The Customs Administration yesterday said it would hold a meeting on Friday to discuss whether it should further reduce the number of masks that each passenger will be allowed to carry on international flights, as the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak in China could worsen a shortage of masks.
International flight passengers may take no more than five boxes of masks until Feb. 23.
“Many people have had trouble buying masks and the public might start to view it negatively if the government continues to allow international flight passengers to carry a maximum of five boxes of masks. We could consider reducing the number to two or three boxes per person,” Customs Administration Deputy Director-General Peng Ying-wei (彭英偉) told the Taipei Times.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
Although the government imposed a one-month mask export ban after the outbreak, Peng said that some people had still tried to send masks overseas through the post.
Between Wednesday last week and Sunday, officials found 489 parcels containing 112,154 masks, Customs Administration data showed.
Most of the parcels were addressed to Hong Kong and China, Peng said, adding that the number of parcels breaching the export ban had gradually diminished.
People are banned from sending masks abroad via postal or express delivery services, the agency said, adding that the ban does not apply to those who have obtained special permission to do so from the Bureau of Foreign Trade.
People who send masks are contravening the Customs Anti-smuggling Act (海關緝私條例), the agency said.
If senders fail to honestly report that parcels contain masks, the parcels would be confiscated by customs and the masks turned over to the Centers for Disease Control, the agency added.
People carrying excessive numbers of masks when traveling abroad would have them confiscated and be fined no more than three times the price of the confiscated items, it added.
Chunghwa Post said that it would automatically reject parcels if they contain masks in compliance with the government’s policy.
The company has also amended the regulations governing the delivery of mail to hospitals and other medical facilities where couriers could be exposed to health risks.
Rather than mail being delivered directly to wards, all mail is to be delivered to a post office branch, mail room or iPostbox, or another assigned location within the hospital, the company said.
Couriers are required to wear a mask when on duty, Chunghwa Post said, adding that they would inform recipients at the hospitals that their mail had arrived by telephone call or text message.
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