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World Book Day: Taiwan to abolish ‘reading tax’ in 2021

  • Date:2020-04-23
World Book Day: Taiwan to abolish ‘reading tax’ in 2021

To promote reading and mitigate the publishing industry's business tax burden, the Ministry of Culture announced on April 23, which is celebrated as World Book Day around the world, that a tax exemption for the industry, including e-booksellers, will take effect in 2021. The decision follows three years of coordination with the Ministry of Finance, and the two government bodies are now looking into related regulations to clear the path for the long-awaited change.

A taskforce composed of representatives from the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Finance, and the National Central Library will be launched to revise the "Regulations for Reducing Business and Entertainment Taxes for Cultural and Arts-related Enterprises (文化藝術事業減免營業稅及娛樂稅辦法)" and exchange views on implementation details, Minister of Culture Cheng Li-chiun said, adding that the change will take effect around mid-2021 after an online application system is completed.

The Ministry will also team up with the National Central Library, Taiwan's International Standard Book Number (ISBN) agency, to streamline the administrative procedure for applying for tax-exempt status. Once the new system is in place, publishing houses will be able to submit a one-time application to have their newly published books included in the scope of said exemption when applying for ISBN / EISBN.

While expressing her appreciation for Finance Minister Su Jain-rong's (蘇建榮) support in making the tax break possible, Cheng stressed that literature and publishing are the cornerstones of Taiwan's cultural vitality, thus abolishing tax on printed books and their digital equivalents is an essential step to encourage writing, creating, and publishing.

While global publishing has been struggling, Taiwan's publishing industry has shown growth for three consecutive years since 2017. To help promote reading, which is the basis for the acquisition of knowledge, Taiwan's publishing sector has been calling on the government to alleviate its tax burden.

A total of 53 countries including Argentina, Ireland, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand, and United Kingdom have abolished business tax on printed books. Among these countries, South Korea, Thailand, and Malaysia have taken it a step further by axing the tax on any reading materials — digital or print.

The proposed amendments are expected to be announced in May. Read the original press release here.