NEWS
TAIWAN TO RAISE DUTY-FREE ALCOHOL ALLOWANCE BY 50% AHEAD OF CHINESE NEW YEAR
By Tony Zhu
16-1-2025
Credit: Tim Volz/Unsplash
Travellers entering Taiwan would be allowed to bring in more duty-free alcohol for their personal use starting later this month, the ministry of finance announced.
The current duty-free allowance of l litre of alcohol allowed per incoming traveller is to be increased to 1.5 litres starting on 25 January, the ministry said.
The general public can offer their opinions on the plan until 21 January. After that the ministry will streamline procedures for finalising the measure so that it can take effect around the Chinese new year holiday, which begins on Saturday next week.
At present, passengers who exceed the duty-free limit must declare the alcoholic beverages they have or risk confiscation and fines at customs, and that will not change under the new measure.
The current alcohol duty-free limit has not been reviewed for 20 years, and the limit allowed in Taiwan is relatively low compared with other countries.
A recent Taiwan customs administration survey found that the duty-free allowance for alcohol in Thailand, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Macau is 1 litre per inbound passenger, but it is 1.5 litres in China, and 2 litres in South Korea and Singapore.
The ministry had planned to raise the limit to 2 litres, but after assessing all of the factors, it decided on a limit of 1.5 litres.
The change is expected to cost the country several million NT dollars a year in revenue from import duties, business tax and alcohol tax, the ministry said.
(the writer can be contacted at: info@thewinechronicle.com)
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