Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/11/30
By: Bernie Chiu and Lilian Wu
Taipei, Nov. 30 (CNA) Raising the possibility of adding to the deductions taxpayers can claim
to decrease their income tax burden would not be a tax cut and is by no means pork barrel politics, Finance Minister Chang Sheng-ford (張盛和) said Monday.
“This probably will not win over (voters),” Chang said, amid doubts that the ministry’s motivation in broaching possible changes was to woo voters prior to the Jan. 16 presidential and legislative elections.
He said the government was reacting to proposed changes to the income tax system raised last week by opposition Democratic Progressive Party Legislator (DPP) Hsueh Ling (薛凌) and several other lawmakers.
“There are around 45 such proposals,” Chang said, noting that the timing was not decided by the ministry but that it would study all of the proposals and decide which ones to include in a plan to be submitted in the next legislative session next year. [FULL STORY]