Lawmakers yesterday expressed skepticism about the Ministry of Finance's Alternative Minimum Tax proposal, saying that the exclusion of individuals' overseas income and the continuation of five-year tax breaks for prospective businesses have created loopholes in the landmark taxation reform.
The ministry's revised draft proposal obtained the Cabinet's approval late last month.
Ahead of formal legislative discussion of the proposal next week, the Taiwan Solidarity Union's (TSU) legislative caucus yesterday invited Minister of Finance Lin Chuan (
TSU Legislator Kuo Lin-yung (
In response, Lin said that taxing overseas income has been listed as a mid-term goal. However, as taxation of foreign income involves complex factors and requires time to draw up well-rounded measures, the ministry will address the controversial issue in the next stage of tax reforms.
Chien Hsi-chieh, convener of the pan-purple alliance, said that only by establishing a fair taxation system can a nation develop a sound financial system.
However, 15 of Taiwan's 40 richest people managed to pay tax at a rate of just 1 percent, which might lead to serious social problems and give rise to criticism that the government robs the poor to benefit the rich, he said.
TSU Legislator Lai Shin-yuan (賴幸媛) said she disapproved of the proposal's
continuations of the five-year tax exemption for new businesses in
accordance with the Statute for Upgrading Industries (促進產業升級條例).
These companies will not be included in the new scheme's tax base.
She added that this design has fallen short of the public's expectations for
building an integrated tax system.
Lin Mei-hsueh (林美雪), director of the Industrial Development Bureau's
industrial policy division, said the government has to keep its promises to
businesses that decided to invest in Taiwan because of the five-year
tax-free incentive.
Maintaining consistency in the implementation of government policies is more
important than helping prospective business groups to turn a profit, she
said.
Handset camera lens maker Largan Precision Co (大立光) on Sunday reported a 6.71 percent year-on-year decline in revenue for the third quarter, despite revenue last month hitting the highest level in 11 months. Third-quarter revenue was NT$17.68 billion (US$581.2 million), compared with NT$18.95 billion a year earlier, the company said in a statement. The figure was in line with Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co’s (元大投顧) forecast of NT$17.9 billion, but missed the market consensus estimate of NT$18.97 billion. The third-quarter revenue was a 51.44 percent increase from NT$11.67 billion in the second quarter, as the quarter is usually the peak
Taiwan’s foreign exchange reserves hit a record high at the end of last month, surpassing the US$600 billion mark for the first time, the central bank said yesterday. Last month, the country’s foreign exchange reserves rose US$5.51 billion from a month earlier to reach US$602.94 billion due to an increase in returns from the central bank’s portfolio management, the movement of other foreign currencies in the portfolio against the US dollar and the bank’s efforts to smooth the volatility of the New Taiwan dollar. Department of Foreign Exchange Director-General Eugene Tsai (蔡炯民)said a rate cut cycle launched by the US Federal Reserve
The US government on Wednesday sanctioned more than two dozen companies in China, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, including offshoots of a US chip firm, accusing the businesses of providing illicit support to Iran’s military or proxies. The US Department of Commerce included two subsidiaries of US-based chip distributor Arrow Electronics Inc (艾睿電子) on its so-called entity list published on the federal register for facilitating purchases by Iran’s proxies of US tech. Arrow spokesman John Hourigan said that the subsidiaries have been operating in full compliance with US export control regulations and his company is discussing with the US Bureau of
Pegatron Corp (和碩), a key assembler of Apple Inc’s iPhones, on Thursday reported a 12.3 percent year-on-year decline in revenue for last quarter to NT$257.86 billion (US$8.44 billion), but it expects revenue to improve in the second half on traditional holiday demand. The fourth quarter is usually the peak season for its communications products, a company official said on condition of anonymity. As Apple released its new iPhone 17 series early last month, sales in the communications segment rose sequentially last month, the official said. Shipments to Apple have been stable and in line with earlier expectations, they said. Pegatron shipped 2.4 million notebook
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