Republic of China passport

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Cover of the Republic of China biometric passport issued in 2009. "Taiwan" was marked in English (but not in Chinese) since 2003. The then DPP government stated this was to facilitate travel, not to change the name of the nation.^[1]

The Republic of China passport (traditional Chinese: 中華民國護照 Zhōnghuá Mínguó hùzhào) is the national passport issued to citizens of the Republic of China (ROC) and eligible Overseas Chinese. It is more commonly known as the Taiwanese passport,^[2][3][4][5] as the ROC has been commonly known as 'Taiwan' since the 1970s.

[edit] Eligibility for holding ROC passport

Republic of China passport issued in 1946

Republic of China passport issued in 1982

The Republic of China (ROC) was founded in 1912 governing the whole of China. Since the Chinese Civil War in 1949, ROC has only retained control of the territory of Taiwan and two counties of Fujian, while the rest of the original territory has been controlled by the People's Republic of China (PRC). The ROC constitution does not recognize the PRC so the ROC still legally considers itself as the sole government of China. The territory under ROC control are constitutionally defined as the Free Area (also known as "Taiwan Area"), while the territory outside of the Taiwan Area is defined as the "Mainland Area". The ROC constitution allows the ROC government to make laws for one Area of the country without affecting the other Area.

ROC citizens who also hold household registration in the Taiwan Area are eligible for the ROC passport. However, the ROC passport is not conclusive evidence that the holder is a citizen of the Republic of China as, according to the new nationality law of ROC,^[6] there is no implication of citizenship. Overseas Chinese are eligible to receive the ROC passport. Additionally, not all ROC passport holders have the right of abode in the Taiwan Area. Ethnic Chinese residents in Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau are also likely to be considered as ROC citizens, and they may also obtain a ROC passport, provided they have permanent residence status in a country outside the ROC constitutional claims, regardless of whether they have lived or even set foot in the Taiwan Area. (see here for an explanation on its rationale)

The ROC passport does not automatically grant the holders right of abode in the Taiwan Area. Only ROC passport holders who also hold household registration in the Taiwan Area are exempt from immigration restrictions in Taiwan. Other ROC passport holders are issued landing visas upon arrival in Taiwan and are subject to deportation.

It is the Republic of China National Identification Card, which is only issued to ROC citizens with household registration in Taiwan, that is used to exercise citizenship rights such as through voting. Passports of overseas Chinese (as opposed to passports of ROC citizens with household registration in Taiwan) are issued only in ROC embassies, consulates, and Taipei Economic and Cultural Offices and not in Taiwan itself and contain a special stamp indicating overseas Chinese status (which also exempts the holder of conscription). Passports holders with household registration will also include the holder's national identification number. Similarly, not all British passport holders have the right of abode in the United Kingdom.

The validity of an ROC passport is 10 years for general holders, 5 years for minors aged under 16, or 3 years for young male adults who have not yet served the ROC conscription.

[edit] Style

Regular passport's cover is dark green in color with gold lettering. The National Emblem of the Republic of China and the wording "Republic of China" and "Passport" in Chinese and English are printed on the cover. However, in September 2003, then-President Chen Shui-bian, who pursued de jure independence, decided to add the word "Taiwan" on the ROC passport cover with the stated reason that "immigration officials may confuse citizens of the democratic Republic of China (ROC) with citizens of the communist People's Republic of China (PRC)"^{[citation needed]}. The premier when asked during question time in the Parliament stated that this was to facilitate travel and did not change the name of the nation.

The first page of the passport is the passport note page and printed:

The interior is in traditional Chinese and English. Until the mid-1990s, the passport also contained an entry for provincial citizenship, stating the Chinese province and county of one's ancestral home, but this field was eliminated amid the Taiwan localization movement. However, the Chinese province and county of birth is still listed in the birthplace entry if the passport holder was born in either mainland China or Taiwan.

It should be noted that ROC passports identify the issuing country with the ISO code "TWN" for "Taiwan", where PRC, HKSAR and MSAR passports all bear China's code "CHN".

On November 25, 2008, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Republic of China announced that it will be starting to issue biometric passport on December 29, 2008^[7]. The "Taiwan" wording on the cover will still be kept.

[edit] Limitation in usage

Even though the Republic of China maintains official relations with only 23 countries, the ROC passport is still accepted as a valid travel document in virtually all the countries of the world, although in practice some countries (e.g. Laos, Nepal and Vietnam) opt not to directly stamp on it. Instead, these countries issue the visa on a separate sheet which is stapled to the ROC passport, and only stamp entry and exit stamps on the visa, as a compromise to the People's Republic of China. Malaysia also had this practice until March 2009 when the Malaysian government decided that Malaysian visas be directly issued to and stamped on the ROC (Taiwan) passport.

The ROC passport is not accepted by the People's Republic of China(PRC). Taiwan residents must use a "Taiwan Compatriot Entry Permit" to enter the PRC, although a valid ROC passport is required to apply for the Taiwan Compatriot Entry Permit, and may be required to be presented to PRC immigration officials to further confirm its holder's identity.

The Government of Hong Kong accepts either an ROC passport or a Taiwan Compatriot Entry Permit for ROC nationals to enter Hong Kong. For ROC passport holders, a pre-arrival visa which is separated from the passport is required and will be stamped, while the ROC passport is not stamped. For Taiwan Compatriot Entry Permit holders, a valid entry permit was formerly required for entry, but since April 27, 2009, Hong Kong grants 7-day visa-free access to Taiwan Compatriot Entry Permit holders without an entry permit, and the Taiwan Compatriot Entry Permit is stamped^[8].

During both Portuguese and the PRC administration, Macau authorities regard ROC passports as valid travel documents^{[citation needed]}, although Macau immigration officers do not stamp ROC passports. Instead they place an entry and exit stamp onto the Arrival/Departure card, which shall eventually be recalled upon the visitor's departure from the territory.^{[citation needed]} Macau authorities unilaterally grant ROC passport holders 30-day visa-free access to Macau.

[edit] Visa-free access

Approximately 70 countries grant visa-free or visa-on-arrival privileges to Taiwanese passport holders.

ROC passport holders are generally divided into those who hold Household Registration and those who do not. Those with Household Registration are entitled to the Taiwanese National ID Card and thus have the right of abode in Taiwan and the right to vote, but also are subjected to military draft. For holders for the ROC passport who do not have household registration are not entitled to Taiwan's National ID Card and as such do not have the right of abode in Taiwan and are required to obtain visa prior to arrival.^[9] The two groups of ROC passports can be differentiated by checking the Personal ID No of the passport's information page. The presence of an ID number indicates the person has the right of abode in Taiwan.

Visa-free travel for ROC citizens (with Household registration), 2009

[edit] Africa

[edit] Americas

[edit] Asia

[edit] Europe

[edit] Oceania

[edit] Transit Only

•  Bahamas 3 days for transit^[90]
•  Brunei 72-hour transit visa issued upon arrival for BND 5 - only with local sponsor ^[91]
•  Chad 48 hours for transit^[92]
•  Kazakhstan 3-day transit visa issued upon arrival^[93]
•  Tonga Transit visa issued upon arrival if transit time is longer than 24 hours^[94]

[edit] For diplomatic/official passport

Country	Diplomatic	Official
Bangladesh[95]	30 days	30 days
Bolivia[96]	No visa	Visa required
Cambodia[97]	3 months	Visa required
Cape Verde[98]	No visa	Visa required
Chile[99]	90 days	90 days
Dominican Republic[100]	90 days	90 days
Equatorial Guinea[101]	No visa	No visa
Ghana[102]	60 days	Visa required
Jordan[103]	No visa	Visa issued upon arrival for JOD 10
Lebanon[104]	Visa issued upon arrival	Visa required
Mali[105]	One month	Visa required
Mauritania[106]	No visa	Visa required
Paraguay[107]	90 days	90 days
Peru[108]	15 days	15 days
Uganda[109]	3-month visa issued upon arrival for free of charge	3-month visa issued upon arrival for free of charge
Zambia[110]	Visa issued upon arrival for free of charge	Visa issued upon arrival for free of charge
Zimbabwe[111]	No visa	Visa required

[edit] Countries that do not accept Republic of China passport

•  Bulgaria: Admission refused, if holding diplomatic/official passport
•  Brazil: Admission refused, if holding diplomatic/official passport. Specific laissez-passer are issued to tourist or business visitors.
•  People's Republic of China: Taiwan Compatriot Pass required (does not apply for Hong Kong and Macau)
•  Jamaica: Affidavit of Identity required^[112]
•  Mauritius: Must apply for entry permit in Mauritius (prior authority also required)
•  Montenegro: Admission refused^[113]
•  New Zealand: Admission refused, if holding diplomatic / official passport
•  Serbia: Admission refused. In case of academic, business or tourist purposes, travelers can apply upon arrival a tourist pass, presenting a formal invitation letter.

[edit] Traveling to Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau for Taiwan travelers

•  Hong Kong Visa-free access for 7 days if holding Taiwan Compatriot Pass ^[114]
•  Macau Visa-free access for 30 days.
• Mainland China 3-month visa issued upon arrival^[115]
  • If holding Taiwan Compatriot Pass: ROC passport (must be valid for at least 3 months), return ticket and 2-photo required, fee is 100 RMB (available at airports in Beijing, Chengdu, Chongqing, Dalian, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Guilin, Haikou, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Qingdao, Sanya, Shanghai, Shenyang, Shenzhen, Wuhan, Xiamen)
  • If not holding Taiwan Compatriot Pass: ROC passport (must be valid for at least 3 months), ROC ID card, return ticket and 2-photo required, fee is 150 RMB (available at airports in Beijing, Chengdu, Chongqing, Dalian, Fuzhou, Guilin, Haikou, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Qingdao, Sanya, Shanghai, Shenyang, Shenzhen, Wuhan, Xiamen)

The ROC passport is not accepted by the mainland China, Hong Kong^{[citation needed]} and Macau^{[citation needed]} authorities, as Taiwan travelers are considered by the respective authorities as Chinese citizens and the travel is not considered international. These authorities never stamp ROC passports, but still require them to be shown with the Taiwan Compatriot Pass.

(Exception: The Macau authority stamps on ROC passports only when the Taiwanese travelers exit Macau (through airport checkpoint) for a foreign country, i.e. not the mainland, Hong Kong or Taiwan. Such action may seem violating "one China Principle", however it has been said that Macau authority does so in order to comply with international rules and regulations and does a favor to Taiwanese travelers in case such travelers are questioned by a foreign immigration officer about their origin of boarding city.)

[edit] Visit to the USA

The US B1/B2 visa refusal rate of ROC passport was 3.1% in 2006.^[116] However, the rate increased to 4.6% in 2007.^[117] Both figures are lower than the 10% requirement for the Visa Waiver Program.

[edit] Notes and references

[edit] See also

• Taiwan Compatriot Pass
• Visa policy of the Republic of China
• Foreign relations of the Republic of China
• People's Republic of China passport

[edit] External links

• Bureau of Consular Affairs
• Visa-free access for Republic of China passport holders
• ROC(Taiwan) Passport
• Picture of the covers of the old and the new passports
• Taiwan Reciprocity Schedule, USA
• IATA Passport and visa information provided by KLM Royal Dutch Airlines