Operators of duty-free shops in Taiwan will not need to record their customers’ personal data, as various legislators and shop operators expressed concerns the move would hurt the nation’s duty-free trade, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday.
The decision came after an announcement by the ministry’s Department of Customs Administration on July 31, which said it was scheduled to revise the rules on duty-free shop operator management after reviewing them last month.
The revised rules required shop operators to record the passport numbers of travelers purchasing items in duty-free shops as well as details of the items they were purchasing.
The information recorded by computer systems in duty-free shops would immediately be transferred to the administration’s computer system.
However, the department changed its mind, as duty-free shop operators expressed concerns such a move could create an unfriendly shopping experience and cause long lines as shoppers would have to complete a lengthy registration process, which might encourage travelers to buy at other international airports.
The Ministry of Justice also expressed its opposition to this proposal, saying the revision might violate travelers’ privacy.
Last month, various lawmakers, including Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕), Lin Te-fu (林德福) and Wong Chung-chun (翁重鈞), held a public hearing over the issue, with representatives of duty-free shop owners sharing similar views.
“Since representatives indicated the new rules could affect travelers’ willingness to purchase goods at the nation’s airports, we agree to revise the regulations [on recording personal data],” the department director Wang Liang (王亮) told a press conference yesterday.
However, Wang said registering passport numbers is a method commonly used in countries like the US, Japan and South Korea.
Also, the department will insist on the revision that duty-free shop operators have to connect their electronic system instantly with the Customs Administration’s system, to be consistent with international standards, Wang added.
Wang said the department would draft a new version of the rules this month and inform the public, as requested by legislators, giving the public a month to review the proposed rules, before the revisions are officially announced and take effect.
“We still hope the revisions can take effect by the end of this year,” he said.
Separately, the Cabinet yesterday appointed FSC Vice Chairman Wu Tang-chieh (吳當傑) as the new vice minister of finance, adding that Huang Tien-mu (黃天牧), director-general of the FSC’s securities and futures bureau, would fill in Wu’s former position.
Wu’s financial background makes him particularly suitable for his new post and it is thought he will be able to help the ministry advance its agenda, a Cabinet spokesperson said.
Huang, who has a wide range of experience and has helped develop the domestic Chinese-yuan denominated bond market and promote the offshore securities business, will continue to help supervise and manage the financial sector in his new post, the spokesperson said.
Additional reporting by CNA
South Korea’s equity benchmark yesterday crossed a new milestone just a month after surpassing the once-unthinkable 5,000 mark as surging global memory demand powers the country’s biggest chipmakers. The KOSPI advanced as much as 2.6 percent to a record 6,123, with Samsung Electronics Co and SK Hynix Inc each gaining more than 2 percent. With the benchmark now up 45 percent this year, South Korea’s stock market capitalization has also moved past France’s, following last month’s overtaking of Germany’s. Long overlooked by foreign funds, despite being undervalued, South Korean stocks have now emerged as clear winners in the global market. The so-called “artificial intelligence
NEW IDENTITY: Known for its software, India has expanded into hardware, with its semiconductor industry growing from US$38bn in 2023 to US$45bn to US$50bn India on Saturday inaugurated its first semiconductor assembly and test facility, a milestone in the government’s push to reduce dependence on foreign chipmakers and stake a claim in a sector dominated by China. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened US firm Micron Technology Inc’s semiconductor assembly, test and packaging unit in his home state of Gujarat, hailing the “dawn of a new era” for India’s technology ambitions. “When young Indians look back in the future, they will see this decade as the turning point in our tech future,” Modi told the event, which was broadcast on his YouTube channel. The plant would convert
‘SEISMIC SHIFT’: The researcher forecast there would be about 1.1 billion mobile shipments this year, down from 1.26 billion the prior year and erasing years of gains The global smartphone market is expected to contract 12.9 percent this year due to the unprecedented memorychip shortage, marking “a crisis like no other,” researcher International Data Corp (IDC) said. The new forecast, a dramatic revision down from earlier estimates, gives the latest accounting of the ongoing memory crunch that is affecting every corner of the electronics industry. The demand for advanced memory to power artificial intelligence (AI) tasks has drained global supply until well into next year and jeopardizes the business model of many smartphone makers. IDC forecast about 1.1 billion mobile shipments this year, down from 1.26 billion the prior
People stand in a Pokemon store in Tokyo on Thursday. One of the world highest-grossing franchises is celebrated its 30th anniversary yesterday.
RSS