You book a flight to Taipei, save a dozen night-market recommendations and leave the rest of the trip open. Maybe you will take the high-speed rail to Tainan. Maybe you will spend more time in Kaohsiung than expected. Maybe your next country will be Japan. Taiwan is ideal for this kind of flexible trip, but the flight out is one detail worth sorting early.
Taiwan's Bureau of Consular Affairs (BOCA) specifically lists a confirmed return or onward departure arrangement among its visa-exempt entry conditions. This is not just advice passed around in traveler forums. BOCA's visa-exemption page, updated on 17 July 2026, sets out the requirement alongside passport validity and nationality-specific conditions.