Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Taiwan eyeing U.S. visa-free entry in 2011: representative

Taipei, Dec. 15 (CNA) Taiwan is seeking to be considered eligible for visa-free entry to the United States for its citizens in 2011, Taiwan's representative to the U.S. said Wednesday.

"The signing of three agreements on the exchange of information on stolen or counterfeit passports; the exchange of information on terrorists; and collaboration on combating crime will be crucial for Taiwan to be placed on the visa-waiver program (VWP) roadmap, " Jason Yuan said during a session of the Legislative Yuan's Foreign and Defense Committee.

With the extensive personnel flow between Taiwan and the U.S., the inclusion in the VWP became a priority after Taiwan was granted visa-free privileges for the Schengen Area of Europe last month.

There are three key factors in terms of Taiwan's VWP inclusion -- visa refusal rates, cases of overstay and a passport application and issuance procedure that requires travelers to apply in person, Yuan said.

Taiwan's U.S. visa refusal rate for fiscal 2010 was 2.2 percent, much lower than the minimum requirement of 3 percent, and few cases of Taiwanese overstays were recorded, Yuan said, adding that new procedures will be tested in Taiwan requiring visa applicants to complete their passport applications in person, starting March 1, 2011.

The signing of the three agreements will also improve Taiwan's chances of satisfying the three factors, according to U.S. recommendations in a meeting between the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Taiwan's Office of Homeland Security under the Executive Yuan, which took place recently in Washington, Yuan said.

Also speaking at the legislative committee meeting, Deputy Foreign Minister Shen Lyu-hsun reaffirmed that Taiwan intends to be a candidacy country of the VWP in 2011.

The visa-waiver drive, under which 96 countries or regions in the world now grant Taiwan visa exemptions, is part of Taiwan's commemoration of next year's 100th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of China. (By Chris Wang) ENDITEM/J