Same-sex Taiwanese-Chinese couples can now legally register their marriages in Taiwan, the Ministry of the Interior and the Mainland Affairs Council announced yesterday.
Taiwan has long been at the forefront of Asia’s burgeoning LGBTQ+ rights movement, becoming in 2019 the first place in the region to legalize same-sex marriage.
Heterosexual couples consisting of a Chinese and Taiwanese spouse face a more complicated process than other international couples, needing to first marry abroad and then pass an interview in Taiwan before registering their marriage.
Photo: Chien Jung-feng, Taipei Times
“Same-sex couples can now be subject to the regulations of heterosexual couples,” council spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) told a regular briefing.
They would have to be legally wedded in one of the 35 countries that recognize same-sex marriage. After submitting their marriage certificate and other documents, “relevant agencies will conduct interviews with the couple,” he said.
“Only after passing the interview at the border [airport and ports] can they enter the country to register their marriages. This is our current principle for cross-strait marriages,” Liang said.
The rules governing heterosexual cross-strait marriages have long been in place “to prevent cross-border fake marriages and avoid problems of national security and social order,” he added.
With the announcement, “the government upholds the principle of treating same-sex marriage and heterosexual marriage equally,” Liang said.
Because of the distinctive nature of cross-strait affairs, the government has for more than 30 years used the same standards to manage Chinese nationals entering Taiwan, so any changes must consider national security, social stability and social support, the ministry said in a statement.
There are currently about 360,000 Chinese spouses of Taiwanese citizens in Taiwan. They have to wait six years to apply for Taiwanese citizenship.
Additional reporting by Lee Wen-hsin
Four factors led to the declaration of a typhoon day and the cancelation of classes yesterday, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. Work and classes were canceled across Taiwan yesterday as Typhoon Krathon was forecast to make landfall in the southern part of the country. However, northern Taiwan had only heavy winds during the day and rain in the evening, leading some to criticize the cancelation. Speaking at a Taipei City Council meeting yesterday, Chiang said the decision was made due to the possibility of landslides and other problems in mountainous areas, the need to avoid a potentially dangerous commute for those
Typhoon Krathon, a military airshow and rehearsals for Double Ten National Day celebrations might disrupt flights at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in the first 10 days of next month, the airport’s operator said yesterday. Taoyuan International Airport Corp said in a statement that it has established a response center after the Central Weather Administration issued a sea warning for Krathon, and urged passengers to remain alert to the possibility of disruptions caused by the storm in the coming days. Flight schedules might also change while the air force conducts rehearsals and holds a final airshow for Double Ten National Day, it added. Although
SEMICONDUCTORS: TSMC is able to produce 2-nanometer chips and mass production is expected to be launched by next year, the company said In leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing China is behind Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) by at least 10 years as the Taiwanese chipmaker’s manufacturing process has progressed to 2 nanometers, National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Minister Wu Cheng-wen (吳誠文) said yesterday. Wu made the remarks during a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Education and Culture Committee when asked by Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) about a report published in August by the Chinese version of Nikkei Asia that said Taiwan’s lead over China in chip manufacturing was only three years. She asked Wu Cheng-wen if the report was an accurate
PRO-CHINA SLOGANS: Two DPP members criticized police officers’ lack of action at the scene, saying that law enforcement authorities should investigate the incident Chinese tourists allegedly interrupted a protest in Taipei on Tuesday held by Hong Kongers, knocked down several flags and shouted: “Taiwan and Hong Kong belong to China.” Hong Kong democracy activists were holding a demonstration as Tuesday was China’s National Day. A video posted online by civic group Hong Kong Outlanders shows a couple, who are allegedly Chinese, during the demonstration. “Today is China’s National Day, and I won’t allow the displaying of these flags,” the male yells in the video before pushing some demonstrators and knocking down a few flagpoles. Radio Free Asia reported that some of the demonstrators
RSS