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🇹🇼 Taiwan /Economy & Trade

Taiwan to ease SME support act, expanding scope to include night markets

From Liberty Times · () Chinese

Translated from Chinese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs plans to revise the "SME Transformation and Upgrade Act" to broaden its scope and lower eligibility thresholds.
  • The revised act will include small businesses, commercial districts, markets, and night markets.
  • The ministry aims to submit the draft to the Legislative Yuan by September, offering more flexible tax incentives and subsidies.

Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs is set to significantly expand the reach and accessibility of its support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through a revision of the "SME Transformation and Upgrade Act." Vice Minister of Economic Affairs, Ho Chin-tsang, announced that the updated legislation will lower existing thresholds and broaden its application to encompass a wider array of businesses, including small retailers, commercial districts, traditional markets, and night markets.

Currently, certain tax incentives, such as those for wage increases, tend to be concentrated in Taiwan's six major metropolitan areas. Legislator Lu Yu-ling had raised concerns that promotional efforts or policy incentives might be insufficient in other regions. In response, Ho stated that the ministry is actively considering how to relax the criteria for tax benefits in the upcoming SME Transformation and Upgrade Act.

Compared to the existing SME Development Act, the future transformation and upgrade act will relax many of these tax incentive conditions.

— Ho Chin-tsangThe Vice Minister of Economic Affairs highlighted the significant loosening of conditions for tax incentives under the proposed new act.

Ho clarified that the new act will go beyond the existing SME Development Act, which already offers tax benefits like a 175% deduction for wage increases. The upcoming legislation aims to provide more flexible tax incentives and subsidies, particularly for businesses like night markets and traditional markets, which often operate on tighter margins. The government also plans to increase funding for research and development, credit guarantees, and market expansion initiatives, specifically targeting these smaller commercial entities.

The ministry is undertaking a comprehensive review of the existing framework and aims to submit the draft of the revised act to the Legislative Yuan for deliberation by September. This initiative reflects a broader governmental commitment to fostering business growth and innovation across all scales of enterprises throughout Taiwan.

We are comprehensively reviewing the situation and aim to submit the draft act to the Legislative Yuan by September, hoping for their support.

— Ho Chin-tsangThe Vice Minister of Economic Affairs stated the timeline for submitting the revised act and expressed hope for legislative approval.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Liberty Times in Chinese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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