Taiwan’s tax revenue last year fell short of the government’s full-year budget target for the first time in five years, as sluggish property and auto transactions dragged on collections despite record inflows from equity trading and income taxes, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday.
Total tax revenue reached NT$3.75 trillion (US$118.46 billion), down 0.3 percent from a year earlier and equivalent to 98.7 percent of the annual budget, leaving a shortfall of NT$50.5 billion.
It is the first instance of under-collection since 2020, statistics official Liu Shun-rong (劉訓蓉) told a news conference in Taipei.
Photo: Clare Cheng, Taipei Times
The miss was largely driven by weak activity in the housing and auto markets, as well as the impact of deferred and installment-based tax payments, Liu said.
The property downturn took a particularly heavy toll.
Land value increment tax revenue plunged 23.5 percent to NT$68.3 billion, as transaction volumes fell and fewer large taxable cases were recorded, the official said.
The category achieved just 79 percent of its budget target, one of the weakest performances among major revenue items, Liu said.
Customs duties fell 3.5 percent from a year earlier to NT$155.2 billion, mainly due to lower tax receipts from imported passenger vehicles.
Commodity tax revenue declined 11.6 percent to NT$142.5 billion, with vehicle-related taxes accounting for the biggest drop amid uncertainty linked to potential US tariffs, she said.
Nevertheless, several major tax categories posted record-high revenue, highlighting resilience in household income and financial markets, ministry data showed.
Individual income tax revenue climbed to NT$867.8 billion, up 4.7 percent from 2024, supported by higher wage withholding and increased dividend distributions, the ministry said.
Securities transaction tax revenue surged to a record NT$292.8 billion, rising 1.6 percent from a year earlier, it said.
Liu attributed the strong performance of securities transaction tax revenue to a sustained global artificial intelligence investment boom, which boosted Taiwanese share prices and trading volume, as scores of local companies play key roles in the global artificial intelligence supply chain.
Average daily turnover on the Taiwan Stock Exchange reached a record NT$489.4 billion last year, while the securities transaction tax revenue achieved a budget execution rate of 109 percent, making it one of the largest contributors to revenue outperformance, Liu said.
The category could remain a bright spot this year, she said, adding that daily turnover has expanded to about NT$847 billion per session so far this year.
Inheritance and gift tax revenue also far exceeded expectations last year, with execution rates of 177 percent and 145 percent respectively, reflecting large-value cases and accelerated wealth transfers.
The overall figures underscore Taiwan’s growing reliance on capital market and income related taxes, even as traditional revenue sources tied to trade, vehicles and real estate continue to lose momentum.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
Taiwan’s food delivery market could undergo a major shift if Singapore-based Grab Holdings Ltd completes its planned acquisition of Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, industry experts said. Grab on Monday last week announced it would acquire Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations for US$600 million. The deal is expected to be finalized in the second half of this year, with Grab aiming to complete user migration to its platform by the first half of next year. A duopoly between Uber Eats and Foodpanda dominates Taiwan’s delivery market, a structure that has remained intact since the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) blocked Uber Technologies Inc’s
RSS