After I had worked almost three years in Taiwan they finally started to offer a new kind of Employment Gold Card for professionals. Basically in Taiwan you usually first look for a job, you get a job and your new company will apply a work permit for you. After it’s approved, you will then apply an alien resident card to be allowed to live and work in Taiwan. However a new Employment Gold Card has both of those and other features and you can apply it before you even visited Taiwan.
The process wasn’t very smooth to get the card. It started with the application. The form asked to fill my address in Chinese. I wonder if you apply abroad, are they still asking to fill it in Chinese. For my address it didn’t actually have the correct way to put lane or number of my apartment. I just noticed this last week at bank because the card has wrong characters still (even I said it in open form to them in application process). Luckily my bank is okay, they just put it correct to their system, didn’t ask for passport (which is also many times asked along with ARC card).
Second problem was asking for status. You’re not really able to track the status through website, because it only has main steps – not all. This started another discussion. They already knew something need to change in application, but didn’t do anything before I asked. Then they asked to call for another ministry to get detail information. I wonder again if you apply abroad, how easy it is to make phone calls instead of emailing. They do have one email address to use for contacting. I actually used it often to ask them to make calls, much simpler.
These emails continued. My current ARC was going to expire; processes took time and at the end to extend my current ARC we had to apply work permit traditional way during the process. But when I had applied extension, company got new work permit and I placed another application for new ARC I got acceptance email. The whole process took two months’ time, the Employment Gold Card costed 5700 NT dollars (maybe around 150 euros). Also these additional ARC extension/new ARC and work permit costed extra around 2000 NT dollars. It was also a lot of stress because so many papers were asked and I didn’t know if I’m going to get it or not. Then that application would not have been refunded.
Anyway, at the end I feel good because this card really is beneficial for you. You can rely that even you’re jobless or want to change a company, it’s you who make the decision and you’re not dependent on other people. I know many foreigners get married to local for avoiding hassle, but it’s also making you dependent on someone else and actually how good does it feels for your spouse to be first of all married to you for resident status (even if you’re in love).