Taiwan and Mainland

 

1.       Amendment to Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area

 

On 24 April 2019, the President announced the amendment to the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area, and the effective date for this amendment will be further determined by the Executive Yuan.  The penalties of the following activities will be raised, provided however that other than those imposed for agent's activities, the penalties will be exempted if the violation is trivial and has been cured:

 

(1)   Where an investor invests in Taiwan area without prior approval.

 

(2)   Where an invested company fails to submit the information required, makes the filing with untrue or incomplete information, or circumvents, impede, or refuse the inspections of the regulator.

 

(3)   Where an invested company violates in the requirements in respect of the re-investment procedures.

 

(4)   Where an investor or an invested company fails to apply for capital verification, or makes the filing with untrue or incomplete information.

 

(5)   Where the agent of an investor willfully or by gross negligence makes the filing with untrue information.

 

Reported by: Kangshen Liu / Will Chen

 

Labor

 

2.       Amendments to Labor Standard Act and Labor Pension Act

 

On 29 April 2019, the Legislative Yuan passed its third reading of the amendments to Labor Standards Act and Labor Pension Act.  We summarize the key points below:

 

(1)   Amendment to Labor Pension Act:

 

(a)     This Act also applies to foreigners who works in Taiwan with permanent alien residence certificate.

 

(b)    Employers who actually engage in labor work, self-employed operators and commissioned workers may also voluntarily contribute their wage to the labor pension and apply for tax preference under this Act.

 

(c)     Workers who apply for lump-sum pension payment may open a specific account for the deposit of pension.

 

(d)    The statute of limitation of right for  a worker's survivor or designated person to apply for pension is extended to 10 years.

 

(e)     The fine imposed on an employer for the failure to pay the severance or pension under the applicable laws is increased.

 

(f)     For an employer who has been imposed on the fine or late payment charges for violations of this Act, the competent authority shall publicly announce its/his/her name or its responsible person's name and the amount of fine.

 

(2)   Amendment to Labor Standard Act:

 

(a)     The definition of dispatch business entity, demand dispatch entity, dispatched worker and dispatch contract are added.

 

(b)    It provides that the dispatch contract shall be a contract with an indefinite term.

 

(c)     If the dispatch entity fails to pay wages to its dispatch worker(s), and fails to make correction after sanctioned or ordered by  the competent authority, the dispatched worker(s) may request the demand dispatch entity to make such payment, and the demand dispatch entity shall make the payment within 30 days.  The demand dispatch may claim against the dispatch entity for reimbursement afterwards.

 

Reported by: David Tsai / Paul Hsu

 

Copyright Act

 

3.      Amendment to Article 87 and 93 of Copyright Act

 

On 16 April 2019, the Legislative Yuan passed the third reading of the amendments to Articles 87 and 93 of the Copyright Act.  The amendments are to respond the new type of torts incurred from emerging technology under which persons who without due authorization provide channels for people to connect to the counterfeiting websites for watching illegal videos through set-top box or apps sold on the market will be subject to civil and criminal liabilities.

 

(1)  Malicious infringement of copyright through digital measures:

 

Anyone knowing that works provided by others through public broadcast and public transmission infringe economic rights of copyright and having the intention to make the public to access such works through the internet would be deemed as infringement of copyright if he/she: (a) provide the public with the computer program converging the website of such works; (b) instruct, assist in, or setting the access for the public to use the computer programs mentioned in (a); or (c) manufacture, import or sell the equipment or devices with the computer programs mentioned in (a).  It also specifies that if anyone uses advertisement or adopts other aggressive measures to instigatee, induce, stir up or persuade the public to use such access shall be deemed as having the "intension" to conduct the above.

 

(2)  Criminal liabilities being imposed :

 

The violator of the above will be subject to an imprisonment of no more than 2 years, detention, or in lieu thereof or in addition thereto a fine of not more than NT$500,000. 

 

Reported by: Chenchi Wang / Bella Chiu

 

Patent Act

 

4.       Amendment to Patent Act

 

On 16 April 2019, the Legislative Yuan passed the third reading of the amendment to the Patent Act.  We summarize the key points below:

 

(1)  Divisional applications:

 

The current Act allows for a divisional application for inventions be filed within thirty (30) days after the date on which an approval decision for the original patent application in the first examination stage is served.  The newly amended Act relaxes the requirements that a divisional application may be filed within three (3) months after the date on which an approval decision in either the first examination stage or the reexamination stage for the original patent application; and that the same rules and time limits for filing a divisional application for inventions shall also apply to patent applications of utility models.

 

(2)  Invalidation procedures:

 

The current Act provides that a requester of invalidation action may submit invalidation reasons or evidence within one (1) month after the date of filing the said action.  The newly amended extends the time limit from one (1) month to three (3) months and on the other hand restrict that the reasons or evidence submitted after the time limit shall not be taken into consideration.  The newly amended Act also specifies that the period of time during which the patentee may file a request for post-grant amendments.

 

(3)  Post-grant amendments of utility model patent:

 

The newly amended Act specifies the circumstances under which a request for post-grant amendments of utility model patent can be filed including those where an invalidation action or a technical evaluation report on said utility model patent is requested and still under examination, or an litigation case is involved, and provide that the specific patent agent shall conduct substantive examination on such post-grant amendments instead of formality examination under the current practice.

 

(4)  The term of protection of design patent 

 

The term of protection for design patents is to be extended from the current 12 years to 15 years.

 

(5)  Preservation of patent files:

 

In order to solve the problem of file storage space, the newly amended Act provides that only those patent files with preservation value need be kept permanently.  For others, they only need be kept for 30 years or less.  

 

Reported by: Chenchi Wang / Bella Chiu

 

SITEs & SICEs

 

5.       Rulings Related to Relaxation of Personnel Double-hatting for Responsible Persons and Associated Persons of SITEs and SICEs

 

On 19 April 2019, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) issued 3 rulings under which the double-hatting restrictions imposed on the responsible persons and associated persons of securities investment trust enterprise (SITEs) and securities investment consulting enterprise (SICEs) is amended to be more flexible.  We summarize the key points below:

 

(1)   To allow the internal audit or legal compliance of a SITE to concurrently serve as the same function of the subsidiary, which is the general manager of a private equity fund, of such SITE.

 

(2)   To allow the internal audit or legal compliance of a SITE/SICE to concurrently serve as the same function of the domestic financial technology enterprises, domestic insurance agencies/brokers which are the subsidiaries of such SITE/SICE; and the said personnel of a SITE may also concurrently serve as the same function of the domestic venture capital enterprises, venture capital management and consulting companies which are the subsidiaries of such SITE.

 

(3)   To allow the internal audit, legal compliance, risk management, and accounting of a SICE which the subsidiary of a SITE to concurrently serve as the same function of such SITE.

 

 

Reported by: Jeffrey Liu / Cindy Chien

 

Editors:

Mike Lu (Partner)

Stacy Lo (Partner)

Jeffrey Liu (Partner)

Kang-Shen Liu (Partner)

David Tsai (Partner)

Counselors:

Echo Yeh

Sue Su

Shih-Jung Lee

Jolene Wang (Lexcel Partners IP)