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blateson
Joined: 12 Mar 2006
Posts: 144
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 Posted: Sun Sep 03, 2006 8:35 am Post subject: Help plz, going for 60 visa, now in Taiwan, school help or? |
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I landed 2 weeks ago in Taiwan and have only the 30-day 1 time visa exempt stamp. In order to apply to schools I need what, the 60-day tourist visa yes? Then I must leave Taiwan with no exceptions. Go to Hong Kong I guess. Question, do I have a good chance of getting a school which is interested in me to help fund the trip? Or I have to foot the bill completely myself and not even begin agreements with the school until after I get back.
Another question, on another thread someone said they had to show a bank statement of $5000 USD. I'm not even close.
How does the HK trip work? Could I get a morning flight, arrive at a consulate by 10am, pick up a visa by 3pm and fly back to Taipei by night? Any help on that appreciated. I did a net search and all I got were bits of information but none mapped it out or explained step by step. |
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TaoyuanSteve
Joined: 05 Feb 2003
Posts: 1028
Location: Taoyuan
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| Posted: Sun Sep 03, 2006 9:09 am Post subject: |
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| You are best to seek out and obtain a job offer before leaving. Get a job offer and explain your situation to them. They will be best able to advise and help. I have heard of people being able to to 'convert' landing visas into resident visas in certain circumstancs in the past (usually due to a school's connections). Don't count on it, though, especially given that 2 weeks are already gone from your landing visa. Still, get a job and seek their advice on what to do. If you run out of time then, sure, go on your visa run. Don't leave off the job hunt any longer, though. |
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Ki
Joined: 23 Jul 2004
Posts: 475
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| Posted: Sun Sep 03, 2006 11:31 am Post subject: |
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It is/was possible to get your visa processed and picked up in one day (mon to fri) at Hong Kong. Best to give yourself some time though. Schools won't fund the trip. There are a few ways around the proof of funds deal. If you only have half the amount needed get a bank statement for that amount then transfer the cash into a different bank account and get a statement there.
Try to get some contact details of a Taiwanese friend here, including ID number. This will help clear your visa. |
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blateson
Joined: 12 Mar 2006
Posts: 144
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:39 pm Post subject: |
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thanks much for the replies.
interesting... i've been talking with a travel agent. she actually called up two Taiwan gov't offices and they both said that when I arrive to Hong Kong 'consulate', at that time I won't need to show bank account statements. She said they stated it officially. She said they stated to a) find a school here as a sponsor, b) go to HK Taiwan consulate and process for a visa, c) come back here and d) at that time the school will apply for IDs and work permits, etc.
By the way, what's the reason for advising NOT to tell the consulate or immigration officers that you want to travel to Taiwan in order to find work? Thanks.. |
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Dr_Zoidberg
Joined: 29 Sep 2004
Posts: 406
Location: Not posting on Forumosa.
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| Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 2:08 pm Post subject: |
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| They won't give you the tourist visa. They'll require you to go to the visa office with all the appropriate paper work so they can process your resident visa, arc, etc. Those take longer to process. |
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blateson
Joined: 12 Mar 2006
Posts: 144
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| Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2006 6:59 am Post subject: |
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| hi. not quite sure I understand. You mean if I did the above process then I would only be given another 30-day only visa exempt stamp all over again, and I wouldn't be given the necessary 60-day tourist visa while in Hong Kong that everyone else gets? Could I get some details on that? My money is dwindling down and I can't afford more airplane tickets and mistakes only to be given another 30-day only visa because of mistakes. I have to make sure that when I pay for this trip to HK soon that I will be lined up for the correct 60-day tourist visa, allowing me to then process for ARC and working here. Likewise showing a bank statement wouldn't show much at all anyways, so I hope this travel agent is right. Thanks. |
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trukesehammer
Joined: 25 Mar 2003
Posts: 168
Location: The Vatican
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| Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2006 10:22 am Post subject: Re: Help plz, going for 60 visa, now in Taiwan, school help |
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| blateson wrote: |
| I landed 2 weeks ago... 30-day 1 time visa... I need 60-day tourist visa? Then I must leave Taiwan with no exceptions... Hong Kong... school help fund the trip? bank statement of $5000 USD? How does the HK trip work? morning flight, pick up a visa by 3pm and fly back to Taipei by night? |
Hmmm, let me see if I remember how it worked. Mind you, this was waaaaaay back in 1997; things might have changed since then, which they frequently do here in Asia.
STEP ONE: Contact a good travel agent. And I do mean GOOD, because back in 97, there were a lot of crooks out there. They liked to overcharge and tack on all sorts of "last minute charges" when you arrived at their offices to pick up your ticket.
STEP TWO: Hop on the plane, usually Thai Airways or China Airlines. Make sure you get the earliest possible morning flight.
STEP THREE: Arrive in HK, take the new high-speed train, transfer at Central Station, get on red or blue line, get off at ADMIRALTY. For directions, check out this cool map.
STEP FOUR: Look for this building. It is called the Lippo Tower. I remember when I first did a visa run and wandered around all over Hong Kong Island looking for the so-called "Chung-Hua Travel Service." If I'd'a known it was in the Lippo Building, things would have gone a lot smoother. Make sure you get there early!
KWANG HWA INFORMATION & CULTURE CENTER
Address: 40th Floor, One Pacific Place, 88 Queensway, Hong Kong.
Tel 25235555
Fax 2522 2801 , 2522 2768
Website:www.taiwaninfo.org
email: [email protected]
Opening hours:
Mon - Fri : 9:00a.m. - 7:00p.m.
Sat : 9:00a.m. - 3:30p.m.
Closed on Sunday and public holidays
STEP FIVE: When you arrive, double-check to make sure you're nicely dressed, your tie is on straight, your hair is combed, you're clean-shaven or nicely groomed, you have enough free pages on your passport, you've brought 4 passport-sized photos of yourself, you have enough money just in case there's some new "visa fee," and you're wearing a nice, friendly smile. Enter the office, fill out the forms, and be prepared to be treated like a criminal. Bite your tongue and keep smiling when you submit your forms.
NOTE: If you arrive after 12noon, be prepared to hear, "come back tomorrow." Or be prepared to pay a "rush fee" if you want your visa on the same day, which you still may or may not receive on time for your flight home.
STEP SIX: If you've taken my advice and arrived early, submitted your paperwork, passport, and photos, you'll probably have a few hours to kill while they process your visa. You can go downstairs and wander the streets, take in the local culture, gawk at all the cool electronic gadgets for sale, chill at a park, hit a museum, or enjoy some local food.
STEP SEVEN: Return to the Lippo Building, present your receipt, pick up your passport with visa and split.
STEP EIGHT: Take the subway and high-speed rail back to the airport and hop on your plane back to Taipei. 
This is, of course, the best-case scenario. Be prepared for all sorts of bad news. --Oh yeah, and make sure you check out this website for added tidbits. Good luck; you are gonna need it.
--One last thing. The folks in Hongkong once gave me yet another 30-day nonrenewable visa and somebody recommended I just do this:
Apparently, back in 1997 you could avoid the visa crap by simply enrolling into a Chinese language school and getting a STUDENT VISA. But you'd still be working illegally, which is exactly what I did until I finally found a school with enough foreigner savvy and guanxi with the government to get me all set up free and legal.
--OOH! Almost forgot to answer your other question. Bank statements. You got a local friend whom you can trust and who can trust you? Open up a bank account and have him or her dump NT200,000 into it for a couple weeks. It worked for me back in 1999.
Last edited by trukesehammer on Thu Sep 07, 2006 7:48 am; edited 1 time in total |
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blateson
Joined: 12 Mar 2006
Posts: 144
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| Posted: Wed Sep 06, 2006 1:31 pm Post subject: |
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thanks a whole bunch. I actually printed it out!
By the hunch I'm getting, it sounds like MAYBE they will ask for bank account or MAYBE they won't, just from what people are saying online. does that sound about right? And in any event, if I get all the way over to HK and then don't have a bank statement, I wonder if they'd really be heartless enough to reject a 60-day application supposing I had followed all the other advice down the line. anyhow, thanks! |
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trukesehammer
Joined: 25 Mar 2003
Posts: 168
Location: The Vatican
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| Posted: Thu Sep 07, 2006 7:31 am Post subject: |
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| blateson wrote: |
| thanks a whole bunch... MAYBE they will ask for bank account or MAYBE they won't... HK... reject a 60-day application... |
Sorry to tell you this, but I have never been able to squeeze a 60-day visa out of the folks in HK. But that doesn't mean it's impossible. Maybe they'll give it to you because you're handsomer than I. 
At any rate, your best bet is to come here, get a (good) job as quickly as possible, and then follow your employer's / coworker's / personnel director's advice. That $5000 bank statement sounds really weird to me. But then again, I had to do that once --for some reason which now escapes me.
--Almost forgot: If you plan on going the HK route, make sure the Guang Hua Visa Place is still in the same place. I haven't been there since 1999 so I don't know if it's even in the Lippo Building anymore. Does anybody else out there in Dave's ESLland know?
Good luck.
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Girl Scout
Joined: 13 Jan 2005
Posts: 525
Location: Inbetween worlds
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| Posted: Sat Sep 09, 2006 12:54 am Post subject: |
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I went to the Lippo Centre a year and a half ago. It took 24-hours. When they could not guaruntee same day delivery, I refused to pay the extra fee. Unfortunately, I had to show a bank statement. At that time, I only needed the equivelant of $2,000US. The scary part came when they gave me a piece of paper with a bar code on it and told me the actual visa would be printed at a special window at CKS airport. I was told they no longer give visas in the HK office.
It worked out. The visa was printed, with my picture and everything, right there at the airport. |
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