People walk past food vendors along a street in Taipei on May 26, 2024. (Photo by Yasuyoshi CHIBA / AFP)
MANILA, Philippines — Taiwan has extended the visa-free entry of passport holders from the Philippines, Thailand, and Brunei until July 2025.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said in a statement that the decision was made in line with their efforts to promote the New Southbound Policy (NSP).
In a meeting last April 12, MOFA and relevant government agencies “conducted a comprehensive review of existing visa and entry measures, focusing on the trial visa-free entry program for nationals of Thailand, Brunei, and the Philippines; the Project for Simplifying Visa Regulations for High-end Group Tourists from Southeast Asian Countries; and conditional visa-free entry through the Online Application for R.O.C. (Taiwan) Travel Authorization Certificate (TAC) scheme for nationals of Southeast Asian countries,” the statement reads.
Citing the effectiveness of the aforementioned measures over the past years, Taiwan said it decided to extend the trial visa-free entry program for another year — solely for the nationals of Thailand, Brunei, and the Philippines.
This means that visa-free entry to Taiwan will be extended from its original deadline of August 1, 2024, to July 31, 2025.
READ: Taiwan extends visa-free entry for Filipinos to July 31, 2024
“In addition, the Project for Simplifying Visa Regulations for High-end Group Tourists from Southeast Asian Countries will be extended for a further year through December 31, 2025, and the conditional visa-free entry through the TAC scheme will remain in place,” said MOFA.
It added that it will also continue to communicate with the governments of related countries to enhance visa treatment for Taiwanese nationals and make their overseas travel more convenient.