Emergency Exit Permits To Be Issued Within Four Hours

To assist persons who must exit the country immediately because of emergencies, the Bureau of Entry and Exit has set up an emergency service counter that can issue a permit within two to four hours of receipt of an application.

The emergency service covers a specific scope of cases and certain documents of proof may be required.

1. Persons applying for reasons of marriage, deaths, accidents, emergencies or other special circumstances.

2. Persons suffering from critical illnesses who must leave the country for treatment, as verified by a public hospital.

3. Persons on official assignment subject to pressing time constraints.

4. Persons subject to pressing time constraints taking part in international conferences or athletic competitions that will advance person-to-person diplomacy.

5. Newsworkers leaving the country on urgent assignment.

6. Students going abroad for advanced study who are especially pressed for time.

The Bureau of Entry and Exit also indicates that multiple-exit permits are valid for three years and can be used up to twelve times, so that most people planning to leave the country an additional time need only go to the bureau to fill out a form and obtain a stamp of approval, rather than reapplying for a permit all over again.

The bureau also revealed that it can provide travel agencies with information on the status of travelers' exit or entry applications through the Multi-Access Reservation Network (MARNET) instituted by the Data Communications Institute in the Ministry of Communications.

Travel agency personnel can enter the traveler's citizen identification number, document number, application date or other information into a terminal and find out in a few seconds whether the traveler has applied for an entry or exit permit, the type of permit applied for, the date of issuance, whether it was approved or denied (with the reason for denial), what supplementary documents may be required and so forth.

Mexico Institutes Tourist Visas for R.O.C. Citizens

The government of Mexico, beginning immediately, has instituted tourist visas for R.O.C. citizens and appointed Elite Public Relations Consultants in Taiwan to accept applications for Mexican visas and launch a tourism campaign. The move was made to expand and develop the Asian tourist market.

During the past 18 years, because of strong intervention by the Chinese Communists, the Mexican government has listed Taiwan as one of four unwelcomed countries or regions and has never officially processed applications for tourist visas from Taiwan. Fame of the island's economic strength and purchasing power has spread far and wide in recent years, and the Mexican Tourist Bureau has listed Taiwan, along with Japan, as a key area in the Asian market for expansion and development over the next two years.

The Mexican government recently commissioned Elite Public Relations Consultants to handle applications for Mexican tourist visas in Taiwan, while the documents themselves will be obtained from the Mexican consulate in Los Angeles. The visas issued in this way are single-trip tourist visas, valid for a stay of one month.

To prevent tourists from planning to reside illegally or become immigrants, the conditions of the visas are rather strict. Travelers from Taiwan who apply for the visas must attach a bank statement or a photocopy of an internationally valid credit card, a statement in English from the police that the applicant is a law-abiding citizen, and a copy of a round-trip air ticket or a ticket continuing on to a third country. They must also first obtain a United States visa. After forwarding the documents through the authorized agency, applicants must go to the consulate in Los Angeles for an interview. If their application is approved, they can obtain a visa on the same day that they are interviewed.