《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》 Protesters slam property tax proposals

‘PROGRESSIVE’ BEST: The Alliance for Fair Tax Reform said a progressive tax rate would help curb property speculation, maintain tax fairness and help home buyers

By Amy Su / Staff reporter

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Several groups yesterday protested in front of the Ministry of Finance against what they said was the government’s insufficient reform of the property tax, calling for fair policies which would truly tax the rich and reduce speculative property transactions.

Minister of Finance Chang Sheng-ford （張盛和） announced last month that the ministry is working on a separate taxation system for the planned capital gains on property transactions, which would be enacted in 2016 at the earliest, following discussions with tax experts and industry representatives at two conferences.

Alliance for Fair Tax Reform （公平稅改聯盟） spokesman Hung Ching-shu （洪敬舒） said social housing activists accept — in principle — the ministry’s decision to tax property transactions in a separate system with independent rate bands, while offering some privileged measures in the form of tax exemptions or tax rates for long-held properties and single-home owners who live in their property.

“However, the rate is the most important key behind the new reform, and we think a progressive tax rate must be adopted,” Hung told reporters after the demonstration.

Adopting a progressive tax rate is the only way to protect the rights of the general public to buy a home, curb property speculations and maintain tax fairness at the same time, the protesters said.

The ministry is still considering whether to use a progressive tax rate or a flat tax rate as part of its reform plan. However, many groups say a flat rate would be totally unacceptable.

Housing Reform Action Alliance spokeswoman Chiang Ying-hui （江穎慧） said the ministry’s property tax reform proposals have totally overlooked pre-sale house transactions and agricultural property sales.

The ministry has yet to devise a measure to prevent potential tax avoidance by land developers, Chiang said.

The government should impose an income registration system for pre-sale house transactions, asking sellers to declare related profit as part of the consolidated income tax system, with agricultural property sales to be included in the scope of the planned capital gains tax, Chiang said.

The government must also make developers pay business tax and business income tax based on their actual profits from project sales, Chiang added.

A “sleep-in” outside The Palace （帝寶） luxury residential complex on Taipei’s Renai Road （仁愛路） is being planned for Oct. 4 to protest the government’s poor housing policy and inadequate property tax reform proposals, said Peng Yang-kai （彭揚凱）, spokesman for the recently launched Housing Movement （巢運）.

The ministry’s Taxation Administration yesterday responded to the criticism by saying that the government is still collecting opinions for future discussions, as the capital gains tax on property transactions is still in the planning stage and the proposal has not been finalized.

No matter what the ministry’s draft may include, the proposal must first pass the legislature, which means the date for implementing such reforms is uncertain, the tax agency said.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES