The Republic of China national identification card (), commonly known as the national identification card of Taiwan, is a compulsory

identity document An identity document (also called ID or colloquially as papers) is any documentation, document that may be used to prove a person's identity. If issued in a small, standard credit card size form, it is usually called an identity card (IC, ID c ...

issued to people who hold both

nationality Nationality is a legal identification of a person in international law, establishing the person as a subject, a ''national'', of a sovereign state. It affords the state jurisdiction over the person and affords the person the protection of the ...

and

household registration Civil registration is the system by which a government records the vital events (births, marriages, and deaths) of its citizens and residents. The resulting repository or database has different names in different countries and even in differen ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. The National Identification Card served as the evidence for the

household registration in Taiwan Household registration () is a Taiwanese civil and family registration system. The modern household registration system was started in early 20th century when Taiwan was under Japanese rule. Currently the system is administered by the Ministry of ...

which grants the holder the

right of abode The right of abode is an individual's freedom from immigration control in a particular country. A person who has the right of abode in a country does not need permission from the government to enter the country and can live and work there withou ...

and full

civil and political rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...

. The card is used for virtually all other activities that require identity verification within

such as opening bank accounts and voting. Despite the name mentioning "national", not all nationals regulated by

Taiwanese nationality law Taiwanese nationality law details the conditions in which a person is a Nationality, national of the Taiwan, Republic of China (ROC), commonly known as Taiwan. Foreign nationals may naturalize if they are permanent residents in any part of the ...

are eligible to apply for an ID card. The national without household registration is not qualified for an ID card. These people, mainly

overseas Taiwanese Overseas Taiwanese (), also called "people of Taiwanese descent" (), are people of Taiwanese ancestry or descent who live or were born outside of Taiwan. Overseas Taiwanese may or may not be Taiwanese nationals. Description Taiwanese national id ...

overseas Chinese Overseas Chinese () refers to people of Chinese birth or ethnicity who reside outside Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. As of 2011, there were over 40.3 million overseas Chinese. Terminology () or ''Hoan-kheh'' () in Hokkien, refe ...

, are only eligible to apply for a

Taiwan passport The Republic of China (Taiwan) passport () is the passport issued to nationals of the Republic of China (ROC), commonly known as Taiwan. The ROC passport is also generally referred to as a Taiwanese passport. As of September 2020, approximately ...

. They will need to apply for an

Exit & Entry Permit The Exit & Entry Permit for Taiwan, Republic of China is the document for the bearer to enter and/or depart Taiwan. Currently, there are several types of Exit & Entry Permit that reflect the bearer's residency status. The permit is issued by the ...

Resident Certificate A Resident Certificate () is the identity document issued to long-term or permanent residents of the Taiwan area of the Republic of China who do not have Household registration in Taiwan. In Taiwanese laws, all nationals with household registrat ...

if they want to perform short-term visit or long-term residency in

respectively.

Eligibility

The National Identification Card is issued to nationals with

who are 14 years and older. Establishing

is required for a national over 14 years of age to possess a National Identification Card. In Taiwanese laws,

has close ties to exercise civil and political rights like a citizen (). The Taiwanese laws makes a distinction between "registered nationals" () and "unregistered nationals" (), with the former having the

right to vote Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

, and other benefits of citizenship, while the latter are subject to deportation from Taiwan and need an entry permit to visit Taiwan. While "registered nationals" are entitled to hold the National Identification Card, "unregistered nationals" may only hold the Taiwan Area

. Both groups are eligible to hold the

. The Taiwan Area Resident Certificate is nearly identical to the Alien

(ARC) held by foreign residents in Taiwan. Children under the age of majority in Taiwan (20 years of age) may establish household registration as long as they have direct lineal relatives with household registration. For adult "unregistered nationals" to become "registered nationals", and thus eligible for a National Identification Card, they must reside in Taiwan for a certain period of time, during which they will hold a TARC instead of an ID Card. Currently, for "unregistered nationals" who have direct lineal relatives who are "registered nationals" (e.g. overseas-born Taiwanese) and foreigners who have naturalized as ROC nationals, this period is (1) continuously for one year, (2) 270 days per year for two years, or (3) 183 days per year for five years.

Usage

The Identification Card contains the holder's photo,

ID number For data storage, identification is the capability to find, retrieve, report, change, or delete specific data without ambiguity. This applies especially to information stored in databases. In database normalisation, the process of organizing ...

, Chinese name, and (

Minguo calendar The Republic of China calendar, often shortened to the ROC calendar or the ''Minguo'' calendar, is a calendar used in Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu. The calendar uses 1912, the year of the establishment of the Republic of China (ROC), a ...

) date of birth. The back of the card contains more detailed information, including the person's registered address where official correspondence is sent, as well as the names of his/her legal ascendant(s). If the person moves, he/she must re-register at a municipal office (). Unlike the Republic of China passport which can be issued overseas at

Taipei Economic and Cultural Offices The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO), also known as Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO), Taipei Representative Office (TRO) or Taipei Mission, is an alternative diplomatic institution serving as a ''de facto'' e ...

and ROC embassies and consulates, the National Identification Card is only issued in Taiwan at district, municipal, and township offices. Male dual passport holders who register for household registration and the Identification Card also become eligible for military conscription within the Republic of China, unless the person has overseas resident status (). Possession of the Identification Card is required to obtain the People's Republic of China's

Taiwan Compatriot Permit The Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents, also known as Taiwan Compatriot Permit, is a type of travel document issued by Government of the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the Republic of China nationals (ROC) who hold household reg ...

for entry into Mainland China. Most countries granting visa-free entry for ROC passport holders require that the passport holder also possess a National Identification Card. Those without National Identification Cards (e.g. "unregistered nationals") will have the National Identification Card field blank in their passports.

Identity card number

Every citizen (and every foreign resident on their

) has a unique ID number. A valid National Identification number consists of one letter and nine digits. The initial letter depends on the place of one's first

for citizens and the city where one first registered residence for foreign residents. The first digit depends on

sex Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones (ova, oft ...

; 1 for male citizens, 2 for female citizens, 8 for male foreign residents, and 9 for female foreign residents. The last digit is a

checksum A checksum is a small-sized block of data derived from another block of digital data for the purpose of detecting errors that may have been introduced during its transmission or storage. By themselves, checksums are often used to verify data ...

. The letter usage is as follows:

Eligibility

Usage

Identity card number

See also