Can You Legally Round Up Friends for a Dive Trip? Lawyer Aodou Breaks Down the Line Between a Legitimate Group Trip and Illegal Tour Operations

When you book an overseas dive trip — flights, liveaboard, dive shop, transfers — it's usually one person who puts it all together for you. That person might be your instructor, your regular dive shop, or an enthusiastic fellow diver from an online community. When everything goes smoothly, everyone's happy. But when something goes wrong, the question arises: were you traveling with a friend, or did you buy a package from an operator who has no legal travel-agency credentials?

In late August 2026, a Maldives dive trip dispute made the news, with a social media influencer publicly naming a fellow Divemaster suspected of soliciting clients without a license, reigniting public debate about dive travel. Lawyer Wang Gang of "Aodou Lawyer – Outdoor Lawyer" promptly published a legal explainer, drawing a clear line between "a legitimate group trip" and "illegally operating a travel business" under Taiwan's Tourism Development Act.

The Editor believes this piece is essential reading for anyone who dives abroad, because it isn't about who is right or wrong — it's about what you can verify before you hit the "register" button.

Aodou Lawyer – Outdoor Lawyer: Dive Trip Disputes Keep Coming — Here Are a Few Things You Should Know Before Signing Up

Yesterday's news: A nightmare trip to the Maldives! Influencer names a Divemaster suspected of soliciting clients without a license.

This is not the first time a dive trip has sparked controversy, and it almost certainly won't be the last. The following points are offered as a reference for anyone interested in joining a dive trip.

1. Where is the line between a legitimate group trip and illegally operating a travel business?

Dive travel is booming, and many instructors, dive shops, and even ordinary individuals may organize group dive trips — but it's easy to inadvertently cross a legal line. Under the Tourism Development Act, non-travel-agency operators are prohibited from conducting travel business (violations can result in fines of NT$100,000 to NT$2,000,000). What constitutes "travel business" is defined in Article 27, Paragraph 1 of the same Act, and includes six categories of activities such as "soliciting or receiving tourists and arranging tours, accommodation, and transportation." Accordingly, anyone who collects money to arrange the itinerary, accommodation, or transportation for a dive trip will generally be deemed to be engaged in travel business and must operate in conjunction with a licensed travel agency.

Is there still room for a "legitimate group trip"? Yes. For example, a group of dive buddies planning a trip together might designate one person to contact the local dive shop, book local transportation and accommodation on everyone's behalf, and then split all costs equally — with the organizer receiving no compensation whatsoever. In such a case, the friend who helps coordinate things should of course not be penalized for illegally operating a travel business.

What if the organizing instructor collected money but claims it was payment for accompanying divers underwater and dive supervision — not for operating a travel business? In practice, the Tourism Administration will still assess the totality of the evidence. For instance, in a real 2023 case, an organizing instructor argued that they were merely a "liaison" and that the money collected covered only dive supervision fees, with all other costs passed through at cost from overseas operators. However, the Tourism Administration found, from chat records, that the instructor had told a client "this trip is not a self-arranged tour," and that the payment structure was described as a "package deal at NT$23,000 per person" with no breakdown or distinction between instructor fees and overseas operator costs. The Administration determined that the instructor had in fact been illegally operating a travel business for profit and issued a fine. (Reference: Ministry of Transportation and Communications Appeal Decision No. 交訴字第 1120015339 號)

2. Why do you need a licensed travel agency — isn't an instructor or dive shop enough?

Planning an overseas dive trip, sharing costs, or paying to join a pre-arranged itinerary: choosing between these options is much like choosing between an independent trip and a guided tour — it comes down to personal preference and risk tolerance, and there is no inherently right or wrong answer. The prerequisite for a genuine choice, however, is that the information gap facing the consumer must first be eliminated. Only then is it truly a free choice.

The Tourism Development Act requires that only licensed travel agencies may conduct travel business, while simultaneously requiring those agencies to deposit a bond (Article 30) and to carry travel agency liability insurance and performance guarantee insurance (Article 31) — all for the purpose of protecting consumers. By contrast, travelers who opt for an independent trip forgo the travel agency's margin but also forgo these protections and assume their own risks. So where does a dive trip fit in? If an instructor or dive shop collects money and arranges the itinerary, transportation, and accommodation — performing every function of a travel agency — but then tries to package it as a "friend group trip" to sidestep the consumer protections customers are entitled to, that is simply not right.

So, returning to the original question: if the dive trip you have in mind is not an independent, self-arranged journey, but rather one where you are paying for a certain level of protection, then a licensed travel agency is indispensable — because:

• Travel agencies must deposit a bond, and must carry performance guarantee insurance for domestic and overseas travel services, so consumers have less reason to worry about having no recourse if a dispute arises.
• Travel agencies are required to carry travel agency liability insurance — and only licensed travel agencies are eligible to take out such coverage. If a consumer suffers accidental death, disability, or injury during the trip, compensation is available regardless of whether the operator was at fault.

These protections simply cannot be provided by an instructor or dive shop that lacks travel agency credentials.

3. How can you tell whether a dive trip itinerary is being offered by a travel agency?

Any itinerary provided by a licensed travel agency will, as a basic matter, allow you to find the agency's full company name and business registration number on the trip information page. From there, consumers can visit the Tourism Administration website to verify whether the company is a legitimate travel agency and to check other details (company category — comprehensive, Class A, or Class B; whether it is a member of the Travel Quality Assurance Association; the coverage amount of its performance guarantee insurance, etc.). If none of this information can be found, there are strong grounds to suspect the trip is not being organized by a licensed travel agency, and it is advisable to ask the organizer directly to confirm.

The Editor's Quick Checklist: Look at These Three Things Before You Register

The three points the lawyer makes translate into the following pre-registration steps:

1. Find the travel agency's full name and business registration number on the itinerary page. If they're not there, ask the organizer directly. A legitimate operation has no reason to be unable to produce these two pieces of information.
2. Once you have the company name, look it up on the Tourism Administration website. In addition to confirming whether it is a licensed travel agency, you can also check the performance guarantee insurance coverage amount and whether the agency is a member of the Travel Quality Assurance Association.
3. Confirm who you are paying. If the money goes into the travel agency's corporate bank account and you receive an official collection-and-remittance receipt, the trip is legally a contract between you and the travel agency — and if something goes wrong, you can go directly to the travel agency and the Tourism Administration. If the money is transferred to an individual's personal bank account and all you have is a transfer record, it will be significantly harder to hold that person liable as a travel agency.

The Editor wants to add one thing: this piece is not saying that instructors or dive shops cannot lead trips. The most valuable part of any dive trip has always been the local instructors and dive shops who know exactly when to dive a particular site and how to handle the current. The real issue is simply whether the itinerary and the money flow are operating within the framework of a licensed travel agency. These two things are not in conflict — and a properly run dive trip today should have both in place.

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※ This article is reprinted with the author's permission from the Aodou Lawyer – Outdoor Lawyer Facebook Page. Original post: 〈Dive Trip Disputes Keep Coming — Here Are a Few Things You Should Know Before Signing Up〉.

News sources: EBC News 〈Exclusive: A Nightmare Trip to the Maldives! Influencer Names a Divemaster Suspected of Soliciting Clients Without a License〉; Influencer Couple Splurge on Maldives Trip Only to Be Left Stranded? Furious Claims That Dive Group Leader Was "Unlicensed" — If True, Fine Could Reach NT$500,000 [Live on the Scene] (EBC News CH51).