China requests all whom it may concern to permit the national of the Republic of China named herein to pass freely and in case of need to give all possible aid and protection.

Request page of a Taiwan passport.

A sample ROC (Taiwan) passport data page 護    照 Passport 中 華 民 國 REPUBLIC OF CHINA Photo 形式/Type P 代碼/Code TWN 護照號碼/Passport No. 300000000 姓名/Name (Surname, Given names) 中文姓名  XXXX, XXXX-XXXX 外文別名/Also Known As XXXXXXX XXXX 國籍/Nationality REPUBLIC OF CHINA 身分證統一編號/Personal Id. No. A000000000 性別/Sex M 出生日期/Date of birth 01 SEP 2003 Second Photo 發照日期/Date of issue 29 DEC 2008 出生地/Place of birth TAIWAN 效期截止日期/Date of expiry 29 DEC 2018 發照機關/Authority MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS P<TWNXXXX<<XXXX<XXXX<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< 3000000003TWN0309010M1812290A000000000<<<<00

Data page

Identification information for the passport holder and the machine readable zone beneath.

The data page is protected by a plastic anti-counterfeiting membrane, shows the laser hologram of the country code TWN and Broad-tailed Swallowtail Butterfly, an endemic species of Taiwan.

Inner pages

The inner pages of a Taiwan passport are printed in light purple, contains

• Data page in 2
• Signature page in 3
• Amendment and endorsement pages from 4 to 7
• Visa pages from 8 to 47
• Remark pages from 48 to 50

Selected famous sights of Taiwan are printed in the inner pages, each page also contains a transparent watermark of Jade Mountain, the highest peak of the country.

Back cover

Contactless biometric data chip is installed in the back cover page, with the warning inside
In Traditional Chinese

本護照內植高感度電子晶片，使用上請視同攜帶式電子產品，並妥善保管。為維持護照最佳效能，請勿折壓、扭曲或在內頁穿孔、裝訂；並勿將護照曝曬於陽光下，或置於高溫、潮濕及電磁環境，或沾染化學藥品。

In English

This passport contains a sensitive electronic chip, and should be treated with great care in the same way as a portable electronic device. For best performance, please do not bend, twist, perforate or staple the passport. Neither expose it to direct sunlight, extreme temperature or humidity. Avoid electro-magnetic fields or chemical substance.

DO NOT STAMP THIS PAGE

Passport regulations for Taiwanese residents

Old version of a Republic of China passport issued in 1982.

Nationals with household registration in the Taiwan Area may apply passport from Bureau of Consular Affairs in Taipei or its branch offices in Kaohsiung, Hualien and Taichung with the following documents.

• Application form
• National Identification Card
• 2 photos (3.5 cm x 4.5 cm)

For the first time application, the applicants are required to send their documents in person to the Bureau of Consular Affairs.

• Processing time: Four working days.
• Validity periode: Starting from May 21, 2000, validity period for an ordinary passport is generally 10 years. For the applicant aged under 15 is 5 years. For the male citizens who have not complete his conscription duty is 3 years.
• Application fee: Effective since January 1, 2013, the application fee for a 10-year passport is TWD $1300, for a passport with restricted validity period is TWD $900.^[10]

As a policy of the conscription in Taiwan. Travel restrictions are applied on male citizens once they reach the age of 15 until military service is completed. When a passport is issued to this kind of citizen, a stamp with the following words will be shown on the remarks page, and a sticker which describes the regulation will be pasted to the back cover of the passport.^[11]
In Traditional Chinese:

持照人出國應經核准，尚未履行兵役義務。

Translation: The bearer needs a permission to travel abroad and has not yet completed military service.

Before travelling with this passport, the holder needs to apply for permission from the National Immigration Agency or the conscription administration near his residence. The permission is another stamp on the remark pages which detail the expiration date and the authority.

Passport regulations for overseas nationals

The ROC passport of a national without household registration does not have an identification card number listed on its data pages in the empty spaces labelled (1).

Entry permit for overseas nationals

Today around 60,000 Taiwan passport holders are overseas nationals, approximately 0.5% of total valid passports. The overseas nationals do not have household registration in Taiwan, hence do not have the right of abode in Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other outlying islands.

Application

Overseas nationals can only apply passport from an embassy, consulate or Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office near their residing country with the following document.

• Application form
• A certificate of nationality of the Republic of China (Taiwan)
• 2 photos (3.5cm x 4.5cm)

The Republic of China (Taiwan) nationality law adopts the jus sanguinis principle. The ancestor's nationality of a person may be a proof of that person's nationality. There are various of documents may applied, see the following eligibility paragraph.

• Application fee: For a 10-year passport is USD $45, for a passport with restricted validity period is USD $31.^[10]

Travel requirements and limitations

Unlike residents of Taiwan, Taiwanese overseas nations do not automatically have right of abode in Taiwan. They are required to apply for an entry permit to enter Taiwan prior to their travel. The application must submitted to the embassy, consulate or Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office near their residing country. Once application is approved, a visa-type permit will be pasted on the visa page.

• This legal situation is rather similar to that of British overseas citizens, who have no automatic right of abode in the United Kingdom or any other British dependency or territory.
• In relation to United States law, holders of these overseas nationals passports are (by definition) without a Taiwanese personal identification number, without unrestricted right to enter and/or reside in Taiwan, and do not satisfy the definition of a passport under INA 101(a)(30). Therefore, such persons are considered stateless for United States visas issuing purposes.^[12]

Because of the lack of right of abode, the overseas nationals the remark page 50 will show the following words in stamp.
In Traditional Chinese

本護照不適用部分國家之免簽證計劃.

Translation: This passport is not eligible for the visa waiver programs of some countries according to their regulations.

Unlike passports of Taiwanese residents, passports for overseas nationals contain a special stamp that indicates overseas nationals status and exempts holders from conscription.

Eligibility for holding Taiwan passport

Old Republic of China passport issued in 1946

The ROC was founded in 1912 governing the whole of mainland China. At the end of the Second World War in 1945, the Republic of China was given administrative jurisdiction over Taiwan, The Republic of China has maintained control of it ever since. At the Chinese Civil War's end in 1949, the ROC lost its control of Mainland China to the Chinese Communist Party, which renamed the region the People's Republic of China (PRC). Henceforth, the ROC has been able to administer only Taiwan and some islands off the Mainland's coast. Maintaining the view that it is still the legitimate government of the whole of China, the ROC does not formally recognize the legitimacy of PRC. It has also constitutionally defined all the territory under its control as the "Free Area" (or the "Taiwan Area") and the territory outside Taiwan Area as the "Mainland Area". The ROC constitution allows the ROC government to make laws for one Area of the country without affecting the other Area.^{[citation needed]}.

However, permanent residents in of the Mainland Area, Hong Kong or Macau are not generally eligible to obtain a ROC passport [Passport Act, Article 9].^[13] Furthermore, Overseas Chinese applicants normally must submit one of the following forms of proof of ROC nationality [Passport Act Enforcement Rules, Article 13]:^[14]

• A ROC passport;
• A Certificate of Overseas Chinese status, issued on the basis of proof of ROC nationality;
• Proof of ROC nationality for a parent or ancestor, together with proof of descent. (Those in the chain of descent born before the 1980s must be descended through the male line).

There are certain exceptions to this in certain cases for first- and second- generation emigrants, but in general an applicant will be unable to obtain a ROC passport unless he already holds ROC-issued nationality documentation for himself or an ancestor.

Therefore, for a person to obtain a ROC passport, one of the following must normally apply:

• The person first obtained proof of ROC nationality before 1949, when the ROC controlled the Mainland Area; or
• The person first obtained a ROC passport before 1 July 1997 as a resident of Hong Kong, or before 20 December 1999 as resident of Macau; or
• The person first obtained a ROC passport before 2002, as an Overseas-born Chinese, on the basis of Chinese ethnicity, before the Passport Act Enforcement Rules were revised to prevent this; or
• The person obtained an ROC passport after emigrating overseas from the Mainland Area [Passport Act Enforcement Rules, Article 18];^[14] or
• The person obtained an ROC passport after emigrating overseas from Hong Kong or Macau, whilst not holding a foreign passport other than a BN(O) passport [Passport Act Enforcement Rules, Article 19], or after being born overseas to a parent who so emigrated;^[14] or
• The person has an ancestor in one of the previous categories (i.e. the ancestor actually obtained the ROC document, as opposed to merely having the right to do so), and the chain of descent is through the male line until the 1980s.

The interior is in traditional Chinese characters and English. Until the mid-1990s, the passport also contained an entry for provincial ancestry (籍貫), stating the Chinese province and county of one's ancestral home, but this field has been eliminated. However, the Chinese province and county of birth is still listed in the birthplace entry if the passport holder was born in either mainland China or Taiwan.

Limitation in usage

Even though Taiwan maintains official relations with only 23 countries, the ROC passport is still accepted as a valid travel document in most countries of the world. However, some countries, pursuant to their positions on Taiwan's political status, refuse to visé or stamp ROC passports, and instead issue a separate travel document to Taiwanese travelers to avoid conveying any kind of recognition to the ROC, or to Taiwan as a polity distinct from the PRC.

Country	Restriction in use
Argentina	Visitor permit issued in a separate paper.
Bulgaria	Holders of ROC diplomatic or official passports are refused admission.
Brazil	ROC passports are not recognized or accepted. Taiwanese must apply for a Brazilian Laissez-Passer (a passport-like booklet), which is viséed instead of the ROC passport.
People's Republic of China	ROC passports not recognized or accepted. Taiwanese are instead issued a Chinese Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents (a passport-like booklet) upon arrival.
Hong Kong	Taiwan passport holders are required to apply online for pre-arrival registration in advance (since September 1, 2012).[15] The Hong Kong Immigration Department will issue a Hong Kong entry permit upon arrival, which can be in the form of either a separate card (for a single entry) or booklet (for multiple entries). Taiwanese travelers can also enter Hong Kong for up to 30 days with a valid Chinese Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents (since 27 April 2009).[16]
Kenya	Visa issued on a separate paper.
Laos	Visa issued on a separate paper travel document (passport-size; with photo)
Macau	Stamps are placed on the Arrival/Departure Card, which is collected upon a Taiwanese visitor's departure from Macau. Passports are stamped only when Taiwanese visitors leave/enter Macau to/from a third country via Macau International Airport. Taiwan passport holders have been granted visa-free access for up to 30 days since 1982.[17]
Nepal	Visa issued on a separate sheet that is stapled to the passport
Serbia	Tourist Pass issued on a separate paper.

See also

• Visa requirements for Taiwanese citizens
• Foreign relations of Taiwan

References

External links

• Bureau of Consular Affairs
• ROC(Taiwan) Passport
• Old and new passports