- Chinese Proverb
The tourist visa is usually for two months if applying from your home country, but it can vary in different countries. Eg the Hong Kong office these days has tightened up and will only give you a month long visa which is a problem because schools can take over a month to arrange a work visa (see Q 25 for details) and South Africans can have trouble. You can arrange a work visa from within Taiwan if you have a visitors visa. Note that technically you can't convert a landing visa or visa exempt entry into a work visa. You need to start with a visitor visa although in practice I've heard of people getting around this with a letter of intent to hire from your prospective boss. When applying for your tourist visa it pays not to tell them you are are wanting to teach English. They might think you intend to teach illegally and I've heard of people being banned from Taiwan for a year after admiting they intended to look for work. On the other hand I've heard of someone who admited at customs they were teaching illegally and they still let them in!
One quirk with Taiwan work (resident) visas is that you need a letter of release to change jobs even if you have completed your contract although many people manage to slip through the system. Without a release letter or confirmation via telephone call you may not be able to legally get another residency permit for a year although many move to a different province and just apply for another work visa. Technically this is illegal but many do it. Most schools will refuse to give you a release letter if you leave early for whatever reason so some people end up teaching on student visas (see below).
Another quirk is that you will need a medical exam which costs around 1400 NTD (if done in Taiwan) before you can get your work visa. This exam includes various blood and other samples etc. Its not really that big a deal (apart from the unpleasant experience) unless you have some serious complaint or disease like HIV/Hep.
If you can't get a work visa the best option is to enroll for a language course and then you don't have to leave on visa runs every month. Many do this even if they can get a work visa so they don't get tied down with one school. This is only good for six months and then you have to go to Hong Kong to start the process up again (see Q26). A major stumbling block with this is you need to show you have funds of NT$60-100,000. So a work visa is usually the best option if you don't have much money. Also then you can deposit money into your bank account (safer than storing it under the mattress) and wire money abroad. The disadvantage is that schools tend to think they own you once you sign for a work visa (see here for a more detailed discussion).
Tax reasons (see below) play an important part in why the first half is much tighter than the second when theres more work. December/Jan is the slowest period, there can be more teachers than jobs at this time especially in the big cities. Also avoid arriving during the Chinese new year around early Feb when everything closes down for a week (the date varies, check a lunar calender). Things can be slow after this week and some schools close down as long as three weeks. Things pick up dramatically again over summer (June, July August), and reach a peak around late August early September until just after the new semester starts. Things slowly quieten down until by November things are pretty quiet again.
Regarding taxes its better to arrive before July (go here for a list of tax rates). If you're going the work visa route you need to get your visa before july otherwise you will pay an actual tax rate of 20% instead 6-9% for the year (they work on the calendar year) or if you come late in the year like September you won't pay the 20% very long since you won't be paying any tax until they process your work visa which can take two months anyway. This is different from the witholding rate which is usually charged at 20% for your first six months (in case you don't stay for six months in which case the school still has to pay the govt 20% not 6-9%) and then 6-10% after that.
Lets put it another way: For your first 183 days (about six months) in Taiwan, your employer will normally withhold 20% of your earnings. After that, your earnings will be withheld at 6-10%. You will get back about 11-14% of your earnings at tax time PROVIDED your visa start date is July 1 or earlier. However, if for some reason you are unable to stay 183 days (time on the tourist visa counts towards the 183 days) in a calendar year, you will forfeit all of your taxes to the Taiwan Government. Also if you leave temporarily for a while, those days will be deducted from the 183 residency days that you need. For this reason the biggest demand for teachers is in the second half of the year. Paying 20% tax really cuts into your savings so thats a very good reason not to come straight after June if you're going to apply for a work visa.
Bottom line the best time is mid August aiming for the Sept 1 semester start if you're getting a work visa. This is when offered salaries are the highest (up to 10000/mth higher) which you can lock in for a year if you get a contract and work visa. You will only lose the 20% tax for Nov/Dec because they take two months to process your work visa when you won't be paying any tax at all. The higher salaries and the opportunity of being able to pick the best jobs will more than make up for paying the 20% tax for two months by a long shot (if you stay with the school).
One of the places to look in Taiwan, as in most countries, is the local papers. For Taiwan the best one for jobs is the China Post. Most schools don't advertise on Daves Cafe and this paper doesn't yet put their full classified ads online. Most schools prefer to interview in person unlike say Korea where you can get a job over the phone. The jobs advertised in the paper can be of a slightly better quality than those offered by recruiters abroad, especially those recruiting in South Africa. Theres been an increasing number of SA teachers brought over on up to half the standard salary usually paid and they're none the wiser till they get here. Still even the jobs advertised in the paper are not always the best paid jobs and you will usually find you're just one of many people turning up for the jobs advertised.
A bigger source of jobs than the newspaper in Taiwan is through teacher agents. One full time agent can recruit for up to a hundred schools (many of which are often illegal) and thus can get you a lot of work if the agents well connected. Beware though, the agents are usually sharks! Lying can be the least of their faults. Still at least you know that there won't be a dozen teachers turning up for the job interview and so as long as you do a good demo and they like you you've got the job. Not only does the school have to pay the agents around NT$30000), the agent will usually charge you a fee as well even when sometimes they claim not to. Jenny Lai one of the biggest will charge you 20% of your first months salary but at least its a once off charge. Vivian and Landa will just pay you 550/h and take a cut off the top (Landa denies that they do!) equivalent to about 20% every month for as long as you work there... Its like paying tax twice over. 600/h is the minimum for part-time work. Some of the smaller agents like Jane and Linda Lin are better and cheaper. Try not to work illegally in municipal Taipei unless you don't mind being deported. Its better to get work in the satelite cities like Sanchung, Chong ho, where the police are less vigilent. If they do nab you you can just get a new passport and come straight back. If you're a citizen in some countries like NZ where they have a recipocal arrangement you can now work legally part-time on a student visa once you've put through an application. To find the agents phone numbers in the area you're looking you will need to network, eg in the foreigner bars, hostels and other hangouts. In my opinion though the best way to get a job is to avoid those odious agents altogether and go check out the schools yourself. Just buy a mobile, get some name cards printed up and hand out copies of your resume.
Its estimated it will lower your life expectancy by a year if you stayed there for all of your life. But you will just be there for a short time so its pretty insignificant. Compare this with smoking which lowers your life expectancy by around seven years.
All the cities like Tokyo, Seoul, Jakarta etc are fairly similar. The big exception are the cities in mainland China. They are several times worse than Tokyo etc. Why? They are off the scale mainly due to their burning too much coal. Back to Taiwan people often expect Taipei to be the worst having the most people (around 6 mill in the county) but actually it gets worse the further south you go where its more industrialised. The very worst is Kaohsuing at the bottom of the island on the pollution readings. The best place to live for clean air is the area of the island on the east side of the mountains which measure about half of Taipai for pollution. Taipei used to be a lot worse but they've really cleaned up their act. In the latest reading from Asiaweek Taipais around the same as Seoul/Pusan with a reading of 52 to 62/56. Kaohsuing however is 140!
Compared to Korea I would say that overall its a bit dearer (especially public transport which is about twice the price) although some things are actually cheaper. An important factor with Taiwan relative to Korea is that there is a much wider variation in prices in Taiwan than in Korea where theres more uniformity. Thus even though on average it tends to be dearer for some things its actually possible to live cheaper (at least if you're out of Taipei) in Taiwan. Eg looking at internet costs. In Korea its typically 1000 won/h but can run to 1500 esp in downtown city centers. In Taiwan it might average NT$30 (about 1200 won) but some places go as low as 15 dollars (others are as much as 45/h or 1620 won) which is only about 540 won which you would never get in Korea.
Another issue is this perception that Taipei is hughly expensive and its true that it can be. This perception is mainly due to there being an extra higher class of shops in Taipei. Eg up market restaurants and pubs. These places arn't cheap. But does that mean you can't live as cheaply as in the smaller cities? Thats largely up to you. If you like to shop Taipei will give you all the opportunities you need to spend your relatively meager salary. Meager? Yes, there will be many more richer people than you in Taiwan. Even Taxi drivers earn 60000-100000 a month in Taipei which will probably be more than you make. But returning to costs, generally you can get most things at a similar price in Taipei to elsewhere in Taiwan. All 7/11, supermarket stuff etc is much the same price. Even on Nanking Rd you can pick up a lunch box for $60 about the same as other cities. Rents are dearer but that largely just means you have to rent with others so you only end up paying an extra 3000 or so a month. Coffees can go as high as 160/cup in Taipei at a slightly stylish cafe but the Starbucks still charge 90 for a tall Late similar to other cities. So what am I saying? As long as you don't think you will go crazy with all the shopping opportunities, nightclubs (cost around 500 just to get in) and variety available in Taipei then you will be fine. For a lot of people the rich diversity in Taipei makes it the only place to be.
Some prices for things in Taipei:
Apartments: 5000(unfurnished)-8000(furnished) outside
Taipei for your own place.
Around 7000-10000/room for a shared 3-bedroom
place in Taipei
Deposits in addition to rent are usually 2-3
months worth.
Hostels: Around 7000/mth in Taipei for a room (difficult to
get in summer) or 5000 for a dorm.
Food: 60-80 to have a lunch box filled with rice and meat
etc.
A more up market local restaurant can run 100-300 and
even 600 at the high end.
Foreign Restaurants can go 100(MacDonalds)-1000(high
end) for a meal depending on how up market it is and
how foreign it is. Eg German food is more expensive
than Thai (Asian).
Sandwich from a 7-11: 25-35
Juice: 15-35
Coffee: around 80-120 although some places can run to 160
Mango: 20-30 in season depending on the size and color
Beer: expensive, 100 for the local brew, 150 for foreign
beer at a modest bar even outside Taipei.
Beer from a 7-11: 40 or so for a can of imported stuff.
Buses: 15-30 for up to a half hour trip across Taipei
Subway (MRT): 20-55
Taxis: 70 for the first 1500m and $5 for every additional
300m in Taipai county.
Scooter (secondhand): 7-20000
Electrical goods are similar to back home.
Internet cafe: 30-40 or so for an hour on
average but can go as low as 15. In Taipei you
will often need to become a member to get the
cheaper rates of 20/h
Movie: 250 for a new release although you can get daytime
discounts. Taipei can run up to 290. For some reason
movies are extra dear in Taiwan relative to their
standrd of living.
Newspaper: 15
Chinese classes: 2000-4000/mth
Airticket to Hong Kong : 8-10000 for a day trip depending on
the time of year, about 7000
with BA if you stay two nights.
Chinese Language Course: 9000+ for three months to get the
student visa.
Disadvantages with Taipei? The schools in Taipei can be very fussy. Theres just so many teachers looking there these days (2001 onwards) that some schools will fire you if like you sit down for five minutes in class! Schools in smaller towns would usualy talk to you first if something bothered them. The right accent (Nth American) will usually get you in the door no problem but you will still need a reasonably dynamic personality to keep the job. You need to be able to entertain the kids while at the same time keeping them quiet. Those from other countries will need to impress a bit harder with your charm. It's very hard (relatively speaking, ie. you actually have to work at it a bit) to get a job in Taipei as compared to the towns.
More experienced travellers might consider spending some time in southern Taiwan as well. For most the concentration of ex-pats and the stimulation/nightlife mean Taipeis the only place to go but its very westernized and if you want to soak up something more traditional/authentic, enjoy a slower pace of life and much nicer scenery, go shopping in the morning markets (the ones in Taipei are pathetic), relax among the rice paddies, then a jaunt in the "countryside" can be a very nice change.
In terms of the demand for teachers Taiwan can be divided up into 3 broad areas: 1)the big three including the wider northern/Taipei area, Taichung and Kaohsiung 2) the east coast 3) western/southern Taiwan. The scenic east coast is actually the hardest place to get work and many go there every week without finding a job. The schools usually want experience and some Chinese ability. Taipei/Taichung/Kaoshiung and more broadly speaking Taipei and Taoyuan county are the second hardest and there are always a few people looking who don't make the grade and end up going home with their tail between their legs. Kaohsiung aren't as demanding as Taipei although it actually takes longer to find a job since theres less schools. If you can't find something in a couple of weeks in Taipei you should consider looking at smaller cities down south. Over half the people in Taipei and Taichung are probably from Canada with the rest Brits, Americans etc. In the countryside down south pretty much anyone can find work and they mostly employ South Africans there these days although I've seen people from Poland, Russia, Iran etc. The other big cities down south like Kaohsiung, Tainan, are a mixture with lots of Canadians but also South Africans.
The biggest disadvantage usually cited with Taipei is that people can have trouble saving money. Wages are a little lower and its more expensive (dearer than Seoul). Accommodation is dearer, you might pay an extra 3000 NTD or so a month and have to share a flat. Mainly though its just that theres so many opportunities for spending your hard earned money.If you don't have the saving discipline you might want to go a bit further south. You don't need to go far. Just in eg Taoyuan rents are cheaper and the whole pace of life is much less frenetic. The south is usually cited for its traditional culture and it has even more temples!
Agents in Taiwan usually have the better paying jobs (again outside Taipei) thn you would find in he papers. See question 5. Teaching kids usually pays more than adults (too many people want to do it and theres not so many adult schools in Taiwan). Outside Taipei usually pays more than in Taipei although I've heard of teachers getting as low as 350 in the country. And thats before taking prep time into account. Truely pathetic. Unknowing teachers who sign from abroad often get less than they offer locally esp whats been a wave of South African teachers who may be offered only half of a standard salary. They must get bit of a shock when they get here.
You will need your original degree (not recommended) or a copy to get the work permit. A copy can be signed by the Taiwan consulate or by a notary public, a type of internationally accredited lawyer. Bring lots (say a dozen) of passport type photos for all the applications you will have to submit. Also an international drivers license is technically required since you may be required to drive to different jobs via scooter. In practice however most foreigners just drive around without a license (an international licence is only good for a couple of months or so apparently and then you have to sit for a local licence). Peoples perception of breaking laws here is a lot different from back home. Indeed if you follow the law all the time here people will consider you a bit strange!
Part of all this involves being very polite, concealing negative emotions of anger or annoyance etc because that would cause the other person to lose face. Its also part of the Confucian thing of avoiding conflict and confrontation. Of course if you want the other person to lose face thats okay if you're not worried about it coming back to bite you. So expect lots of flattery, self-deprecation and flowery rhetoric. Eg if you're invited to dinner the hostess will apologise for some dish being no good. Actually though this will be the best dish! So please be very complimentary. Another thing is gift giving all of which is involved in "guanxi", a complex arrangement of mutual obligations. If your boss is being very nice to you its a good idea to give them a gift. There are different gifts suitable for different occasions but in this case some expensive tea would be nice. Tea is highly valued here and theres a whole mountain in Taipai covered in tea cafes some of which are open 24 hours. No alcohol involved at all!
The most important thing you need to do is be extra nice to your boss, or in other words kiss ass. Watch how your co-workers behave. They are obedient to the the point of servility and this is what the bosses are used to. Its just how they are culturally. When in Rome...adapt or perish.
General dos and don't include don't touch peoples heads (children are fine), take your shoes off (inherited from the Japanese colonial period apparently) when going into someones house, its better to avoid using your left hand when giving or receiving something esp something important and instead use both hands etc.
For further reference I would suggest: Culture Shock! by Chris and Lin-li Bates
If you don't want a student visa (eg you don't have $US3000 or you want to apply for a work visa later) then traditionally people have gone to Hong Kong but now they've toughened up on those doing "tourist" visa runs and only give a one month visa instead of the desired two months unless you have enrolled at a language school and have the papers. At a whopping NT$8-10000 just for an airticket (on a day trip) plus high visa fees and airport taxes etc its getting pretty expensive to go to HK.
Alternatives? Theres an office in Singapore that gives two month visas but they take 2-4 days to process it and your boss may not want to lose you for that long. Also they may ask to see that you have sufficient funds (US$3000) at that branch. Again South Korea gives two month visas but they can take up to 72 hours to process (although I've had them do it in as little a a day) and airfares to Korea are more expensive (around NT13000 compared to around NT10000 to Osaka).
Best bet? In a word Japan. They give TWO month visas (this is useful since schools can take ages to submit the work visa applications while they try you out). They process it in the SAME DAY. Ticket prices to Japan (Osaka, Fukuoka etc) are similar to HK and to Okinawa its even slightly cheaper. You should book to leave on a Sunday so you can get the aplication in early and fly out Monday night. Then you only miss one day of work. So why do most people still go to HK. Basically because thats all people know, its convenient, they speak English etc. But Japan is cheaper and not hat hard (I've done it two times). Address: Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, No. 12-42, Sakurazaka, 3-chome Chuo-ku, Fukuoka Japan Tel 7342810 or for Osaka: Taipei Economic and Cultural Office 4FL, Nichi-Ei Bldg. 4-8, 1-Chome, Dosabori, Nishi-ku, Osaka, Japan Tel 64438481.
For a HK run (the consulates called the Chung Hwa Travel Service) get an early plane if you want to try and get it done in a day. You will need to land in HK by 10:00 so you can make it to the Taiwan office by 12:00 at the latest. After 12:00 you have to pick it up the next day. Actually its hard to get there on time if you are coming from Taipei rather than Kaohsiung so you may need to stay one night. The same day visa now costs $HK420, overnight its $280.
When you arrive at the airport quickly pick up a map and tourist stuff and then you can either take the subway or get a bus to get to Hong Kong Island (the commercial heart of greater HK) from the airport on Lantau Island. The bus is cheaper and you get to see HK so if you go that way buy a return airbus ticket for $HK65 and get on the A11 bus. Ask the bus driver to let you off at the Admirality stop (or Central if they can't understand although their English is generally quite good). Keep your eyes peeled for the Lippo Tower when you're getting close cause thats where you're headed. Check your map for landmarks if you don't immediately spot the tower. Get some two passport photos with a white background (yes they are particular) done at the photoshop down stairs as you're coming in. Cost: about $HK40. Go to the 40th floor of Tower 1 and you're there. Remember you will need a confirmed outgoing ticket from Taiwan dated before your visitor expires (need to get it stamped if changing the date) just in case the consulate people ask as they seem to do about half the time. You can get a refund done on this extra ticket if brought in Taiwan but if you're forced to buy it in HK you won't be able to get it refunded. As long as you get your application in before 12:00 you can pick up your visa at 4:00 otherwise you will need to come back the next morning.
If you are stayng the night the cheap digs are over in Kowloon which is the tourist district. You can grab a ferry over (only HK$2:20!) and you will be able to get a great view of HK from the water. Most people usually go and stay at either Chungking House or the Mirador which are full of cheap hostels (on Nathan Rd see the map of Kowloon below). They're not flash and are full of immigrants and backpackers etc but at around 100-150 a nite for your own room they're on the cheap end for HK. Dorms are about $60/night. You can phone beforehand if you want from the free phone at the airport (Fortunate Guest House 2366 5900 is one of many places) but they always seem to have plenty of rooms and you will probably be under some some pressure to get to the consulate on time. Theres a Cyber Cafe downstairs in the Chungking House and theres another one over west on Ashley Road. Thats pretty much it. Make sure you have plenty of money just in case although apart from accomodation and the airport subway costs its pretty reasonable, certainly nothing like Japan. Don't forget to keep $HK80 for the airport departure tax from HK otherwise you might have some trouble getting back.
If you're going to Singapore the consulate there is called the Taipei Representative Office in Singapore Republic of Singapore and is located at 460 Alexandra Road,
#23-00, PSA Building Singapore 119963, Ph 278-6511. Office hours are 9-5 with an hour off for lunch.
Here are some maps of Hong Kong etc (just pass the cursor over the pictures for info):
Secondly, many of the contracts that they will ask you to sign over here look dubious and may contain questionable clauses. Once you get your ARC they seem to think they "own you" although some teachers take it the other way and just come and go on a multiple entry resident visa for a year. Of course thats illegal once you leave the initial school and they cancel your ARC but so far the computer systems aren't linked and they have no idea when you go through the airport that the visa in your passport is cancelled. Its mainly an attitude thing about the ARC but if your boss decides he wants to cheat you on your pay or whatever your options are very limited. They seem to basically regard themselves as your "master". Now some masters are nicer than others and I have seen some schools treat their workers very well indeed. All to often through they tend to screw their teachers over even if its just something like getting them to do excessive hours of unpaid prep. Essentially if they are in a position to take advantage of you theres a good chance they will. For the Chinese money and family is everything. The official visa situation in Taiwan would seem to be the worst anywhere. Even if you have finished your contract technically you still need a release if you want to work somewhere else although inpractice many people slip through thye system and seem to get new ARCs without a release letter. As far as legal rights go in Taiwan they are virtually nonexistant and even weaker than in Korea. Taiwan is corrupt to the core politically, legally etc. So if greed takes over or if they decide they don't like you (theres always one teacher whos unfavourably compared to some others) you may find you have some troubles. One thing to watch out for is when they cancel your residency permit before they fire you (you have about 7 days to get out) and then immigration may refuse to let you back into the country because of overstaying. If you do get deported for whatever reason you can just go to Thailand or wherever and get a new passport (may need your birth certificate) to get back in.
So what are the advantages of contracting? Well you don't have to live with the anxiety of being caught (try not to work in municipal Taipai illegally as the authorities there are more vigilent). Also you can do things like transfer money home more easily, buy scooters etc.
Basically I would definitely suggest just getting a student visa through CLI (don't need to attend classes or even reside in Taipei) and getting three or so part-time jobs like kindy in the morning and a couple of bushiban jobs in the afternoon. Students from some countries like NZ with recipical arrangemnets can now also work part-time legally but you need special permission and are still bound to one school like with an ARC.
The first step in the application process is you need to get a copy of your degree certified by your local Taiwan consulate or a notary public (a type of internationally accredited lawyer). This can take some time if you're sending it home (like a couple of weeks) so its best to get it done before you come over. You will then (or concurrently) need to get the medical check. This is quite through and in addition to checking for the obvious like HIV/Hep they also check for parasites, eyesight, etc. Now why do they check eyesight? Who knows. All that might mean is that you need glasses which a lot of Chinese do anyway. As part of the testing you may need to give blood, urine and even sometimes stool samples. You will also need to show your passport. The results from this take 7-10 days to come back and it costs about NT$1400 (if done in Taiwan). While you're waiting you will need to obtain a translation of your degree. This may cost about NT$1200 and you will need the translation plus the English version in triplicate. Armed with all this and other documents like photocopys of every page of your passport in triplicate (you have to sign every page!), lots of passport photos, your actual passport etc, they send it all off and eventually they give you your ARC card. Now you should get it all back in three weeks or so but as mentioned some schools will delay. This is if the school does it all for you, some will make you do all the running around and some like HESS even make you pay for the application etc. As noted before once its submitted you don't have to leave the country even if your tourist visa is about to expire. They might not tell you this though.
