2010-02-11 14:54:03

The government is instituting new policies and measures designed to create a better living environment. New measures to be instituted in 2010 to forward the interests of the public include a reduction in the consolidated income tax rate and an adjustment of the labor insurance occupational accident premium. In addition, the new Food and Drug Administration will begin operating following organizational integration, exercising authority and performing tasks that were previously under different agencies. This will shorten the sampling and inspection process for food and drugs, heightening administrative efficiency and reinforcing the food and drug health management mechanism. The following major policies in the field of tax reform will be inaugurated in the new year: 1. The business income tax rate will be reduced from 25% to 20%, and the tax exempt amount will be raised from NT$50,000 to NT$120,000. The consolidated income tax brackets below 21% will be cut to 20%, 12%, and 5%, and the net amount of income subject to the 5% rate will be raised from NT$410,000 to NT$500,000. 2. Individual overseas income that exceeds NT$1 million must be reported, and that portion of basic income earned during the current year that exceeds NT$6 million will be subject to a basic tax rate of 20%. 3. The method of calculating substantive patent examination fees will be switched from a per-case basis to number of claims. If the number of claims is no more than 10, a basic fee of NT$7,000 will be collected; if the number of claims exceeds 10, a fee of NT$800 per claim will be collected. In addition, some annual fees for invention patents will be reduced. The following measures will be instituted to reinforce worker protection: 1. A new labor insurance occupational injury premium system will go into effect, with premium rates divided into two types: premium rates for injuries incurred on the way to or from work, and premium rates by occupation. There will be a uniform 0.05% rate for injuries suffered on the way to or from work, and the average rate by occupation will be lowered from 0.22% to 0.21%. The number of occupational categories will be maintained at 61. 2. Private academic and service industry researchers will be encompassed in the scope of the Labor Standards Act beginning on March 1. The following measures will be instituted to enhance the administrative efficiency of drug review and reinforce food and drug safety management: 1. The Food and Drug Administration will be set up to integrate the functions of four existing agencies of the Department of Health: the Bureau of Food Sanitation, Bureau of Pharmaceutical Affairs, Bureau of Food and Drug Analysis, and National Bureau of Controlled Drugs. This new unified authority will facilitate the upgrading of administrative efficiency and will promote transparency of the examination process. 2. All shops, supermarkets, and other venues with physical stores that sell such bulk foods as fruit or shredded squid and the like, will be required to label place of production and name of product clearly. Companies that manufacture or import over-the-counter drugs have a responsibility to recover and dispose of discarded drug containers, and should pay a recovery and disposition fee according to the amount of business or imports.