Job Discussion Forums

[craigzy]

hey, im just posting this to beef up the 'info bank' on the board.

ive been teaching in taiwan for over a year, and stupidly overstayed my visa. instead of quickly running to hong kong i just decided to wait for my new working permit to get a resident visa. 44 days.

ive got a black stamp in my passport. overstay fine paid at TPE immigration desk:
1-10 days - $1000nt
11-30 days - $3000nt
30-90 days - $5000nt
91+ - $10,000nt and youre likely screwed

keep the receipt and notice on hand. make sure to admit on your visa application that you overstayed. the kind lady at chungwa asked me to write a letter as to why i overstayed.

sky bus a-21 (day)/n-21 (night), can take you from the airport to kowloon and back. $33hk each way. grab one of the free maps on your way out of the airport.

i stayed on the 15th floor of the mirador mansions, 58 nathan rd. its a shithole, but not as nearly as scary and shady as some people make it out to be. although, i was solicited by a prostitute and a guy trying to sell me hash within 15 seconds of getting off the bus. it was rather amusing at first, but the watch/suit guys get annoying fast. $180hk for the room because it was late and i didnt feel like haggling or walking down 16 flights of stairs to find something better. the room was clean, and thats all i cared about, but you can find cheaper.

take the subway to admiralty station to get to the lippo center (chungwa travel agency). $8.50hk

chungwa travel agency is on the 40th floor of tower 1. they also have an office on the 4th floor with a photo booth (the pics i brought were too small), and copy machines.

getting there really early in the morning to file doesnt matter much as you see the same faces start to form a line at 3:45 in the afternoon and its first-come first-serve to collect.

the processing fee for my single entry resident visa was $1050 because im a yankee, and the express fee was $265. total $1315hk, which is just over $5000nt.

if youre planning on returning the same day, id suggest booking a flight after 8pm just in case. however, by the time you get to TPE it will be too late for the hsr so have a fun bus ride back to whatever town you call home.

hopefully this helps somebody out somwhere down the road.