Taiwan to tighten residency rules for Hongkongers
Surge in applications prompts rethink of special requirements for residents of city and Macau
A surge in the number of Hongkongers and Macau residents applying to live in Taiwan has prompted immigration officials in Taipei to propose tighter regulations on permanent residency.
Their proposals call for a doubling of the sum people from the two special administrative regions must invest to qualify for "investment immigrant" status, an official with the National Immigration Agency said. The new figure would be NT$10 million (HK$2.55 million) - much more than the NT$6 million for investors from elsewhere in the world.
A clause that allows residents of the two cities to acquire residency by having NT$5 million or more in a Taiwanese bank account for more than a year would also go, she said, citing the fact no other country or territory offered such an arrangement.
Rules on residency for relatives would also be tightened. Hongkongers would no longer be able to apply on the basis that their spouse had a sibling or parent with Taiwanese residency.
"The tightening is to prevent an unusually sharp rise in the number of immigrants to Taiwan," said the official, who is in charge of drafting the proposal.
On the investment visa, the official said: "Our statistics show that not many Hong Kong or Macau investors are interested in becoming citizens, despite making huge investments in Taiwan."