Big Taipei DTV update: “interview.”
I’m the one who had weird situation in Taipei that many others are seemingly having now. Here’s the story. Sleep deprived and exhausted please excuse any ramblings/typos. I’m gonna try keep this short but the reality is there is so much discussion that happened more than I’ll post here.
Before - dropped documents off Wednesday and went back at 3pm as instructed, but unlike most people I didn’t pay $ and told I’d get the visa next working day. Instead I was told Friday 10am I had an interview with the supervisor.
“I was nervous and barely slept all night because everyone else seemed to be getting their visas so easily yet I even seemed to have BETTER documents and income so why was I needing an interview?”
The interview time was sharp. I arrived early and waited until the exact moment. The supervisor took me into a private room away from everyone else. They had my documents and passport prepared.
They began by bringing up my history in Thailand- a few years of education visas for example. I answered that I was studying Thai.
SO the interviewer switched to Thai and luckily I’m mostly fluent in Thai so we then proceeded in Thai.
We discussed so many things I can’t remember it all or the order of it. Looking back I think the “red flags” were that I was on education visas and had lived in Thailand for a few years prior. So the interviewee was making extra sure that I was making money from elsewhere and had also funded my previous stay in Thailand like that too.
We discussed so many things for so long: the first time I was in Thailand, what made me stay, where I learned thai, my education history, my professional work history, the details of my projects, my Thai partner, so so so many things and in detail too.
The interviewee was nice, but I could also see that a bit of pressure was being placed on me.
They were suspicious. I have many friends that speak way less thai than I do and have lived on education visas too but they didn’t have to interview (in Cambodia and Vietnam they applied), some also applied for soft power. So I don’t know if it’s random or if everywhere will get more strict at the same time.
The other issue besides my stay in Thailand i theorize was that my 2 main clients from my home country were paying me through an invoicing software called “Square.” So even though I showed my clients and business info, in the bank account I provided the deposits were saying “square.”
What seemed to REALLY help the interview was bringing my laptop. They seemed relieved I did so too. It gave me a very easy way to show them my work, for example showing my 2 main clients and how I could go into the admin back panels of the websites. I also logged into my invoicing software to explain that, and then they could see my 2 client names as the ones paying all the invoices.
I had to present a bit about each client. Again I am so tired so I can’t remember all the questions but I was asked many details about the work that my clients provide to their customers, my role in these businesses, etc. whenever I talk to a friend about the interview i keep going “oh and then we spoke about this, and then that, and that, etc.”
Anyways long story short the interviewee was friendly they just seemed suspicious and after I spoke Thai with them and more importantly talked about how I was finding living in Thailand and would continue to do so and then proved my remote income he said “okay everything is fine.”
Then I paid the 11k Taiwanese dollar to the counter lady and she said come back 4pm-5pm again I went back got my passport back with visa so it’s successful.
It seems like other people are getting interviewed too so my guess is just that if you’ve been living in Thailand prior on other visas ie education volunteer etc. they really just to see how you funded living in Thailand and maybe speaking a bit of Thai helps I’m not sure if that’s the relevant part.
So do charge your laptop up and prepare your phone hotspot so you can break down your work more personally, and be prepared for a lot of questions about your life and living in Thailand and all that. It was a lot but I completely understand it now. It’s all good!
So thanks to the Taipei consulate I’ve got my DTV and all is sorted. Everything is understandable and they were friendly. Happy! Thanks!
TLDR : Answer Summary
The author shares their experience of applying for a Digital Nomad Visa (DTV) at the Taipei consulate, where they faced an unexpected interview. Despite having strong documents and income, they were questioned about their history in Thailand and required to demonstrate their remote work setup. The interview focused on their previous education visas and the sources of their income, leading to some suspicion from the interviewer. However, showcasing their work via a laptop helped alleviate concerns. They were ultimately successful in obtaining the visa, leading to discussions regarding the stricter scrutiny at the Taipei location compared to other Southeast Asian countries.
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