Finance and Taxation

Current points of emphasis are: improving the fiscal structure, reinforcing cost cutting and revenue expansion, assisting counties (cities) and district towns (townships) to consolidate statutory income, opening up non-revenue autonomous sources of income, using an overall assistance system to supplement regional autonomous finances, and minimizing negative expenditure to raise funds for economic construction; urging Provincial Government owned banks to accelerate liberalization and internationalization of their financial business, strengthen industrial and commercial capitalization, expand their services, raise credit quality, and revamp internal controls and financial operations.

Other priorities are: to urge Provincial Government owned enterprises to overhaul their financial structure and enhance operating efficiency in line with privatization plans; to propel automation at the Taiwan Tobacco and Wine Monopoly Bureau and the upgrading of product quality to promote sales at home and abroad; to implement management computerization, continue to procedures; to strengthen financial auditing of Provincial Government owned enterprises and financial control of unified receipts and allocations agencies to raise operating efficiency; and to strengthen supervision of sound taxation, expand services, uphold taxation ethics, promote complete automation of tax administration, and organize tax education and publicity to supplement the fiscal base and underpin the nation's strength.

Revenues and Expenditures

The province's revenues and expenditures in fiscal year 1994 were US$13.48 billion each, a 2.5 fold increase over those of 1986. The projected revenues and expenditures for fiscal year 1995 are US$11.95 billion each. Supplemental income is projected at US$3.40 billion, accounting for 28.7% of overall revenues, followed by tax revenues. Of the total provincial expenditures, Taiwan Provincial Government took a 74.7% share, or US$8.93 billion. Among this share, actual expenditures on economic programs and transportation construction totaled 43.9%. Development of education, science, and culture captured 33.4%.

Taxation

Of all taxes levied by the government, income taxes, inheritance and gift taxes, commodity taxes, and stock transaction taxes are all national taxes. Stamp taxes, business taxes, license taxes, and harbor construction fees go to the province. County and city taxes include land value tax, land increment tax, house tax, recreation tax and deed tax. The national tax revenues are shared by the national, provincial, county and city treasuries. A portion of the collected provincial taxes also goes to county and city treasuries. In fiscal year 1904 the net total of taxes levied by the government was US$19.50 billion, of which 41.8% was turned over to the national treasury, 22.3% to the provincial treasury, and 35.9% to county and city treasuries.

Tax Burden

Despite price fluctuation, the expansion and improvement of government services, and the transformation of the economic structure, the tax burden was reduced from 22.0% in 1979 to 21.5% in fiscal year 1994, lower than in other industrialized nations.