Taiwan’s government says it will return NT$6,000 in surplus taxes to each citizen. Giving red envelopes with money to family and friends may be a Lunar New Year tradition, but not everyone is welcoming the government’s move. Itamar Waksman reports.
If you’re a Taiwanese national who loves cold, hard cash, you’re in luck. On Wednesday officials announced all Taiwanese citizens will receive NT$6,000 (US$200) in surplus taxes.
One person says the money will make a big difference for those facing economic hardships. She says even NT$1,000 (US$32) would go a long way, let alone six times that.
Another local says the 6,000 will go fast. She says today it’s easy to spend NT$1,000 at the vegetable market. Another person adds that before you could go through the whole market street and spend only NT$100. But that’s no longer possible.
One 300 member clan in central Taiwan’s Taichung plans to pull their government vouchers together into a whopping NT$1.8 million to be deposited in their clan’s foundation.
But some think the government returning people’s tax dollars is strange.
One local says Taiwan has national debt to pay, and it should be using the funds to pay it off rather than leaving it to future generations.
Every Lunar New Year, Taiwanese people wish each other a surplus in the coming year. It seems this year, the government is making that wish come true.