Bliss,

I agree with you that they're suspicious of former teachers, but there's also the fact that they make it difficult for ANYONE studying Chinese here to get a resident visa.

The system - 4 months of consecutive study (which doesn't coincide with the actual Shi-Da semesters) is not designed to facilitate the process for students.

So it basically means if you want to study here and not teach English, it's a pain in the ass, and involves visa runs.

I like studying Chinese, it's why I came to Taiwan, and Chinese proficiency is what I most need to take away from here when I leave, so I'll have to put up with some inconveniences in the short term from a visa run and such.

Do you miss teaching (besides the convenience of having an ARC)? I know I don't!

I don't miss teaching as such but I do miss the kids especially the kindergarteners... To be honest teaching didn't come easy for me even though I've been doing it for almost 6 years. It's funny, I just got used to my life in Taiwan and I find it more interesting and free, than life in Europe. I decided to start learning Chinese because I wanted to do something else in Taiwan except for teaching and thought knowing the language will help alot.

The thing is I would love to live in Taiwan but I've been having some really bad visa issues lately, if you've read this string you know about the resident visa problem. And a few months ago I was told by the TECO in my country that they will not give me any more visas as I've had too many.
The supprising thing is , I've always paid taxes and volunteered to help clean up the countryside and beaches etc. I like to think I've given back to the country that I lived in for so many years but they just make it so hard for us to stay and live there.
In my thinking, the harder you make it for foreigners to come and live in the country, the more isolated from the international community you become. Diversity is necessary for growth...Taiwan should be more open to other nations, and drop the paranoid protectionism...we're not all Chinese spies! Alot of these laws and rules, come from the old thinking of previous governments when they wanted to protect taiwan from the "enemy". Taiwan needs to change and open up its immigration and visa policy.

"Too many visas?" That sounds very odd. You've lived here 6 years and taught continuously except for changing recently to student status? Did you apply back home for numerous visas? In other words, alot of back and forth from home to Taiwan?

The year before I started studying, I had to leave Taiwan a few times, for various family reasons, with in a short period of time, this was before I managed to get my ARC sorted. So I applied for 3 visitor visas in the space of 4 months.
Getting an APRC is out of the question due to the the fact that I have been in Taiwan on various visas.

I know this thread is old, but the same thing is happening to me right now:

I called MOFA/BOCA a couple months ago and was told to provide these things:

study record
attendance record
3 months registration certificate from the school
financial statement (with a balance of more than 70,000NTD) in a Taiwan bank is best
application form with signature and 2 color photos
passport and copy
write a study plan
5,000NTD fee (I'm American)

I asked the woman on the phone that day if I should provide any proof of financial support from a bank outside Taiwan and she said no, a Taiwan bank account is better. She said NOTHING about showing proof of where the money came from. Otherwise, I would have pulled something together.

I went to BOCA a couple days ago to apply for the resident visa. Indeed, nobody bothered me about where the money in my bank account came from. But they nit-picked about 9 hours of missed class in my first semester (I missed 0 hours this semester) and made me write a statement about it. Then they made a point of showing me the clause on the back of the application form which says something about not needing to explain why, if my resident visa is denied, and made me sign my initials next to that clause.

My concern:
I've been living in Taiwan 5 years. I had a work permit/ARC to teach English until late last fall when I decided to quit teaching and become a student. I've jumped through all the hoops: left Taiwan to get a fresh visa for the purpose of study and completed four months at the school with good attendance and grades. But I understand how my situation will look to whoever processes my application: former-teacher-turned-student, probably working under the table now. DENIED.

Nobody at BOCA said a thing about proving my finances, and that's the most incriminating thing against me. Instead they highlighted my few absences from class and made a big deal of making sure I understood not to complain or ask WHY if they deny me. So I'm expecting to be denied.

I've extended the visitor visa twice already. If the resident visa is denied, I guess I have to leave.

Are there any work/ARC to student/ARC people reading this who can share their experience?

Update: My application for a resident visa was denied. The lesson learned I guess, is not to try for a student ARC after living and working in Taiwan for too many years.

The amusing thing here is that most banks won't let you open an account unless you have an ARC ... it's never been clear to me what people who haven't previously worked in Taiwan are supposed to do.

Incidentally, though, when I applied for my student ARC at the Taichung BOCA office (who I suspect are friendlier than Taipei), they told me they did want to see where the money came from. I did a wire transfer from my bank in the UK and got a receipt of it from my Taiwanese bank.

They gave me the visa and ARC with no problems, despite my having missed LOADS of classes, and despite my having already worked (as a teacher, and otherwise) in Taiwan for three years.

I'm sorry to hear about this. It looks like they are pretty random in applying the rules, then. Pretty silly, actually.

About the Taiwanese bank account. When you first arrive on a visitor visa, you can go to MOFA (or BOCA? not sure) and apply for an ID number. They will give you piece of paper with an ID number that you can use until you apply for your ARC four months later.

This paper allows you to open bank accounts, purchase SIM cards and other things that normally require an ARC. I don't exactly what it is, but I believe you have to be a student to get it. Feng Chia took a group of new students down to MOFA to get it during the first week of the term.

It's free and just takes an hour to process.