People entering Taiwan would be allowed to bring up to 200 heated tobacco product sticks into the country duty free starting on Feb. 1, but they would have to be bought in duty-free areas in Taiwan airports due to existing health approval rules.
The only heated tobacco products — electronic devices that heat processed tobacco sticks at a lower temperature than conventional cigarettes — currently approved for sale in Taiwan are not currently sold overseas, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said.
Photo courtesy of Taoyuan International Airport Corp
Therefore, travelers who try to bring in unapproved heated tobacco sticks from abroad after Feb. 1 hoping to avoid paying duties on them would still contravene the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (菸害防制法) and be subject to a fine ranging from NT$50,000 to NT$5 million (US$1,580 to US$158,009), the ministry said.
Lo Su-ying (羅素英), head of the Tobacco Control Division at the Health Promotion Administration (HPA), told reporters yesterday that only two companies operating in Taiwan currently have designated heated tobacco products and component combinations approved by the ministry.
Lo said travelers may not bring other heated tobacco products purchased overseas into Taiwan, but may buy approved products at duty-free shops in Taiwan airports or in outlying islands, and bring them in under the new duty-free rules.
Lo said the HPA sent information on approved heated tobacco product items that passed health risk assessments to the Customs Administration on Oct. 1 last year to serve as a reference for inspections upon entry.
The HPA said it would strengthen public communication and education efforts to help travelers understand the rules in advance and avoid breaking the law.
Taiwanese can file complaints with the Tourism Administration to report travel agencies if their activities caused termination of a person’s citizenship, Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday, after a podcaster highlighted a case in which a person’s citizenship was canceled for receiving a single-use Chinese passport to enter Russia. The council is aware of incidents in which people who signed up through Chinese travel agencies for tours of Russia were told they could obtain Russian visas and fast-track border clearance, Chiu told reporters on the sidelines of an event in Taipei. However, the travel agencies actually applied
New measures aimed at making Taiwan more attractive to foreign professionals came into effect this month, the National Development Council said yesterday. Among the changes, international students at Taiwanese universities would be able to work in Taiwan without a work permit in the two years after they graduate, explainer materials provided by the council said. In addition, foreign nationals who graduated from one of the world’s top 200 universities within the past five years can also apply for a two-year open work permit. Previously, those graduates would have needed to apply for a work permit using point-based criteria or have a Taiwanese company
The Shilin District Prosecutors’ Office yesterday indicted two Taiwanese and issued a wanted notice for Pete Liu (劉作虎), founder of Shenzhen-based smartphone manufacturer OnePlus Technology Co (萬普拉斯科技), for allegedly contravening the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) by poaching 70 engineers in Taiwan. Liu allegedly traveled to Taiwan at the end of 2014 and met with a Taiwanese man surnamed Lin (林) to discuss establishing a mobile software research and development (R&D) team in Taiwan, prosecutors said. Without approval from the government, Lin, following Liu’s instructions, recruited more than 70 software
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
RSS