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Taiwan gets US
visa-waiver nomination
¡¥CHRISTMAS PRESENT¡¦: The nomination will be
followed by an extensive and detailed evaluation of homeland security and
immigration systems by US government officials
By Shih Hsiu-chuan / Staff Reporter
American Institute in Taiwan
Acting Director Eric Madison speaks to reporters at a press conference in Taipei
yesterday.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Taiwan has been nominated for inclusion in
the US Visa Waiver Program (VWP), pending a review of the nation¡¦s homeland
security and immigration system by the US government, the American Institute of
Taiwan (AIT) announced yesterday.
In response to media inquiries about the possible impact of the decision on the
presidential election in three weeks, AIT Acting Director Eric Madison said the
announcement was made because of the ¡§recent completion of statutory
requirements¡¨ for Taiwan to qualify for the program.
¡§We are announcing it now because Taiwan is ready now. Taiwan made the statutory
requirements just recently. We are not going to delay or, on the other hand,
nominate Taiwan when it isn¡¦t ready,¡¨ Madison said.
The eligibility requirements for the waiver program include the use of biometric
passports, mandatory in-person passport applications, signing agreements with
the US on information exchange on lost and stolen passports, and tight
immigration controls against felons and terrorists.
¡§Taiwan has to be qualified to be nominated. The last agreement was concluded
yesterday, so the statutory requirements have been completed,¡¨ Madison said.
Madison said the US ¡§took a neutral stance¡¨ on the election and that the
completion of the requirements was ¡§the deciding factor.¡¨
The AIT called a press conference at 4:30pm yesterday to announce the decision,
which Madison said was principally a ¡§credit to the great economic, social and
political progress¡¨ Taiwanese have made over the years.
Madison said the nomination was the culmination of hard work and cooperation
between Taiwan and the US.
¡§In the last year in particular, Taiwan has adopted important measures to
strengthen its security and immigration systems in accordance with US statutory
requirements for the VWP,¡¨ he said.
The nomination will be followed by an extensive and detailed evaluation of
Taiwan¡¦s homeland security and immigration systems by the US Department of
Homeland Security. The US Congress would then be notified.
The AIT did not set a time frame for the completion of that process and provided
no estimate based on past experiences of other VWP countries.
¡§There is no time frame. Each case is a unique case,¡¨ Madison said.
At present, the VWP allows nationals from 36 participating countries to travel
to the US for tourism or business (¡§B¡¨ visa purposes only) for stays of 90 days
or less without obtaining a visa, the AIT said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs called a press conference at 5:30pm to welcome
the announcement, with Minister of Foreign Affairs Timothy Yang (·¨¶i²K) describing
the nomination as a ¡§hard-earned achievement¡¨ that ¡§both the government and
people of Taiwan should be proud of.¡¨
It showed that efforts made by the government to improve passport security and
other aspects have been recognized and that it manifested the statement made by
US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton that Taiwan is ¡§an important
security and economic partner¡¨ of the US, Yang said.
¡§More importantly, it also shows that Taiwanese have proved to be well-mannered
and law-abiding citizens,¡¨ he said.
If Taiwan is admitted to the VWP, it will become the fifth Asian county to enjoy
the privilege, following Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Brunei, Yang said.
Yang said he expected Taiwanese would be able to travel to the US without a visa
in the latter half of next year.
¡§It¡¦s a great Christmas gift,¡¨ he said.
In response, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) praised the decision and
said it is glad to see a closer relationship with the US.
¡§It takes some time before a candidate country is granted visa-free privileges
and the DPP would like to work with the US to achieve that goal, as well as
strengthening bilateral relations as the US¡¦ strategic partner in the
Asia-Pacific region if it wins the presidential election next month,¡¨ DPP
spokesperson Chen Chi-mai (³¯¨äÁÚ) said.
The decision has been a collective effort by all Taiwanese through the years
with lowered rates of overstays and visa refusals, he said.
Additional reporting by Chris Wang
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