The legislature overhauled the Animal Protection Act (
The amendment also defines animal abuse for the first time, stipulating that any "violence, undue use of drugs or other behavior that harms animals or prevents them from maintaining normal physiological functions" is considered abuse.
According to the amendment, animal owners are required to provide vaccinations for their animals in addition to satisfying their basic needs such as food, water and protection from harassment and abuse.
Also included is a new requirement for the government to provide public play areas for pets.
The amendment clarifies the ban on killing "pets" for meat or fur by specifying dogs and cats as pets.
It also bans inhumane methods of slaughtering livestock.
The amendment, however, allows for the killing of animals that pose "immediate danger" to a person's life, health, freedom or property or to public security.
It also requires pet breeders to renew their licenses every three years, while authorizing the government to inspect their facilities.
According to the amendment, anyone who abuses or causes serious harm to animals or kills a dog or cat may be fined between NT$100,000 and NT$500,000 -- double the fine before the bill was passed. Photographs and names of violators may be published as part of the punishment.
Violators who repeat their offense within two years may be fined between NT$200,000 and NT$1 million (US$30,800).
Upon a third violation within five years, violators may be sentenced to one year in prison and be fined up to NT$1 million.
Anyone who uses live animals as game prizes or sells dead dogs or cats may be fined between NT$50,000 and NT$250,000 and have his or her name and/or photograph made public. This means that vendors who offer hamsters and rabbits as game prizes at night markets will be subject to fines if they do not cease the practice.
The amendment also introduces tighter penalties for people who abandon animals.
Abandoning an animal that could negatively affect the ecosystem is punishable by a fine of NT$30,000 to NT$150,000.
Abandoning animals not detrimental to the ecosystem is punishable by a fine of between NT$15,000 and NT$75,000.
The same fines will apply to animal owners who fail to provide adequate medical care for sick or injured pets or livestock after having been warned by the government.
The amendment also empowers the government to remove animals from an owner's care where there is evidence of abuse or negligence.
In addition, if owners neglect to control their animals and this results in damage to the property of others, authorities may confiscate the animals.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsiao Bi-khim (
"The amendment helps Taiwan improve not only its international image but also animal protection in the country," she said.
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in