An official from the Immigration Office under the National Police Agency yesterday said that for security purposes, the immigration office is not required to give any reason when deporting foreigners whose names are on the nation's immigration blacklist.
Taiwan has the right to ban foreigners from entry when they are suspected of or believed to endanger national interests, public order and public security, an immigration official said yesterday.
There is a blacklist for those who are "unwelcome," including those with a criminal record in Taiwan or other countries and those suspected of terrorist or other illegal activities, said the official, who declined to be named.
Those who have worked illegally in the country are also banned from re-entry, in accordance with the Immigration Act (
The names on the blacklist are not publicized for security reasons, he said.
In one recent incident, a US citizen was refused entry at Kaohsiung airport even though he had a valid visa.
According to the man, the reasons that the immigration office gave him when barring him from entering the country were that he had "overstayed on a previous visa, insulted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and participated in activities outside those stated on his previous visa."
He said that his visa was given to him by one of Taiwan's overseas missions but the immigration office denied it.
Immigration officials said that the police agency manages the list of deported foreigners, establishes files and then passes the information on to the foreign ministry.
The ministry then sends the lists to its overseas missions.
They said that it would be possible for someone on the list to obtain a visa from an overseas mission if they applied right after being deported for the first time and before the information about this deportation was sent to overseas offices.
But if a deported foreigner uses the same passport to apply for a new visa, the officials would see the deportation stamp in the passport, the immigration official said.
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