TAXATION
Thresholds to be raised
The monthly sales threshold for businesses to apply for tax registration is likely to be raised to NT$100,000 (US$3,108) for goods and NT$50,000 for services to keep pace with inflation, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The current threshold is NT$80,000 for goods and NT$40,000 for services. Business operators who do not sell enough per month to meet the threshold do not need to pay business tax. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lee Kuen-cheng (李坤城) during a meeting at the legislature made the suggestion to raise the threshold by 25 percent based on the consumer price index. Minister of Finance Chuang Tsui-yun (莊翠雲) responded that the ministry would change the threshold to follow that suggestion. The policy is to be formally announced by the end of this month ahead of a 30-day public comment period, followed by potential implementation on Jan. 1, Chuang said. Lawmakers had been calling for an adjustment to keep pace with inflation, as the figure had not changed for 17 years.
TRANSPORTATION
YouBike fees to be cut
YouBike rentals in New Taipei City are to be free for the first 30 minutes starting in the first quarter of next year at the earliest, the city government said yesterday. The move follows a decision by the Taipei City Government in February to reinstate the free first half hour, as people travel regularly between New Taipei City and Taipei, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) told a council meeting. The first 30 minutes were free when the service was launched, but that was changed to only be free for people transferring from other public transportation or with a regional transit pass, New Taipei City Transportation Department Director Chung Ming-shih (鍾鳴時) said. Currently, the first 30 minutes costs NT$5, with the remaining NT$5 of the total NT$10 cost covered by the city government, Chung said.
WEATHER
Temperatures to fall
Cooler temperatures with brief showers are forecast across northern and northeastern parts of the nation from Saturday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said on Tuesday. Seasonal winds combined with an arriving weather front are expected to bring temperature highs down by 5°C to 27°C that day, CWA forecaster Lin Ting-yi (林定宜) said. Intermittent showers are also likely, with a chance of heavy rain in parts of Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as coastal areas of Keelung, Lin said. Although the effects of the weather front would only last for a day, the strengthening seasonal winds would result in cooler weather until Tuesday next week, he said.
CULTURE
Juming museum reopens
Juming Museum (朱銘美術館) in New Taipei City’s Jinshan District (金山) reopened to the public on Tuesday, 11 days after suffering extensive damage from flooding caused by Typhoon Krathon. During the Oct. 4 typhoon, floodwater breached the museum’s storage facilities, knocked down sculptures displayed outside and flooded low-lying areas of the museum’s 110,000m2 campus, museum director Liu Po-Tsun (劉柏村) said. In total, 50 indoor and 86 outdoor artworks were damaged, as was some of the museum’s electrical equipment, Liu said, adding that the works of art would all be professionally restored. The museum’s exhibition “Fang Wu (方物),” which features works by 20 artists from across East Asia, were not affected by the flooding and only suffered minor humidity damage, Liu said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
RSS