Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents

Mainland travel permit
for Taiwan residents

Cover of the travel permit
Issued by  China
Type of document Travel Document
Purpose Identification
Eligibility requirements Residents of  Taiwan
Expiration 5 years
Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents
Traditional Chinese 臺灣居民來往大陸通行證
Simplified Chinese 台湾居民来往大陆通行证
Taiwan compatriot permit
Traditional Chinese 臺胞證
Simplified Chinese 台胞证

The Mainland travel permit for Taiwan residents[1] (Chinese: 台湾居民来往大陆通行证; pinyin: Táiwān jūmín láiwǎng dàlù tōngxíngzhèng, see below), also known as Taiwan compatriot permit (Chinese: 台胞证; pinyin: Táibāo zhèng, see below), is the specific travel document issued by People's Republic of China (PRC)'s Ministry of Public Security (MPS) to nationals of the Republic of China (ROC, or commonly Taiwan) with household registration in the Taiwan Area for entry into mainland China. The Republic of China passport is not considered as a valid travel document by the People's Republic of China.

This travel permit will permit Taiwanese people to work and live in mainland China.

Background and usage

Due to the special political status of Taiwan, neither the PRC nor the ROC recognizes the passports issued by the other and neither party considers travel between mainland China and Taiwan as formal international travel. This entry permit is therefore issued as the travel document for Taiwanese residents to enter mainland China since 1987, when then ROC president Chiang Ching-Kuo decided to lift the mutual travel ban across the Taiwan Strait. Its counterpart for citizens of mainland China is the Entry Permit of Mainland Residents to the Taiwan Area.

The design of the document takes the form of a regular machine-readable passport, but it does not have the National Emblem of the People's Republic of China printed on its cover as the regular PRC passport has. The document is valid for 5 years and has 32 pages.

This entry permit is practically the only valid identity document for Taiwan residents in mainland China. As a result this travel document is also regarded and widely used as an identity document in mainland China, and can be accepted in cases of real estate purchasing, banking, taking medical treatment, insurance, employment etc. Due to this usage as an identifying document, and the increasing instances of Taiwan residents' long-time stay and settlement in mainland China, on 7 September 2008, the Taiwan Affairs Office announced that effective 24 September 2008, the issue number of mainland China entry permit for Taiwanese will remain unchanged during the person's lifetime. The Taiwan Affairs Office also opened 6 more airports eligible for entry-permit-on-arrival.[2] Since 20 October 2008, Beijing, Tianjin, Chongqing and Zhejiang can issue the 5-year permit. Together with Shanghai, Jiangsu and Fujian, there are, as of October 2008, 7 provinces and municipalities authorized to issue the permit to Taiwan residents.[3]

Application and entry permit

Taiwan residents can apply for an entry permit in China Travel Service Limited's Hong Kong or Macau branches or through travel agencies in Taiwan. For each entry into mainland China, mainland China Entry Permit holders need to apply for a permit, which is an immigration stamp that shows the document bearer's allowed duration of stay inside mainland China. In Hong Kong, Taiwan residents can apply at Hong Kong International Airport; in Macau at the Macau International Airport, and they can apply for stay extensions at branches offices of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) across mainland China. Permits are classified as:

Certain employing, employment, studying or investment certification is required when applying for a 2- or 3-year multi-entry permit. In practice most Taiwanese travel agencies will prepare the necessary forms and have the documents with valid entry permits sent to Taiwan by air. Around 1% of the applications are rejected, mainly to sensitive identities such as pro-Taiwan independence/Tibet independence figures, Falun Gong members and the like. This document's bearer can also apply for 3-month entry-permit-on-arrival in the following mainland Chinese airports or harbors, so long as this document remains valid:

Entering Hong Kong and Macau with Mainland Travel Permit

Hong Kong authorities accept either ROC passport or mainland China entry permit for ROC nationals to enter Hong Kong. For ROC passport holders, pre-arrival visa which is separated from the passport is required and will be stamped, while the ROC passport is not stamped. For mainland China entry permit holders, valid entry permit used to be required for entry but on 15 April 2009 Hong Kong authorities announced that effective 27 April 2009, Hong Kong will grant 7-day visa-free access to mainland China entry permit holders without an entry permit.[4]

If with valid entry permit, the Macau authorities also grant 30-day visa-free access to mainland China entry permit holders although Macau authorities also grant 30-day visa-free access to ROC passport holders. The mainland China entry permit is stamped while the ROC passport is not stamped (stamp is on the Arrival/Departure card which shall eventually be recalled upon visitor's departure from the territory).

See also

References

  1. ↑ IATA Database
  2. ↑ 台胞證一人一號 終身不變
  3. ↑ "Ningbo eligible to issue mainland China entry permit for Taiwanese". Ningbo Municipal People's Government. 22 October 2008.
  4. ↑ 持台胞證赴港 可停留七天

External links