American Institute in Taiwan
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT; ) is the "de facto" Embassy of the United States of America in Taiwan. The AIT institution is a wholly owned subsidiary of the federal government of the United States in Taiwan with Congressional oversight. The AIT was officially created as a U.S. government-sponsored non-profit, private corporation established under the auspices of the U.S. government to serve its interests in Taiwan. Primarily staffed by employees of the United States Department of State and local workers, the AIT provides consular services normally offered by normal United States diplomatic missions, with  the Great Seal of the State Department hung at AIT's main office in Taipei. The establishment of diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1979 required acknowledgment of the "one-China policy" and subsequent termination of diplomatic relations with the Republic of China (Taiwan). The AIT now serves to assist and protect U.S. interests in Taiwan in a quasi-official manner, and also processes US visas and provides consular services to U.S. expatriates. Following the swift passage of the 2018 Taiwan Travel Act by the United States, it now serves as a high-level representative  bureau on behalf of United States in Taiwan. It receives full protection from the United States Marine Corps as do all US Embassies. American Institute in Taiwan Kaohsiung Branch Office is a division of the AIT institution located in southern Taiwan. Overview. AIT is a non-profit corporation incorporated in the District of Columbia on 16 January 1979 after the US established full diplomatic relations with the PRC on January 1, 1979. This model, with an alternative form of American representative office established in Taiwan after the diplomatic relations were severed, was based on the AIT's Japanese counterpart stationed  in Taipei since 1972, and was therefore referred to as the . Following the authorization of the Taiwan Relations Act, the Department of State, through a semi-official contract with AIT, provides guidance and some funding in its operations. Like other U.S. missions abroad, AIT is staffed by employees of the Department of State and other agencies of the United States, as well as by locally hired staff. Prior to a 2002 amendment to the Foreign Service Act (Section 503 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended by the Department of State Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003), United States  government employees were required to resign from government service for their period of assignment to AIT. According to Section 12 (a) of the Taiwan Relations Act, agreements conducted by AIT have to be reported to Congress, just as other international agreements concluded by United States and governments with which it has diplomatic relations. Thus, while relations between the US and Taiwan through AIT are conducted on an informal basis, the US government still treats the relationship within the same confines as with other states with formal diplomatic relations. AIT has a small headquarters office in Arlington County, Virginia with its  largest office located in Taipei, Taiwan. The organization also has a branch office in Taiwan's strategic southern port city of Kaohsiung. These three bureaus are referred to as AIT/Washington (AIT/W), AIT/Taipei (AIT/T) and AIT/Kaohsiung (AIT/K), respectively. The AIT office complex at No. 100 Jin Hu Road, Neihu District, Taipei, was inaugurated in 2019. AIT/Taipei was previously located in the Daan District on the former site of the U.S. Military Advisory Group headquarters before 1979. For the purposes of remuneration and benefits, directors of the AIT hold the same rank as ambassador and , in Taiwan, are accorded diplomatic privileges in their capacity as directors. Its counterpart in the United States is the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office. From 1953 to 1979, the United States Ambassador to the Republic of China was based in Taipei. New compound in Taipei. A new $250 million compound for the American Institute in Taiwan was unveiled in June 2018, accompanied by a "low-key" U.S. delegation and several mid-level diplomats. According to the AIT the new complex represents “the United State’s brick-and-mortar commitment to Taiwan.” In 2019 director Christensen buried a time  capsule at the new AIT complex in Neihu. The time capsule is not to be unearthed for 50 years. Principal officers. List of political section chiefs. The Political Section, originally known as the General Affairs Section (GAS), is led by a chief which is similar to a political counselor in other embassies. "See" "AIT Commercial Section"