Taiwan’s New Passport Design Has Bolder Country Name To Avoid China Confusion
Image via Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taiwan
The Taiwan government has released a new design for the country’s passport.
The land of bubble tea went for a simple and clean design, retaining the color of the current passport alongside most of the elements, including the official country name in Chinese and English, as well as the national emblem.
Major changes include using a bold typeface for “Taiwan” and placing it directly above the word “passport” to indicate the holders’ national identity.
In addition, the term “Republic of China” is embedded three times in the outer circle of Taiwan’s sun emblem for greater aesthetic appeal.
The aim of the new design is to prevent nationals from being mistaken for Mainland Chinese citizens.
The Taiwanese government hopes to issue the new passports in January 2021 after notifying the necessary custom bodies of the change.
The minimalist look did not sit too well with some members of the public, as they thought it did not reflect the country well. However, according to foreign minister Joseph Wu, the new design looks similar to the old one to avoid “confusion.”
Taiwanese officials also explained that the redesign aims to amplify Taiwan’s recognition without going through a drastic change.
Previously, one of Taiwan’s political parties held an online competition in search for a new passport cover. The competition drew hundreds of submissions, which featured famous Taiwanese food—bubble tea and braised pork rice—as well as fauna native to Taiwan. Though the winning design wasn’t adopted in an official capacity, it served as an important exercise for young citizens to explore and reimagine their national identity.
Times change & so do passports. #TAIWAN🇹🇼 is front & center of the new design. Greater visibility equals easier recognition & less confusion. The country's passport is the 33rd best worldwide, affording holders visa privileges in 170 countries & regions!
— 外交部 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ROC (Taiwan) 🇹🇼 (@MOFA_Taiwan) September 2, 2020
➡️https://t.co/BIDqHtGkMh pic.twitter.com/vhe5Suwh62
【台湾推出新版护照，放大台湾字样】
— 自由亚洲电台 (@RFA_Chinese) September 2, 2020
【避免和“中国”混淆 ROC藏到国徽内】
台湾外交部长2日上午宣布，明年一月起发行新封面护照。由于立法院曾通过决议要改版护照，避免国际上常混淆台湾和中国护照，需要凸显台湾，因此在变动最小的原则下，跨部会研究方案而推出。#Taiwan#Republic_of_China pic.twitter.com/HdM7K5hqRT
The design of the new Taiwan passport, due to apply from Jan 2021, is out. Sadly it does not feature any birds with bubble tea on their heads but does significantly enlarged the word “Taiwan” in English and relegate “Republic of China” to small text enclosing the national emblem. pic.twitter.com/iBLoQewxAP
— Ryan Ho Kilpatrick 何松濤 (@rhokilpatrick) September 2, 2020
Taiwan is working on a new passport design and one of the possibilities is bubble tea on a bird's head.
— Sharlene King (@GhostfactKillah) August 26, 2020
Please let it be bubble tea on a bird's head. pic.twitter.com/3n8FF6UW4O
[via Quartz, cover image via Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taiwan]
