Foreigners, with the exception of Chinese nationals, with professional specialties in areas other than high-technology will be eligible to apply for permanent-residency status under a speeded-up system, according to the Cabinet's draft amendments to the Immigration Law (
Foreigners who make a special contribution to the nation, are high-technology specialists, or have resided in the country for at least 183 days each year for seven consecutive years are already eligible to apply for permanent-residency status, but the changes would open up eligibility.
According to a Cabinet official who asked not to be named, the relaxed rules on permanent residency are aimed at luring more professional talent to the nation, which is struggling to move from a labor-intensive economy to a knowledge-based one.
Sociologists wanted
"The so-called `specialty areas' include politics, sociology, economics, culture and law, in addition to high-technology," the official said.
Qualified professionals in these areas would be granted a six-month to three-year permit. Those who have lawfully stayed in the country for two consecutive years and at least 270 days in one of the two years would be eligible to apply for permanent-residency status.
Also eligible are those have lawfully stayed in the nation for five consecutive years and at least 183 days each year.
The draft would allow foreigners in custody for immigration reasons to use their detention time toward their jail sentences should they be convicted of a crime.
"In other words, if the person was detained for a day, the time could be transferred to a day's jail sentence if the person is a convicted criminal or later convicted of a crime," the official said.
Currently, foreigners who are ordered to leave the country but have not yet completed the exit process have to be put in custody. Those who illegally enter the country or overstay their visas must also be put in custody as well as those wanted by a foreign government. The new rules also apply to those the government deems necessary to be put in temporary custody.
The detention period, however, cannot exceed 15 days and can be extended for another 15 days.
Investors
In addition, foreigners who invest a certain amount of money in Taiwan would be eligible for permanent-residency status. No annual quota would be set for investment-related immigration.
Taking human rights into consideration, the draft would also adopt a more lenient approach toward foreigners who fail to carry their picture identification. The draft stipulates that only those refusing to show their identification would be punished.
Identification
Currently, foreigners who fail to show their visa or Alien Residence Certificate to authorities are subject to a fine of between NT$2,000 and NT$10,000.
In addition, the draft would require applicants for short- and medium-term stays and permanent residency status to go through personal interviews before being granted the permits. A review committee would be established under the law to handle the interview process.
Short-term stays are defined as stays of less than six months, while medium-term stays are defined as stays of six months to three years.
CREDIT-GRABBER: China said its coast guard rescued the crew of a fishing vessel that caught fire, who were actually rescued by a nearby Taiwanese boat and the CGA Maritime search and rescue operations do not have borders, and China should not use a shipwreck to infringe upon Taiwanese sovereignty, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said yesterday. The coast guard made the statement in response to the China Coast Guard (CCG) saying it saved a Taiwanese fishing boat. The Chuan Yu No. 6 (全漁6號), a fishing vessel registered in Keelung, on Thursday caught fire and sank in waters northeast of Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台). The vessel left Keelung’s Badouzih Fishing Harbor (八斗子漁港) at 3:35pm on Sunday last week, with seven people on board — a 62-year-old Taiwanese captain surnamed Chang (張) and six
RISKY BUSINESS: The ‘incentives’ include initiatives that get suspended for no reason, creating uncertainty and resulting in considerable losses for Taiwanese, the MAC said China’s “incentives” failed to sway sentiment in Taiwan, as willingness to work in China hit a record low of 1.6 percent, a Ministry of Labor survey showed. The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) also reported that the number of Taiwanese workers in China has nearly halved from a peak of 430,000 in 2012 to an estimated 231,000 in 2024. That marked a new low in the proportion of Taiwanese going abroad to work. The ministry’s annual survey on “Labor Life and Employment Status” includes questions respondents’ willingness to seek employment overseas. Willingness to work in China has steadily declined from
The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee yesterday approved proposed amendments to the Amusement Tax Act (娛樂稅法) that would abolish taxes on films, cultural activities and competitive sporting events, retaining the fee only for dance halls and golf courses. The proposed changes would set the maximum tax rate for dance halls and golf courses at 50 and 20 percent respectively, with local governments authorized to suspend the levies. Article 2 of the act says that “amusement tax shall be levied on tickets sold or fees charged by amusement places, facilities or activities” in six categories: “Cinema; professional singing, story-telling, dancing, circus, magic show, acrobatics
The number of pet cats in Taiwan surpassed that of pet dogs for the first time last year, reaching 1,742,033, a 32.8 percent increase from 2023, the Ministry of Agriculture said yesterday, citing a survey. By contrast, the number of pet dogs declined slightly by 1.2 percent over the same period to 1,462,528, the ministry said. Despite the shift, households with dogs still slightly outnumber those with cats by 1.2 percent. However, while the number of households with multiple dogs has remained relatively stable, households keeping more than two cats have increased, contributing to the overall rise in the feline population. The trend
RSS