Do Vietnam passport holders need a visa to visit Taiwan?

Vietnamese ordinary passport holders are NOT visa-free for Taiwan, but most tourists can skip the embassy visa by applying online for the free ROC (Taiwan) Travel Authorization Certificate (TAC) — but only if they hold a valid or recently-expired (within 10 years) visa or residence card from the US, Canada, UK, Japan, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, an EU/Schengen country, or Taiwan. Without such a document, a regular visitor visa from a Taipei Economic and Cultural Office is required. Taiwan operates a conditional online travel authorization scheme (eTA-style) for nationals of Vietnam and five other Southeast/South Asian countries. The ROC (Taiwan) Travel Authorization Certificate (TAC) is issued online by the National Immigration Agency at no charge and is granted almost instantly. Eligibility is conditional: the Vietnamese applicant must hold a valid (or expired within the last 10 years) entry visa, resident card, or permanent resident card from the US, Canada, UK, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, an EU/Schengen country, or a previous ROC entry visa/resident card with no immigration violations. The passport must be valid for at least six months from arrival, and the traveler must hold an onward/return ticket and never have worked as a blue-collar laborer in Taiwan. An approved TAC is valid for 90 days, permits multiple entries during that window, and allows a stay of up to 14 days per entry (counted from the day after arrival). Vietnamese travelers who do NOT hold a qualifying third-country document cannot use the TAC and must instead apply for a regular visitor (tourist) visa at a Taipei Economic and Cultural Office. This is not a visa-free arrangement and not a visa-on-arrival; it is a pre-arrival electronic authorization. Verified as current on 2026-05-30 against BOCA, the TECO Vietnam office, and the NIA portal.