Can I have two work permits at the same time?

[Captain Stag]

I'm taking up a second job to supplement my income. My first job gives me 20 hours a week and my second job will give me 16. I already have an ARC/work permit with the first school but the new school also wants to give me a work permit. Is this possible? I'm not sure how that would be indicated on the ARC?....Can anyone shed any light on this please! Cheers

[ironlady]

I'm not up to date on this, but the one thing that occurs to me is whether someone will claim that your first job is actually more than 20 hours per week. That might be the real amount of hours you work, but officially it could be more, which might block you for another work permit even if it's "allowed".

I used to work part-time at various (government!) organizations while on another, unrelated ARC, and the organizations in question simply got me a letter approving the employment from the Ministry of Whatever Was Applicable at the Moment. They didn't bother applying for an ARC. At least that was the case for the extra part-time work. That might be the way to go, but you should check with the CLA (preferably have someone else check so your name is not flagged, just in case).

[seeker4]

This question has been asked before, but never fully answered. As far as I can tell, either no one knows, or whoever knows isn't posting. Although, it's a bit hard for us to know if the Taiwanese government doesn't know or isn't consistent about it.

I approached the question differently when at the Foreign Affairs Police last year sometime. I asked if I could have two employers simultaneously listed on my ARC. The clerk said no, but not in a way that filled me with confidence in his answer. However, there have been claims in the forums that it is possible. If two companies could be listed on an ARC, then it seems right that the process would logically start with two work permits. Ironlady's solution seems pretty simple, if your employer is willing and can navigate the bureaucratic maze.

A couple of older, related threads on the subject:
http://forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopic.php?p=204046
http://forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopic.php?p=90807

[ironlady]

I'm not sure it's even a maze, if no one says too much.
You have a work permit with Organization A.
You fill out the necessary forms with Organization B, and get the approval letters from the Ministry. You simply do not apply for the ARC as you already have one and it is still valid. Or am I missing something? At least that's what I did. Either that or simply teach without authorization at the second job (did I really say that? )

[Feiren]

I would do as Ironlady suggests. The law does not say that you can't have two work permits. Apply for it and see what happens. I very much doubt that anyone will check, and there is certainly no penalty for doing it.

[ironlady]

The thing to remember is that a work permit and an ARC are separate (this is my thought, of course, not necessarily the view of the nice folks at the CLA). In theory, if you're a garden-variety foreigner (not married to an ROC national and in Taiwan less than 7 years) you would have to obtain the right to be in Taiwan through your official activity (study, work, missionary activities, or visiting relatives). That government recognition of your purpose gets you an ARC -- the certificate that it's okay for you to be there. The ARC itself doesn't mean that you are okay to work, and in fact if you read it there's language that says that the ARC becomes invalid if the underlying work permit stuff is cancelled.

In the past, as I said, I always had one ARC but multiple jobs (each with a letter from the appropriate ministry saying it was okay to hire me for said job). And I always filed multiple (I mean like 8 or 10) lines of income on my tax return, and no one ever said a single word. The only time anyone commented was one year when my income dropped compared to the previous year, and they wanted to know what had happened.

[Captain Stag]

Thanks guys...I will just let my second job apply for a second work permit and just leave it at that. If the authorities ever ask questions, I'll have something valid to prove that I'm legally working there as well as the job that is listed on my ARC.

Cheers

[MotorcycleRider]

Sky, it is possible to have more than one work permit listed under a single ARC. I know for a fact because most of the teachers at my school have two because they work at different schools. The maximum is 3, which I have. The place you will work at needs to apply for the work permit for you. Then you just take it to the foreign affairs police department where you get your ARC renewed each year, and tell them you are adding another work permit under your ARC. They will simply write in the companies name and address on the back of your ARC under ammendments, and place an official stamp over it. There is NO charge or fees to add a second or third work permit to your existing one now. I work in Taipei and Taipei county so I know it works here. I'm not sure if the regulations are different in Taichung.

[ML McLean]

All,

Work permit is not the same as ARC. Work permit is the employer's responsbility. ARC can be either yours or the employer's responsbility (employers usually in a work context).

[Tetsuo]

FYI, I've got two work permits and two employers listed on my ARC. I had no trouble at all with it.