AMENDED RULES FOR PRC NATIONALS' COMMERCIAL VIS-ITS TO TAIWAN

01/01/2009

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On 26 November 2008, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) amended its Directions on the Review of Applications for Mainland-Area Economic and Trade Specialist to Visit Taiwan for Economic and Trade Related Activities (the Review Directions), and its Directions on the Assessment of Invitations in Excess of the Annual Maximum under Article 6 Paragraph 1 of the Regulations on Permissions for People of the Mainland Area to Visit Taiwan for Commercial Activities (the Assessment Directions).  The main points are as follows:
Amendments to the Review Directions
The Review Directions are a set of internal directions used by the Investment Commission of the MOEA when examining applications for PRC nationals to visit Taiwan under the Regulations on Permissions for Mainland-Area Specialist Personnel to Visit Taiwan for Specialist Activities.  Such regulations and their ancillary application documents define mainland-area "economic and trade specialist" as (1) high-ranking personnel of private-sector economic and trading organizations at the provincial or special municipal level or above, and (2) necessary accompanying secretaries.  "High-ranking personnel of private-sector economic and trading organizations" means persons holding the position of director, supervisor, or secretary-general of such an organization, or another equivalent position.  Applications made by inviting entities under the above legislation are limited to invitations for mainland-area specialist personnel to come to Taiwan to conduct visits and attend meetings of an economic or trade-related nature.
The latest amendments to the Review Directions expressly define the Investment Commission as the approving agency, and, in order to invigorate cross-strait exchange, they relax from 30 to 200 the maximum number of visitors for which ordinary applications may be made each year by a single applicant entity.  The following types of invitation remain free from restrictions on the number of invitees:
Ÿ	Invitations to attend international economic and trading events in Taiwan Taiwan .
Ÿ	Subject to official approval, participation in international commercial exhibitions staged in Taiwan Taiwan .
Ÿ	Personnel of cross-strait intermediary organizations visiting Taiwan to handle affairs relating to cross-strait economic and trade exchange.
Ÿ	Other cases in which there is determined to be a special need.
Amendments to the Assessment Directions
Under Article 4 of the Regulations on Permissions for Mainland-Area Residents to Visit Taiwan for Business Activities (the Permissions Regulations), an eligible inviting entity may apply to the Ministry of the Interior for permission for mainland-area personnel to visit Taiwan to engage in the following commercial activities: (1) commercial visits; (2) commercial on-site inspections; (3) commercial meetings; (4) public speaking; (5) commercial study (including training); (6) providing contractual services to the inviting entity, such as inspection of goods, after-sales service, or technical guidance; (7) exhibiting at commercial exhibitions; or (8) visiting commercial exhibitions.
Article 6 Paragraph 1 Subparagraph 1 of the Permissions Regulations provides that if the inviting entity is a Taiwanese enterprise with an annual operating revenue not exceeding NT$30 million, or a newly formed Taiwanese enterprise, its invitations to mainland-area personnel to visit Taiwan for commercial activities shall not exceed 15 person-visits per year; but up to twice this number may be allowed if the commercial activities engaged in are conducive to Taiwan's development in the following areas: (1) enterprise operational headquarters; (2) logistics centers; (3) international logistics and distribution centers; (4) international logistics centers; and (5) research and development centers.  In the latest amendments to the Assessment Directions, the MOEA has set out the following conditions for relaxing the above limits on the number of invitees:
Ÿ	Overseas-Chinese- or foreign-invested enterprises with annual operating revenues of at least NT$10 million that are transnational enterprises as defined in the Regulations Governing Work Permits for Mainland-Area Personnel of Transnational Enterprises to Be Transferred to Taiwan Taiwan .
Ÿ	Enterprises located in free port zones, with annual operating revenues of at least NT$30 million.
Ÿ	Taiwanese enterprises with net domestic operating revenues of at least NT$1 billion.
With the prior consent of the Investment Commission in consultation with the Mainland Affairs Council and relevant agencies, an international enterprise that invites mainland-area persons who are its own employees, vendors with which it has a commercial relationship, licensed distributors, or franchisees, to Taiwan to attend regional or international commercial meetings, may also be exempted from the restrictions on numbers of invitees.