Designated household registration offices may be authorized to accept passport applications in the second half of the year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said on Friday.
Lo Yu-chung (羅由中), director-general of MOFA’s consular affairs bureau, said the ministry had originally planned to allow Taiwanese citizens to apply for passports at selected household registration offices around the country by May 3.
However, the plan was delayed because of inadequate administrative procedures and coordination between various agencies, the lack of a legal basis as well as unprepared local governments, he said.
LIMITED RESOURCES
“Household registration offices face the problems of manpower, financial resources and legal authority if they want to handle passport applications,” Lo said.
At present, Taiwanese citizens can only apply for passports at MOFA offices in Taipei, Taichung, Hualien and Kaohsiung.
The ministry hopes that expanding the service to household registration offices will encourage more people to apply for passports in person, because it effectively protects personal privacy and information, the MOFA official said.
VISAS
Lo said Taiwan is now trying to convince the EU, US and Canada to give Taiwanese nationals visa-waiver treatment, and getting more people to handle the application process themselves could help Taiwan’s case.
Roughly 65 percent of all passport applicants in Taiwan have travel agencies take care of the process, while only 35 percent of applicants handle it on their own.
Lo said the ministry is currently gauging the interest of local household registration offices in adding the service.
The initial goal is to have four cities and counties join the program. Two have expressed a willingness to add the service, MOFA said, and the program could begin on a trial basis in the second half of the year.
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