In 2006, the United Nations passed the ”International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities”. As a result, all countries must now pay greater attention to the rights of disabled people. In Taiwan, the number of visually impaired people has gradually grown year by year. The majority of these are adults and people who acquired visual impairment (VI) in later life. According to the Lifelong Learning Law, the Special Education Law, and the People with Disabilities Rights Protection Law, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of the Interior and the Council of Labor Affairs are required to sponsor learning programs for those who acquired VI in adulthood. This study explores various aspects of Taiwanese learning programs and identifies common obstacles to participation for people who acquired VI in adulthood, based on the government data, the information from non-profit organizations (NPO), and interviews with six participants (three are visually impaired adults, two NPO staff, and one government official). The results showed that of the 33 learning programs sponsored by government organizations up to the end of 2008, 24 (72.7%) are associated with employment training. However, when such programs were implemented, the NPOs reported that the program period is too short, the appraisal method is unfair, and recruitment is difficult. The government organizations also challenged the will and ability of the contracted NPOs. Obstacles to participation for visually impaired adults included: the physical obstacles (age limit), the psychological obstacles (unwillingness to be listed as a person with disabilities, low self-esteem, loss of life goals and purpose, withdrawal, self-pity, deception of oneself and others), the organizational obstacles (poor attitude of staff members), the curriculum and teaching obstacles (teaching content and teaching methods are disorganized, curriculum is not practical), as well as the information obstacles (inadequate information, inabil- ity of prospective students to receive visual information, late notification of program information). In comparison to other studies concerning general adult population, the situational obstacles (insufficiency of time and money) and the physical obstacles (resulting from weak physical strength, poor physical condition, and declining hearing and eyesight) were less reported by visually impaired adults. Moreover, the psychological obstacles (reduced confidence, dislike for learning, disillusionment with school) also showed difference between these two groups. The results of the study reveal that the implementation of the learning programs entails serious policy obstacles and, accordingly, the rights of people who acquired VI in adulthood are not fully respected. Based on the findings, several detailed suggestions are offered. They are expected to effectively reduce participation obstacles for visually impaired adults and further protect their rights to lifelong learning.