Do I need a criminal record?

[TeaMan]

Hi,

I have been in Taiwan for five years and got married in September. I want to apply for the ARC based on marriage. My wife called and they told her that since I have been here for 5 years that I don't the Criminal Record Check from my home country and that I could get one from my local police station in Taiwan and that would be enough. I didn't see anything about this anywhere on the message board or anywhere else. Does anyone know anything about this?

Thanks

[Joesox]

If that is what they told you then great. Hartzell's post here;
http://forumosa.com/3/viewtopic.php?p=132406#132406
seems to imply that you do still need to get a CCRD from your 'home country', though.

I have no personal experience of this so cannot comment further.

[Hartzell]

I suggest that you visit MOFA-BOCA in person, or have a friend do so, and pick up a copy of the regulations which they have printed out. It should be easy to determine the facts of the matter by looking at the written regulations.

[sandman]

My wife has just got off the phone with the Taipei County FAP head honcho.
If you have been in Taiwan for at least 5 years on a resident visa, you do not need a criminal record document from your home country (this is for UK citizens. I don't know if the situation is the same for other nationalities).
Instead, you need to get a document from the re-entry bureau to prove the 5-years on a resident visa, plus another document from your relevant foreign affairs police office.

So, if you are a Brit and you've been here on a work-based resident visa for at least 5 years and wish to change to a Joining Family Resident Visa, you need:

1. Your marriage certificate
2. Your household registration document with your name on it
3. A health certificate
4. A photograph
5. A document from the re-entry bureau
6. A clean criminal record from your FAP office

I'm guessing that Hartzell's reference to the written instructions was tongue in cheek -- the English-language pamphlet on JFRV application makes no mention of items 5 and 6 whatsoever and instead stipulates a requirement for a document that does not exist, which has stopped me from applying for this kind of visa for almost 5 years.

Bitter? Who? Me?

[TNT]

Is this continous i.e it must be five consecutive years?

Do they use the calender year to measure the time i,.e if you came in September they would start the clock at Jan 1 the following year?

What is the minimum time each year you had the residence visa. If you drop your residence visa from the end of one year to the middle of the next year but are coming in and out of Taiwan on a visitor/ business visa, do they count this as missing time, else do they consider this as continous i.e having a residence visa for those two years, albeit not strictly continuos

[sandman]

Is this continous i.e it must be five consecutive years?

Do they use the calender year to measure the time i,.e if you came in September they would start the clock at Jan 1 the following year?

What is the minimum time each year you had the residence visa. If you drop your residence visa from the end of one year to the middle of the next year but are coming in and out of Taiwan on a visitor/ business visa, do they count this as missing time, else do they consider this as continous i.e having a residence visa for those two years, albeit not strictly continuos

I'm sorry, my wife didn't ask those questions as they don't apply in my case. I plan to begin the application process later this week and will post the exact names of the relevant Re-entry Bureau/FAP documents when I find out what they are.

[TeaMan]

Well different people tell you different things. The good news is that you don't need the CCRD from your home country if you've been here for 5 years. I know this because I just did all the paper work. I went to the Banqiao police station today to apply for the ARC and will have it by Wednesday next week.

I saved myself a lot of time and hassle this way. So if you've been here five years keep this in mind.
I did need to produce a document showing my record of entry and exit over the last years, so that should not be forgotten when you go to MOFA for your visa.

[MJB]

Nice..........

I got hitched back in 91 after already being here for almost 6 years.........The police record was by far the most troublesome document to aquire. I ended up getting one from my Grandparents area, even though I have never lived there. It took 4 damn months!

Please don't for a second take for granted the amount of hassle you have just been relieved from!

Congratulations!

[Traveller]

Getting a CCRD from the UK, or a Subject Access as it is known there, is not a major hassle, although can take some time, you do not even need to be there to do it. It can all be done by post.
This is a change that has only happened ion the last couple of years, hence why so few people know about.

If you have been here for 5 years or more then great, it now appears to be even easier, but if not, then this process is not impossible. If you have relatives etc back in UK to act as postmaster etc, then the whole process can be completed in about six weeks, that includes the ducument being authorised etc by the TECO in London.

[Shenme Niao]

A friend from New Zealand applied to enter Australia.
The immigration official asked: Do you have a criminal record?
To which my Kiwi friend replied: Um, is that still a requirement?