The government is considering offering subsidies to Taiwanese visitors to Palau that would cover part of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing fees, Minister of Transportation and Communications Wang Kwo-tsai (王國材) said yesterday.
Taiwan has been allowing people to travel to the Pacific island nation since April 1 via a “travel bubble” agreement between the two countries. While the pilot tours attracted more than 100 Taiwanese tourists, travel operators have since then reported lackluster sales of tours, which caused China Airlines to cancel charter flights to Palau.
One of the reasons for high tour prices is the PCR tests, which travelers are required to undertake both when they arrive at and return from Palau, Wang told reporters, adding that two PCR tests cost NT$10,000.
Photo: Hsiao Yu-hsin, Taipei Times
“Through the subsidies, we hope that tour prices would return to the pre-COVID-19 level, which would motivate more people to travel. The same subsidy program could also be implemented should Taiwan form travel bubbles with Singapore and Vietnam,” Wang said, adding that details of the subsidy program are still in discussion.
The ministry is also studying the possibility of subsidizing PCR tests for international tourists arriving via “travel bubble” agreements, as it would contribute to the growth of the nation’s tourism industry, which has been severely hit by the pandemic, Wang said.
Although the government is in talks with many nations and territories about forming travel corridors, Wang said that tours to Palau remain the ministry’s priority, as they would set an example for how a “travel bubble” agreement should be enforced in terms of arranging tours amid a pandemic.
“The experiences we gain from our opening tours to Palau would become an important point of reference when we discuss other ‘travel bubble’ agreements with the Central Epidemic Command Center,” he said, adding that the center would make the final decision on any other “travel bubble” agreements.
Starting on April 14, Taiwanese returning from Palau only need to observe general self-health management guidelines for 14 days, rather than undergoing a stricter version of self-health management for five days and general health management for another nine days, the Tourism Bureau has said.
Although tourists must still take a PCR test on the fifth day of their return, they are allowed to take public transport to work, it added.
Foreign expatriates in Taiwan who have Alien Permanent Resident Cards or Alien Resident Cards are allowed to travel to Palau through the “travel bubble” agreement as well, the bureau said.
On Monday, Singaporean Minister of Transport Ong Ye Kung (王乙康) said the city-state has submitted a “travel bubble” proposal to Taiwan, along with a proposed program to mutually recognize vaccination certificates.
In related news, the ministry is still studying whether the government should offer relief funds to workers in the travel industry in the second quarter of this year to compensate their loss of income due to the pandemic, Wang said.
The funds would be planned with a vision of boosting tours in the post-pandemic era and elevating overall travel quality, he said.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was sentenced to six months in prison, commutable to a fine, by the New Taipei District Court today for contravening the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法) in a case linked to an alleged draft-dodging scheme. Wang allegedly paid NT$3.6 million (US$114,380) to an illegal group to help him evade mandatory military service through falsified medical documents, prosecutors said. He transferred the funds to Chen Chih-ming (陳志明), the alleged mastermind of a draft-evasion ring, although he lost contact with him as he was already in detention on fraud charges, they said. Chen is accused of helping a
SECURITY: Starlink owner Elon Musk has taken pro-Beijing positions, and allowing pro-China companies to control Taiwan’s critical infrastructure is risky, a legislator said Starlink was reluctant to offer services in Taiwan because of the nation’s extremely high penetration rates in 4G and 5G services, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said yesterday. The ministry made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, which reviewed amendments to Article 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act (電信管理法). Article 36 bans foreigners from holding more than 49 percent of shares in public telecommunications networks, while shares foreigners directly and indirectly hold are also capped at 60 percent of the total, unless specified otherwise by law. The amendments, sponsored by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ko
‘SAME OLD TRICK’: Even if Beijing resumes individual travel to Taiwan, it would only benefit Chinese tourism companies, the Economic Democracy Union convener said China’s 10 new “incentives” are “sugar-coated poison,” an official said yesterday, adding that Taiwanese businesses see them clearly for what they are, but that Beijing would inevitably find some local collaborators to try to drums up support. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made the remark ahead of a news conference the General Chamber of Commerce is to hold today. The event, titled “Industry Perspectives on China’s Recent Pro-Taiwan Policies,” is expected to include representatives from industry associations — such as those in travel, hotels, food and agriculture — to request the government cooperate with China’s new measures, people familiar with
The eastern extension of the Taipei MRT Red Line could begin operations as early as late June, the Taipei Department of Rapid Transit Systems said yesterday. Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said it is considering offering one month of free rides on the new section to mark its opening. Construction progress on the 1.4km extension, which is to run from the current terminal Xiangshan Station to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, was 90.6 percent complete by the end of last month, the department said in a report to the Taipei City Council's Transportation Committee. While construction began in October 2016 with an
RSS