UPDATE: 12 July 2018
Taiwan’s visa-free trial for Filipinos has been extended until 31 July 2019! Read the full announcement here.
Okay, before you react: “Hey, Taiwan is NOT visa-free for Filipinos!”, let me tell you a fact: Taiwan now offers visa-free entry to qualified Philippine Passport Holders.
Under certain conditions, Filipinos can enter Taiwan with just a ROC Travel Authorisation Certificate which you can apply online for free. Yes, you’ve read that right — it’s totally FREE, no visa fees whatsoever. I immediately grabbed this chance using my expired Korean visa.
Now, let me share with you a simple step-by-step guide on how I did it.
Step 1: Check if you qualify for a visa-free entry
The first step is actually a no-brainer! If you have expired visas to these countries: Australia, Canada, Japan, Korea (like me), New Zealand, any of the Schengen countries, the United Kingdom, or the United States, then you might qualify for a visa-free entry. To know the exact conditions, please refer to the official release of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in the Philippines.
Step 2: Prepare your documents
Prepare your passport and expired visa to the aforementioned countries. You will need the info on these documents when you apply for your ROC Travel Authorisation Certificate online.
Notes:
- Passport must have at least six months remaining validity
- Visa should have expired less than 10 years prior to the date of arrival in Taiwan
- I booked a roundtrip flight (Manila-Taipei) prior to applying for a ROC Travel Authorisation Certificate
Step 3: Online application
Click HERE to apply for a ROC (Taiwan) Travel Authorisation Certificate online. The steps are pretty self-explanatory. You just have to input the information and click NEXT.
The only thing I found a bit confusing was the “Number” under “Special Requirements”. I’m not sure with the other visas but for my Korean visa, I typed the one found on the upper right corner of the visa with PH+11-digit number (including the digits on the second line).
Please see sample details below:
After clicking “Next“, you will be redirected to another page to validate all your information. Please see screenshot below:
Double check all info, enter the validation code and click “Submit“.
Step 4: Print your ROC Travel Authorisation Certificate
After submitting, you will receive a prompt that will tell you to PRINT OUT your certificate. Here’s my final ROC Travel Authorisation Certificate:
Step 5: Arrival in Taiwan
Upon arrival at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, I just showed the printed copy of my ROC Travel Authorisation Certificate to the immigration officer along with my passport, expired Korean visa and return tickets to the Philippines. I entered Taiwan without any problem at all!
Easy breezy, right?! Feel free to share this info to your travel buddies you’d tag along in your future Taiwan trip!
Also read: A Filipino Traveller’s Guide to Visiting Taiwan for the First Time
Disclaimer: I’m no visa expert. Everything I’ve written here is based on personal experience. If you have more personal queries and concerns, it’s still best to refer to the official website of the Taipei Economic Cultural Office in the Philippines as visa conditions might change from time to time.
