New UI No. Format for Foreign Nationals – Policy Explanation
- Date：
- Source：General Planning Section
- Hit：776
Because the current UI No. format for foreign nationals differs from that of citizens’ ID cards, it has hindered foreign nationals from carrying out such matters as online shopping, ticket booking, hospital registration, and so on. The European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan (ECCT) has repeatedly drawn this situation to the attention of government agencies in its annual Position Papers.
2. Policy Explanation:
(1) To establish a friendly environment for foreign nationals, and with reference to the ECCT’s suggestions, the NIA will change the UI No. format for foreign nationals from the current code consisting of two English letters followed by eight digits to a new code consisting of one English letter followed by nine digits (hereafter referred to as “the new UI No.”), in conformity with the code used for citizens’ ID card numbers. The explanation of the new UI No. (shown above) is as follows:
(a) English letter: Area code, indicating the place of application, corresponding to the area code in citizens’ ID card numbers.
(b) First digit: Indicates gender, 8 for male and 9 for female.
(c) Last digit: Check code.
(2) The NIA plans to start issuing certificates bearing the new UI No. from January 2, 2021. Also, taking into account that some permanently resident foreign nationals are not present in Taiwan, in order to avoid affecting people’s rights, it is planned to spread the change to the new UI No. over a period of ten years, with the original UI No.’s ceasing to be usable as of January 1, 2031. If anyone has any questions relating to the changeover, they can be emailed to the NIA via the Director-General’s Mailbox.
3. Publicity Planning
(1) This project will commence in October 2020. The NIA will successively post related information in the “New UI No. Format for Foreign Nationals” section of its website, including easy-to-understand explanations in multiple languages, FAQs, e-flyers, and instructions for document submission.
(2) It is also planned to conduct a substantive promotional activity in the NIA Taipei Service Center on December 16, 2020. This event will be different in nature from the simple policy explanations of the past, and will be injected with elements of youthfulness and liveliness. Related activity information will also be successively announced in the dedicated section of the NIA website. Please look forward to it!