The Quintuple Stimulus Voucher program has been finalized and Oct. 8 set as the issuance date, while an economic benefit of up to NT$200 billion (US$7.21 billion) is expected, the Executive Yuan said yesterday.
Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) disclosed the program details at a news conference in Taipei.
The vouchers would be offered in print or electronic versions to Taiwanese; their foreign, including Chinese, spouses; holders of Alien Permanent Resident Certificates; and diplomats, Su said.
Photo: Lee Hsin-fang, Taipei Times
People can register for digital vouchers from Sept. 22 via 5000.gov.tw or other digital payment platforms, while registration for print vouchers is available at convenience stores from Sept. 25 and at post offices from Oct. 4, Su said.
The vouchers could be used as payment at restaurants, street markets, department stores, hotels, cram schools, concerts, sports events, tourism-related businesses and Taiwanese online retailers, as well as public schools for miscellaneous fees, he said.
Online retailers and deliverers were not excluded because they agreed to work with the government in helping local businesses and small farmers, he said.
Photo: Wang Shu-hsiu, Taipei Times
In exchange for being allowed to participate, online businesses would reduce transaction and advertisement fees charged to small businesses and farmers, Su said.
Platform compliance would be monitored by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, while Minister Without Portfolio Audrey Tang (唐鳳) would help them design the technologies needed to implement their part, he said.
Barcodes and QR codes facilitating the vouchers’ use at brick-and-mortar stores and online venues would be issued to voucher recipients, he said.
The vouchers could not be used for transactions connected with stock trades, investment products, taxes, credit card fees, fines, foreign-based online retailers, tobacco products or buying other types of vouchers, Su said.
The vouchers are designed to function as a currency with a use-by date, he said.
The voucher program — which is being reviewed by the Legislative Yuan — is expected to add NT$200 billion to the economy, although the actual results could vary due to the COVID-19 situation and other factors, National Development Council Minister Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said.
The vouchers would come in several denominations and each recipient would have a set worth NT$5,000, Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua (王美花) said.
Store owners might give change for the vouchers, but would not be required to do so, she said.
Separately, central bank Governor Yang Chin-long (楊金龍) said that the vouchers would be printed using nearly the same technologies that keep nation’s currency from being counterfeited, making them difficult to fake.
The central bank would soon air public service announcements showing store owners and clerks how to spot fake vouchers, he said.
On Aug. 19, an Executive Yuan official said on condition of anonymity that holders of an Alien Permanent Resident Certificate or a diplomatic identification card would likely be eligible for the voucher program.
The 13,000 foreigners who were eligible for the Triple Stimulus Voucher program would also be eligible for the Quintuple Stimulus Vouchers, the official added.
Additional reporting by CNA and Yang Chun-hui
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