A slew of new measures are scheduled to take effect starting on Jan. 1, including expanding the Ministry of Culture’s Culture Points (文化幣) program to include people aged 13 to 15.
Culture Points are a cash handout program intended to pass culture on to the next generation by encouraging young people to engage in cultural activities.
The program began last year for people aged 18 to 21 and was expanded this year to include those aged 16 to 22, with each qualified person able to redeem 1,200 points.
Photo: Su Chin-feng, Taipei Times
Minister of Culture Lee Yuan (李遠) said that expanding the program to include teenagers aged 13 to 15 would encourage the next generation to be more creative, humanistic and culturally literate.
In next year’s Culture Points program, citizens and qualified foreign nationals aged 16 to 22 can redeem 1,200 Culture Points, while those aged 13 to 15 can redeem 600 Culture Points.
The points can be redeemed starting on Jan. 1 at 8am on the dedicated app and are valid until Dec. 31 next year.
Photo courtesy of the National Immigration Agency via CNA
Those without a mobile phone can apply for a paper QR code.
This year’s Culture Points are only valid until the end of this month, the ministry said, adding that 248,000 people have yet to redeem their points.
The Ministry of the Interior yesterday also announced two programs starting on Jan. 1.
Photo: CNA
The Executive Yuan in 2022 approved a NT$30 billion (US$922.65 million at the current exchange rate) program to provide rental subsidies to 500,000 households, the ministry said, adding that 326,000 households applied for the subsidy and 278,000 were deemed eligible.
The Executive Yuan approved a revision to the program on May 26 last year, expanding the age requirement to those aged 18 and older, the interior ministry said.
The application period for last year and this year started on July 3 last year and runs until the end of this month, it said.
The Executive Yuan approved another revision on Aug. 19, extending the program until 2026, it added.
All households approved from 2022 to this year would be provided with subsidies, and up to 750,000 households would be subsidized next year and in 2026, the interior ministry said.
Meanwhile, eligibility requirements for automated immigration clearance gates are being relaxed starting on Jan. 1, it said.
The age requirement for registered nationals would be lowered from 12 to 10, and the height requirement lowered from 140cm to 120cm, it added.
About 400,000 people would benefit from the changes, the interior ministry said.
Separately yesterday, the Ministry of Agriculture announced that from Jan. 1 all domestic cats would be required to be registered as pets.
Owners would have a one-year window to register their cats, after which they would be fined NT$3,000 to NT$15,000 as stipulated by the Animal Protection Act (動保法), Department of Animal Welfare Director-General Chen Chung-hsing (陳中興) said yesterday.
Previously, only dogs were required to be registered as pets, but given the increase in the domestic cat population, the ministry in August announced that it would start to require registrations for cats as well, the agriculture ministry said.
Although not yet mandatory, cat registrations have outpaced dog registrations.
The number of new cat registrations in 2022 was 135,000 compared with 106,000 for dogs, while last year those numbers were 130,000 and 94,000 respectively. This year cat registrations have risen to 140,000 compared with 84,000 for dogs, the agriculture ministry said.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday also announced the expansion of its anti-influenza program, saying it would offer free flu vaccines to all unvaccinated residents aged six months or older starting on Jan. 1 until vaccine supply is used up.
Taiwanese and foreign nationals possessing an Alien Resident Certificate would be eligible for the program, which has already provided about 5.6 million vaccine doses to higher-risk people since Oct. 1, the CDC said.
The CDC urged people to check its flu prevention Web site at https://antiflu.cdc.gov.tw/, download its mobile app or call the Epidemic Prevention Hotline on 0800-001-922 to find a nearby healthcare provider participating in the program.
Additional reporting by Yang Yuan-ting
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