Foreigners who entered Taiwan on or before March 21 last year and have no record of overstaying can be granted an additional 30-day extension on their visas, the National Immigration Agency announced yesterday.
Due to the continued severity of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide, the automatic extension would apply to foreign nationals who entered Taiwan visa-free, or on a visitor’s or landing visa on or before that date, the agency said in a statement.
The government has announced automatic 30-day visa extensions each month this year to avoid forcing foreigners to leave Taiwan while the pandemic continues to affect the world and travel restrictions are in effect.
The agency said that the extension would be automatically registered on its systems, and no application is required, but visitors who would like formal documentation of the extension can ask to have their passports stamped at its service stations nationwide.
The extension policy would continue to be reviewed and adjusted as necessary, in accordance with the Central Epidemic Command Center’s (CECC) assessment of COVID-19 conditions, the agency said.
In related news, the CECC yesterday reported six imported cases of COVID-19 and a COVID-19-related death.
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center, said the imported cases came from South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine, Vietnam, the United Arab Emirates and the US.
The death involved a woman in her 90s, who was diagnosed with COVID-19 on June 1, Chen said.
She was released from isolation and discharged from hospital on July 26, but died on Oct. 11, he said.
Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞), deputy head of the CECC’s medical response division, said the cause of death on her death certificate was cancer with complications of heart, liver and kidney failure.
He said the CECC received a report about the case on Sunday, asked the local health department on Monday whether COVID-19 could have been one of the causes of death, and decided that the case could be considered a COVID-19-related case, although the virus was not the direct cause of death.
Chen announced that three types of COVID-19 vaccines — AstraZeneca, Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna — would be offered in the 14th round of the national vaccination program.
The vaccines are to be administered from Saturday to Nov. 24.
People born on or before Nov. 13, 2003, are eligible to receive their first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, while those who received a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine on or before Sept. 18 are eligible for their second dose.
People born on or before Dec. 31, 2003, and received a first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on or before Oct. 16, are eligible for their second dose.
People born on or before Dec. 31, 2003, are eligible for their first dose of the Moderna vaccine, while those who received a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine on or before Oct. 16 are eligible for their second dose.
Eligible recipients would receive a text message today reminding them to book an appointment on the national online COVID-19 vaccination booking system (1922.gov.tw) between tomorrow and Friday, Chen said.
Those eligible for the AstraZeneca vaccine can book an appointment between 10am tomorrow and 12pm on Friday, and those eligible for the Pfizer-BioNTech or the Moderna vaccines can book an appointment between 2pm tomorrow and 12pm on Friday, he said.
In this round, the interval between the two doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine has been shortened to at least eight weeks, and the interval between the two doses of the Moderna vaccine has been shortened to at least four weeks, Chen said.
Asked if a mix-and-match approach to COVID-19 vaccines could be approved in the 15th round, Chen said “it is possible,” but it would depend on the delivery of vaccines later this month.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare has allocated about NT$450 million (US$16.2 million) to establish comprehensive COVID-19 rehabilitation clinics at about 30 healthcare facilities nationwide, he added.
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