Getting Married in Taiwan FAQ 在台灣結婚常見問題

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Please note that this guide is written from the point of view of a heterosexual American marrying a Taiwanese National. For other types of marriages in Taiwan, double check with your home country's consulate or office in Taiwan. For an experience of a foreigner marrying another foreigner, check out this blog by Sam.

Generally speaking, getting married in Taiwan is not that complicated. Typically, you should only require the following documents, and apply for marriage at the local house registration office:

​Q: What documents do I need to get married in Taiwan?
A: Marriage in Taiwan required documents:

• Passports/ARCs/Taiwan national IDs of you and your future spouse
• Written marriage agreement (結婚書約 see sample below)
• Two adult witnesses to sign the written marriage agreement
• Notarized and Authorized Statement of singleness (單身證明) (that you are not married) from your home country. This is also required for your future spouse if he/she is not a Taiwan national.

If you need help obtaining a visa to Taiwan, you can use Ivisa.com. 
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Marriage agreement (結婚書約) sample below:

□ Planning your trip to Taiwan? □

Here are some top travel tips for you:

• Best time to visit: Spring and Autumn when it is not too hot or cold and less rainy
• How to get there: Plane tickets via Trip.com
• Best places to stay can be found on Agoda
• Book tours and activities in Taiwan on Klook
• Stay connected with a local SIM
• Rent a car to explore distant sights

Source: https://orgws.kcg.gov.tw/001/KcgOrgUploadFiles/187/relfile/12861/25565/7f3b0a3e-d24a-4657-ad13-88dbfe0c17bf.pdf
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​Q: How do you get married in Taiwan?
A: Take the above required documents to the local house registration office in Taiwan (戶政事務所) with your future spouse, and tell them you would like to register for marriage.
The marriage certificate in English and Chinese is about 100 NT.
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Q: How do I get a notarized and authenticated statement of singleness (單身證明) (that you are not married) from my home country?
A: If you are not sure about this, ask the consulate or representative office of your country in Taiwan, or ask the Taiwan rep office in your country. If you are an American in Taiwan, AIT gives a great explanation here.
As an American, I had to do the following:

1. Make an appointment at AIT
2. Swear an oath that I was not currently married
3. Pay a $50 USD fee, and receive the notarized document
4. Take the document to the nearest MOFA office in Taiwan (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) to translate and authenticate the document (300 NT plus translation fee)
5. After five working days, you can pick up the authenticated document from the MOFA and go get married in Taiwan

Q: As a foreigner, can I get married to another foreigner in Taiwan?
A: Yes, the process is the same. The only difference is both parties will need a notarized and authenticated statement of singleness from their home country. 
However, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not recognize marriages between foreigners contracted in Taiwan, so if you are a foreigner marrying another foreigner, it may be easier to get married overseas first especially if one of you needs to apply for a dependent ARC. For more information, check out this blog by Sam. 
In the past, same-sex marriages where one partner is from a country or region where gay marriage is illegal cannot be registered in Taiwan, but that is not the case now (the only exception being Mainland China). Alegal case helped to overturn this rule. Also, same sex couples are currently able to adopt children. 
Taiwan is the most progressive nation in Asia when it comes to same sex marriage rights.

​Q: How do I get my family/dependent ARC (依親居留證) after getting married as a foreigner in Taiwan?
A: Take the following documents to the immigration office (or Taiwan consulate overseas):

• Application form
• 2 photos
• Passport original and copy
• Health check (physical) from a Taiwan authorized local hospital in the last three months. No need to poop in a cup.
• Your spouse's ARC or Taiwan ID (if they already have one, otherwise you cannot apply for a dependent ARC)
• Marriage certificate original and photo copy
• Other documents depending on your nationality

It takes about 10 working days to get your ARC after applying.
The best thing about this type of ARC is that you do not need a work permit when being employed in Taiwan.

Looking for a hotel? Find out where to stay in our Taiwan hotels guide or search for the best hotels in Taiwan here.

Q: What if my home country does not recognize Taiwan as a state/country at all or vice versa?
A: Then it may be very hard to get the statement of singleness, or Taiwan may require you to register for marriage in your home country first. Please consult with the Taiwan office in your home country, your country's office in Taiwan, or the Taiwan immigration office.

Q: What if I am a national of a Southeast Asian country?
A: Then it may be very hard to get the statement of singleness, or Taiwan may require you to register for marriage in your home country first. Please consult with the Taiwan office in your home country, your country's office in Taiwan, or the Taiwan immigration office.

Q: How do you get divorced in Taiwan?
A: There are two ways to get divorced in Taiwan:

1. By mutual consent in writing
2. Through a Taiwan court, by proving adultery (not considered a crime anymore), ill treatment, etc.

​
Q: Is adultery a crime in Taiwan?
A: Not anymore.

Q: Is same-sex/gay marriage allowed in Taiwan?
A: Yes, Taiwan was the first country in Asia to allow same-sex marriage. 
In the past, same-sex marriages where one partner is from a country or region where gay marriage is illegal cannot be registered in Taiwan, but that is not the case now (the only exception being Mainland China). A legal case helped to overturn this rule. Also, same sex couples are currently able to adopt children. 
Taiwan is the most progressive nation in Asia when it comes to same sex marriage rights.

Q: Is same-sex/gay marriage to foreigners allowed in Taiwan?
A: Yes, this is legal.
In the past, same-sex marriages where one partner is from a country or region where gay marriage is illegal cannot be registered in Taiwan, but that is not the case now (the only exception being Mainland China). A legal case helped to overturn this rule. Also, same sex couples are currently able to adopt children. 
Taiwan is the most progressive nation in Asia when it comes to same sex marriage rights.​

Q: Do women usually change their last name after marriage in Taiwan?
A: No, most do not legally change their name. However they may sometimes still be called by their husband's last name.

Looking for scooter rental in Taipei? Click here or here to search for options. You can also check out our scooter rental guide here. 
If you are looking for car rentals, you can also search here. You can also check out our car rental guide here. 
You can find more tours of Taipei on Klook here or KKday here. 
You can also book Wifi and SIM cards for Taiwan on Gigago here.  
​
Q: Who's parents' last name do children use in Taiwan?
A: Usually children in Taiwan will take their father's last name. However it is not uncommon for children to take their mother's name, especially for a son if there are no other male children in the mother's family.

Q: What are cultural norms for marriages in Taiwan?

• Marriage registration at the household office usually happens before the marriage ceremony
• Taiwan marriage ceremonies include the couple bowing and making promises to the couple's parents.
• Usually a large banquet is held with many guests around large tables. Photos are shown, songs are sung, and speeches are made. Usually guests are expected to bring money in red envelopes instead of gifts.
• The couple will change through a bunch of outfits, but mainly wearing western style wedding clothing
• The bride family gives out baked cakes to guests (Xibing 喜餅)
• The groom is expected to pay a dowry
• The groom is expected to have a car and house by the time they are married. This means that many couples are getting married later and later as buying a house is out of the financial reach of many young people in Taiwan.

Q: What should I know before getting married to a Taiwanese person?

• Some Taiwanese people are not as open with their feelings as westerners, so you may have to spend some extra effort on communication
• Sometimes Taiwanese people may seem polite but really they are giving you the silent treatment. Communication is key.
• Sometimes Taiwanese people can be very mean to their children and spouses, mainly because they do not know how to communicate well. This can be true of all people regardless of race. ​Communication is key. 
• Don't take offense when none is intended.
• If you offend your spouse, find out why and apologize.
• Communicate, communicate, communicate.

​Our Experience Attending a Taiwanese Banquet Wedding

A few weeks ago I attended a wedding banquet in Taiwan that I would like to share. 
A full traditional wedding in Taiwan usually includes a large banquet where friends and family are invited. Guests are expected to bring a red envelope, and in return, they are gifted a Chinese wedding cake (Xibing 喜餅). 

What should I put in my red envelope to relatives or friends?
Numbers that start with 1, 2, 3, and 6 are okay. For instance, 200, 600, 1200, 1600, 2000, 2200, 3200, 3600, 6000, 6600, 8800, 10000, and 12000 are okay. 
Avoid the number 4 at all costs, because the sound is similar to death "si 死." Some say that the number 8 is bad because it sounds like "depart 別" but others say it is good because it sounds like "發 fa get rich."

​For a Taiwanese wedding, I would suggest putting at least 2000 NT into the envelope. ​

Taiwanese weddings are becoming more and more Westernized with skits, dances, best men, maids of honor, flower girls, etc. However, the wedding is usually held inside a banquet room like the one pictured above. At this wedding, the family did a funny skit where the groom had to guess which of the girls in red was his bride. In the end, his bride wasn't even there, and his brother was one of the girls. Also, there was a dance performance from the male relatives. Overall it was a funny, light atmosphere. 

In addition, there were slide shows of the family members, speeches about the bride and groom, and there was an MC who coordinated the event.

The​ entire family and extended family were brought in and paraded through the banquet hall, including flower girls. Everyone dressed in Western wedding clothing. Guests mostly dressed in semi-casual dress without loud colors. 
The main ceremony was the bride and groom bowing to the mothers-in-law and fathers-in-law. The MC also said some words similar to the effect that you would hear at a Christian marriage ceremony. 
At the end, the family took photos with all the guests and greeted them goodbye.

Recently, fewer young people are having big banquet weddings because they are so expensive. In my experience, usually, it is the parents that want the wedding more than the actual bride and groom. Sometimes the parents will foot the wedding bill, and even throw in a house, mortgage down payment, or car for the new couple. However, for other less well-to-do families, many young people are just going to the registration office and staying low-key. That is what I and my Taiwanese wife did, and that is what her sister did when she married a Taiwanese guy. Even though we didn't get red envelopes and gifts, we saved lots of money and avoided tons of stress. 
Also, I think if we want to encourage more marriages and births in Taiwan, we need to stop having expectations of fancy expensive weddings. Marriage is often seen as a prerequisite for having kids in Taiwan (only 2% of children are born outside wedlock in Taiwan).

For more reading, check out our blog about why Taiwan's birth rate is so low here. 

You can also check out our guide to having a baby in Taiwan here. 

Also. be sure to check out the rest of our FAQ guides to Taiwan here.

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