Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents

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Mainland travel permit
for Taiwan residents
Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents (front).jpg
File:Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents (back).jpg
Front and back of the travel permit
Issued by  China
Type of document Travel Document
Purpose Identification
Eligibility requirements Residents of  Taiwan
Expiration 5 years
Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents
Traditional Chinese 臺灣居民來往大陸通行證
Simplified Chinese 台湾居民来往大陆通行证
Taiwan compatriot permit
Traditional Chinese 臺胞證
Simplified Chinese 台胞证

The Mainland travel permit for Taiwan residents[1] (simplified Chinese: 台湾居民来往大陆通行证; traditional Chinese: 臺灣居民來往大陸通行證; pinyin: Táiwān jūmín láiwǎng dàlù tōngxíngzhèng, see below), also known as Taiwan compatriot permit (simplified Chinese: 台胞证; traditional Chinese: 臺胞證; pinyin: Táibāo zhèng, see below), is a type of travel document issued by Ministry of Public Security of the People's Republic of China (MPS) to nationals of the Republic of China (ROC, or commonly Taiwan) with household registration in the Taiwan Area for entry into Mainland China. The Republic of China passport is not considered as a valid travel document by the People's Republic of China.

The permit serves as an authorization for Taiwanese residents to visit or reside in mainland China.

Background and usage

Due to the special political status of Taiwan, neither the PRC nor the ROC recognizes the passports issued by the other and neither party considers travel between Mainland China and Taiwan as formal international travel. This permit is therefore issued as the travel document for Taiwanese residents to enter Mainland China since 1987, when then President of the Republic of China, Chiang Ching-Kuo, decided to lift the mutual travel ban across the Taiwan Strait.

The design of the older type permit takes the form of a regular machine-readable passport, but it does not have the National Emblem of the People's Republic of China printed on its cover as the regular PRC passport does. The document is valid for 5 years and has 32 pages. The current type's design is nearly identical to the Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents with a few differences, such as a different color scheme. Newer permits are also valid for 5 years.

This entry permit is practically the only valid identity document for Taiwan residents in mainland China. As a result, this travel document can be accepted in cases of real estate purchasing, banking, medical treatment, insurance, employment, and more. Due to its usage as an identity document and the increasing instances of Taiwanese's long-time stay and settlement in Mainland China, on 7 September 2008, the Taiwan Affairs Office announced that effective 24 September 2008, the issue number of mainland China entry permit for Taiwanese will remain unchanged during the person's lifetime. The Taiwan Affairs Office also announced 6 more airports eligible for entry-permit-on-arrival.[2] Since 20 October 2008, Beijing, Tianjin, Chongqing and Zhejiang can issue the 5-year permit. Together with Shanghai, Jiangsu and Fujian, there are, as of October 2008, 7 provinces and municipalities authorized to issue the permit to Taiwan residents.[3]

Application

Taiwanese can apply for the permit in China Travel Service (CTS) Limited's Hong Kong or Macau branches or through travel agencies in Taiwan. Renewal can be done in CTS branches in Hong Kong and Macau, travel agencies in Taiwan, as well as MPS bureaus in Mainland China.

Single-entry travel permit

The single-entry travel permit (not to be confused with "entry endorsements") is intended for Taiwanese residents who has never held the travel permit， or whose travel permit has recently expired, and who needs to travel to Mainland China. To be eligible, the applicant must hold his or her Taiwanese passport with remaining validity for more than six months, in conjunction with the person's Taiwanese ID card as well as two 2-inch photos. Some airports may require additional documents, such as a return ticket or an invitation letter. Eligible airports are: Shenyang, Qingdao, Dalian, Shanghai, Fuzhou, Xiamen, Wuhan, Chengdu, Haikou, Sanya, Beijing, Nanjing, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Guilin, Shenzhen, Xi'an, Changsha, Kunming, Harbin, Ningbo, Wuxi, Nanning, Wenzhou, Yancheng, Xuzhou, Zhengzhou, Changchun, Yantai, Tianjin, Jinan, Guiyang, Quanzhou, Nanchang and Hefei.[4] The single-entry travel permit is valid for a stay up to 3 months. Holder of a valid, long-term travel permit is not eligible to use this service, he or she must instead carry the long-term permit or will be refused entry for not doing so.

Entry endorsements (abolished)

Prior to 1 July 2015, for each entry into mainland China, permit holders needed to apply for an entry endorsement, which could be in the form of an immigration stamp or a visa-like vignette, that shows the document bearer's allowed duration of stay inside mainland China. Additional single-entry endorsements could be applied at Hong Kong International Airport and Macau International Airport outside Mainland China. Entry endorsements were classified as:

  • Single entry for 3 months (HKD 150)
  • Multiple entry within 1, 2 or 3 years

Certain employment, education or investment certification was required when applying for a 2- or 3-year multi-entry endorsements. In practice most Taiwanese travel agencies would prepare the necessary forms and have the documents with valid permits sent back to Taiwan by air. Around 1% of the applications are rejected, mainly to sensitive identities such as pro-Taiwan independence/Tibet independence figures, Falun Gong members and the like.[citation needed] Permit bearer could also apply for 3-month single-entry endorsement on arrival for CNY 100 in the following mainland Chinese airports or harbors, as long as the permit remains valid:[4]

Abolition

Effective from 1 July 2015, holders of the permit are no longer required to apply for entry endorsements when arriving Mainland China. The length of stay for Taiwanese residents are no longer restricted, however holder of the permit must leave Mainland China before the expiration date of the permit, or they must apply for renewal at the local MPS office.[4][5]

Entering Hong Kong and Macau with Mainland Travel Permit

Hong Kong authorities accept either ROC passport or Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan residents to enter Hong Kong. For ROC passport holders, pre-arrival visa which is separated from the passport is required, while the ROC passport is inspected to verify information. Entry and exit stamps were abolished in Hong Kong in 2013 and visitors are now only issued "landing slips", and the landing slip is a separated piece of paper which does not attach to their passports. For Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents holders, valid entry permit used to be required for entry but on 15 April 2009 Hong Kong authorities announced that effective 27 April 2009, Hong Kong will grant 7-day visa-free access to Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents holders without an entry permit.[6] Starting from 1 September 2011, the visa-free period was further increased to 30 days.[7]

If with valid entry permit, the Macau authorities also grant 30-day visa-free access to Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents holders although Macau authorities also grant 30-day visa-free access to ROC passport holders. Macau immigration officials now only stamp the Arrival/Departure card regardless of the visitor's nationality, which shall eventually be recalled upon visitor's departure from the territory.

Recent changes

File:Taibao zheng.jpg
Travel permit cover issued before July 1, 2015

During the 7th Straits Forum in Xiamen, Fujian in June 2015, Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Yu Zhengsheng, announced the abolition of entry endorsements and the restrictions on the period of stay for Taiwanese to visit or reside in Mainland China. Current booklet-format travel permit will be transformed into an ICAO-compliant biometric card, resembling the Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents. The change can be seen as a sign to facilitate travel between Taiwan and Mainland China.[8] The new policy took effect on 1 July 2015.[5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ IATA Database
  2. ↑ 台胞證一人一號 終身不變
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 台胞證落地申辦及加簽規定
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ 持台胞證赴港 可停留七天
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ http://focustaiwan.tw/news/acs/201506140018.aspx

External links

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