Taiwan Visa Requirements: Do you Need a Visa to Go to Taiwan?

Do I need a visa for Taiwan? How do I apply for a Taiwan visa? Which countries can apply for Taiwan e-visas or landing visas? Can I enter Taiwan visa-free?

In this article I will answer all the above questions about getting a visa for Taiwan or entering without one (visa exemption). While I strive to keep this information current, make sure to double check with the official source.

You will be happy to know that Taiwan offers visa-exemption privileges to nationals of many countries. If your passport is not on the list, though, you will need to apply according to the guidelines I’ll share below.

Do I Need a Visa to Visit Taiwan?

Taiwan currently grants visa exemption (visa-free visits), to passport-holders of 65 countries. If your passport does not belong to one of these 65 countries, then you will need to apply for a visa or eVisa to enter Taiwan.

Which countries Can Enter Taiwan Visa-Free?

Holders of passports from the following countries are visa exempt. This means that if you have a passport from one of these countries, you can enter Taiwan without a visa for a stay of 15 to 90 days. The duration depends on which country you are from – see the table below.

I’ve highlighted the top countries that visit Taiwan.

Countries	Duration
Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Eswatini, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Marshall Islands, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, North Macedonia, Norway, Palau, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tuvalu, United Kingdom, United States, Vatican City	90 days
Belize, Dominican Republic, Malaysia, Nauru, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Singapore	30 days
Brunei, Philippines, Thailand	14 days

* If you were born in Afghanistan, China, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Syria, or Yemen, you may still need a visa to enter Taiwan, even if you have another passport.

** Diplomatic passport holders are not eligible for visa exemption.

Visa-Free Entry Requirements

You will need the following in order to enter Taiwan under the visa exemption program:

• A passport from the above list of countries that is valid for at least six months from the date of entry to Taiwan and with at least 1-2 blank pages for stamps.

• Proof of a flight departing Taiwan before your visa-free period is up. Find the cheapest flights here.

• You may be denied visa-free entry if you have a criminal record or you have overstayed in Taiwan before.

• Visitors from some countries, such as the Philippines, are sometimes asked for proof of funds and hotel reservations for their trip before flying to Taiwan.

There is no app, QR code, voucher, application form, or payment needed for visa-free entry.

How to Enter Taiwan Without a Visa

If you are on the above list of visa-exempt countries, and you follow the above requirements, there is nothing that you need to do before entering Taiwan. Just book your flight to Taiwan, come to Taiwan, show your passport, and stay for any period up to your maximum duration.

You will only need to fill in a typical arrival card for Taiwan. You can fill in the online arrival card before your flight. Some visitors have reported that they didn’t receive the email confirmation after filling in the form, but it doesn’t matter. If you submitted the form, just present your passport at immigration, and they will see the completed form in their system. As long as you submitted the form online, you don’t need to fill in a paper one when you arrive.

You don’t have to fill in the online form. You can also just fill in the paper arrival card on the airplane, which the flight attendants usually hand out, or do it at the airport just before you go through immigration.

See here for my guides to Taiwanese currency and getting from Taoyuan Airport to Taipei.

Can I Extend My Visa-Free Stay in Taiwan?

Because visa exemption is not a visa, it cannot be extended. Only Taiwan visa-holders can apply to have their visas extended.

If you need to stay in Taiwan longer, you’ll have to leave and come back in, or accept the hefty fine that comes with overstaying.

For Canadian and British passport holders, there is one exception. See point #5 here for the details on how you might be able to extend your visa-free stay.

If you are entering Taiwan to teach English or for other work, I’ll discuss that further below.

What If I Overstay My Visa-Free Entry?

If you overstay a visa-free entry, or a visa entry to Taiwan, you could be fined and banned from Taiwan for a period of time.

According to recent news, Taiwan’s Executed Yuan is planning to increase these fines and period of banning. The fines could be as high as TWD 30,000 to 150,000 (USD 950 to 4700), and the period of banning could be up to 10 years.

In other words, don’t overstay your Taiwan visit, whether you entered visa-free or on a visa.

What if I Leave Taiwan and Come Back?

If your passport country has visa-exempt status, each time you leave Taiwan and re-enter, you will get another 90/30/14 days visa-free visit (whichever one your country gets).

There is currently no limit to how many times you can do this, and you can even leave and come back on the same day.

Which Visa Should I Get for Teaching English in Taiwan?

There are two ways to go about getting your visa for teaching English in Taiwan. The first is to get hired and arrange it before you come and the second is to just show up in Taiwan and do it from there.

If you get hired before coming to Taiwan, this school will likely apply for your work permit before you come. Once they receive this, they will instruct you to apply for a “resident visa for employment purposes” at your local Taiwan office in your country and do a health check before you come to Taiwan. After you arrive in Taiwan, they will help you to change this to an ARC (Alien Resident Card).

While this way is safer in the sense that you’ll have a job lined up before you come, and some schools only hire in this way (including public schools in Taiwan), it is also more tedious (lots of paperwork) and potentially much more expensive. Some teachers have reported paying up to US$1000 for their health check outside of Taiwan!

If you come to Taiwan before you find a job, you can enter visa-free. You need to check how many days you can stay in Taiwan visa-free, though (see above).

If you can find a job before your visa-free period ends (for example 90 days for US, Canada, UK, NZ, Australia, Ireland passport holders), and the school can submit your work permit application before that as well, you’ll be good. You’ll also need to do a health check in Taiwan, which is easy and only costs TWD 1200.

But if you can’t find a job and have the school send in your application before this deadline, you’ll need to fly out of Taiwan and re-enter on a new visa-exempt period. Japan, Vietnam, and Hong Kong are some common places that prospective teachers fly to for doing this, with budget flights available and short flying times.

To get a work permit for teaching English in Taiwan, you will need to have a passport from Australia, Canada, South Africa, Ireland, New Zealand, Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, USA, or UK, a Bachelor’s Degree or Associate’s Degree + TEFL Certificate, and a police check from your home country.

Which Countries Need a Visa for Taiwan?

Here is a list of countries that need to apply for a visa to go to Taiwan.

Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Costa Rica, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, North Korea, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Qatar, Russia, Rwanda, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Which Countries Can Apply for an eVisa?

If you have a passport from one of the above-listed of countries that need a visa for entering Taiwan, you may be able to apply for an e-Visa online, which will be much easier.

Taiwan e-Visas are valid for a single entry up to 30 days, usually for tourism or business purposes only.

Visitors with passports from the following countries are eligible for e-Visas, plus a few other cases.

Bahrain, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Burkina Faso, Colombia, Dominica, Ecuador, Kiribati, Kosovo, Kuwait, Mauritius, Montenegro, Oman, Panama, Peru, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Solomon Islands, Turkey, United Arab Emirates

Anyone who has been invited to Taiwan for an international conference, sporting event, trade fair, or any other activity that has been organized by a government agency

Organized tour groups from Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, or Vietnam

You can apply for the eVisa online here (official site) or by using a 3^rd party site. It usually takes 3–7 business days for the eVisa to be processed. Once processed, you will receive it by email.

Can I Get a Visa-on-Arrival?

Only Turkey passport holders are eligible to get a free visa on arrival in Taiwan, for a stay of up to 30 days. This can only be done at Taoyuan International Airport. If you arrive at another airport, you will be given a temporary entry permit, which you will have to change to a visa at the Bureau of Consular Affairs in Taipei City.

You can also get a visa-on-arrival if you are holding an emergency/temporary passport that is valid for at least six months.

What If I Can’t Get Visa Exemption or eVisa?

If your passport belongs to a country that doesn’t have visa exemption privileges AND doesn’t allow e-Visas, you most likely will need to apply for a Taiwan visa at the nearest Taiwan embassy/mission/trade office in your country or region.

Here is a list of Taiwan embassies around the world. The applications requirements vary by country, visa type, and so on.

Taiwan Visas for Hong Kong, Macau, and China Passport Holders

If you have a passport from Hong Kong, Macau, or the People’s Republic of China (PRC), entering Taiwan is going to be a little more complicated.

Instead of a visa, you will need to apply for a special entry and exit permit for Taiwan, which are usually only issued for tour groups. China passport holders will also need to apply for a Mainland Resident Travel Permit. The number of travelers who can enter on these passports are also subject to quotas.

Hong Kong and Macau passport holders are no longer subject to the rule requiring a minimum of five people, so individual travelers are no allowed. They must apply for their entry/exit permit online here. Find more information about the application process here. PRC passport holders can find more information about how to apply here.

If you were born in Hong Kong or Macau but now have another passport, you can follow the rules of the other passport. If you were born in China, you have to live outside of China for at least four years before you can apply using the rules of your new country of citizenship.

Chinese residents of Penghu, Kinmen, or Matsu (some of the small islands of Taiwan which are close to China) can apply for a special permit to travel freely between these islands and China through specific ports.

ETA (Electronic Travel Authorization) for Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam Travelers

If you have a passport from Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, or Vietnam, and you meet the following, then you can apply here for an ETA (Electronic Travel Authorization) to enter Taiwan.

• Permanent resident card for Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, any EU or Schengen country, UK, or USA
• OR a valid entry visa to one of the above countries in the last 10 years
• Passport that is valid for at least 6 months
• You’ve never been a blue collar worker in Taiwan.

Find more info about the Electronic Travel Authorization here.

Now that you’ve figured out how to get a visa for Taiwan, read about the best time to visit Taiwan!