Focus Taiwan
Date: 9/14/2020 07:20 PM
By: Yu Hsiao-han and Elizabeth Hsu

Taipei, Sept. 14 (CNA) Taiwan's subsidies for people staying at quarantine hotels for the mandatory isolation period amid the COVID-19 pandemic will last until the end of this year but will be reduced to keep the budget sustainable, the Tourism Bureau announced Monday.

The bureau said in a statement that the government subsidies, aimed at encouraging hostels and hotels to offer lodgings to people subjected to home quarantine or home isolation, were set to expire on Aug. 31.

However, in light of the continuous demand as the pandemic remains active, the subsidies will be prolonged until Dec. 31, the bureau said, but after taking international COVID-19 outbreaks and the government's limited budget into consideration, it decided to cut the money from NT$1,200 (US$41) per person per day to NT$800, starting Oct. 1.

Moreover, those eligible for the quarantine hotel subsidies will be limited to Taiwanese nationals and permanent residency holders, also starting Oct. 1, the bureau added.
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