TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — An update for the reciprocal pact concerning the issuance of working holiday visas between Taiwan and Canada has gone into effect, which will allow citizens of the two nations to apply for working holiday visas while in each respective country.

The Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada office granted Taiwanese nationals the liberty to apply for a working holiday visa at any government-authorized visa application center within Canada and around the globe at the end of the previous year, according to a statement of Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). 

Taiwanese citizens aged 18 to 35 without prior experience of acquiring a working holiday visa for Canada are eligible for applying for a one-year visa. As many as 1,000 visas are issued every year under the current deal.

Citizens who wish to apply for a visa for Canada are required to provide biometric data to the visa application center, as part of a global immigrant policy imposed by the Canadian authorities.

On a reciprocal basis, Taiwan also allows Canadian citizens to apply for a working holiday visa when they are in Taiwan. The measure went into effect on Jan. 1. Canadian nationals, with conditions similar to their Taiwanese counterparts, can go to Taiwan’s Bureau of Consular Affairs or one of MOFA’s regional offices to submit their visa applications.

The two nations signed the original reciprocal agreement on the issuance of working holiday visas in April 2010.