The South Korean government has diminished the sovereignty of the Republic of China, Taiwan by categorizing Taiwan as “China Taiwan” on its electronic immigration card. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China has urged South Korea to “promptly correct the erroneous labeling of our country on the electronic immigration card.” Taiwanese legislator, Chen Guan-ting, also pointed out that the people of Taiwan completely reject the actions of the South Korean side and called for a prompt correction of the incorrect labeling.
Since February of this year, South Korea has implemented the Electronic Arrival Card (E-Arrival Card), but it has recently been discovered that the system incorrectly labels Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “Country of Departure” and “Next Destination” fields, causing strong dissatisfaction among the Taiwanese people.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China stated, “Recently, we have received feedback from our citizens that in the South Korean electronic immigration card system, our country is mistakenly listed as ‘China (Taiwan)’ in the ‘Country of Departure’ and ‘Next Destination’ fields. This labeling not only does not align with the facts but also creates confusion and inconvenience for our citizens in the application process and leads to dissatisfaction and disappointment with the unfriendly labeling by the South Korean government.”
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and our representative office in South Korea have repeatedly expressed serious concerns to the South Korean government and discussed this matter, requesting a prompt correction. However, the South Korean government has not responded positively, which we find deeply regrettable,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterated that the Republic of China, Taiwan is a sovereign independent country and is not subordinate to the People’s Republic of China. Any actions or claims that distort Taiwan’s sovereign status are considered acts of bullying that undermine international peace and stability and cannot change the objective fact that the two sides are not subordinate to each other.
Chen Guan-ting, a member of the Legislative Yuan Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee of the Republic of China, emphasized, “Taiwan is a sovereign independent entity that is not subordinate to the People’s Republic of China. The act of placing Taiwan under ‘China’ in the official South Korean system is completely unacceptable in terms of facts, laws, or the emotional sentiments of the Taiwanese people.”
Chen Guan-ting pointed out that although the “Nationality” field on the current South Korean electronic immigration card allows users to select “Taiwan,” they are forced to choose only “China (Taiwan)” in the “Country of Departure” and “Next Destination” fields. Additionally, options such as “China P.R.” are also present in the system, which highlights the lack of correct understanding of Taiwan’s status in the South Korean system.
He further explained, “Interpreted from the national title of the domestic constitutional system, some might consider this labeling somewhat acceptable. However, in the context of contemporary international politics and discourse, ‘China (Taiwan)’ will only be interpreted as Taiwan being a part of China, which is highly disadvantageous to Taiwan’s sovereignty, and we have absolutely no room for acceptance.”
“This is not merely a technical issue but a political one concerning sovereignty and national status,” he pointed out. Given that South Korea is one of the countries most frequently visited by Taiwanese travelers, with close people-to-people exchanges and high levels of cooperation in security and economy in the Indo-Pacific region, “precisely because Taiwan truly regards South Korea as a democratic partner, we cannot tolerate the diminishment of Taiwan on official documents by the South Korean government.”
Chen Guan-ting stressed that Taiwan has long advocated for “the Republic of China, Taiwan is a sovereign independent country, and the two sides are not subordinate to each other,” and any wording or labeling that places Taiwan within the framework of China, whether as “China (Taiwan)” or in any other modified form, essentially serves Beijing’s One China framework, “which does not help differentiate Taiwan from China, but rather can be misread as Taiwan being a part of the People’s Republic of China.”
Citing Japan’s recent decision to allow Taiwanese residents in Japan to change their registered household information to “Taiwan” without altering their foreign policy framework, he said, “This example demonstrates that democratic countries can handle nationality and regional labeling in a more respectful and identity-affirming manner without changing their foreign policy framework.” He emphasized that Taiwan, as a sovereign independent entity, should receive the most fundamental respect in international interactions.