Taipei: A Taiwanese lawyer has been indicted for allegedly fabricating information to help Chinese nationals enter Taiwan under false pretenses, the Taipei District Prosecutors Office said Tuesday, citing potential threats to national security.
According to Focus Taiwan, in the indictment, prosecutors stated that Chen Chen-wei, a lawyer who owned an immigration consulting agency, and others, drew up false business plans to secure permits from the National Immigration Agency (NIA) for four Chinese nationals to enter Taiwan between 2023 and 2024. Instead of visiting Taiwan for business purposes, three of the Chinese were in Taiwan to apply for a passport from Belize at the Central American country's embassy in Taiwan.
Chen's group reportedly received US$80,000 in compensation for successfully helping one applicant to secure a Belize passport. Prosecutors argued that these actions violated the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area. According to that law, before Chinese citizens come to Taiwan on business, the organization in Taiwan inviting them should apply for their entry permits on the NIA website and include supporting documents.
These documents include the Chinese citizen's proof of employment, a guarantee, a power of attorney, a business-related activity plan and itinerary, a copy of the contract, the inviting organization's company registration form, and the previous year's corporate income tax return. However, Chen's group used their individual company seals to create fraudulent business plans and itineraries and falsify other required documents before submitting them to the NIA website.
The fake documents enabled Chinese nationals identified as Zhu Naixian and Sun Tao to secure an entry permit from the NIA and enter Taiwan in 2023. Another Chinese citizen named Lu Tao gained entry into Taiwan in 2024. However, the other Chinese citizen involved in the scheme, named Li Fengxiang, was denied entry in 2023 as he used to be a member of China's National People's Congress.
While the members of Chen's group were all indicted, prosecutors singled out Chen, arguing that his actions undermined the NIA's border management and created potential national security loopholes. They recommended a heavy sentence for Chen to the court.