The Executive Yuan Council today passed a draft amendment to the Income Tax Act defining a calculation standard for income tax deductions based on non-cash donations. The amendment will be sent to the Legislative Yuan for deliberation.
Prior to 2003, many high-income earners purchased a great amount of land reserved for public infrastructure at low prices and then sought arbitrage by donating the property to local governments in exchange for huge tax deductions worth up to 40 percent of the property's government-assessed value, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said.
This amendment addresses this issue and complies with Interpretation No. 705 of the Judicial Yuan's Constitutional Court, in which the justices determined such a law is constitutional.
The amendment to Article 17, Paragraph 4 of the Income Tax Act is as follows:
For a taxpayer, his (her) spouse and dependent(s), non-cash contribution or donations to the government are tax deductible in accordance with Article 17, Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 2, Item 2-1. The amount of the deduction must be based on the cost of acquiring the donated items, unless otherwise prescribed by law. If no record of this cost can be found, or if the non-cash donations were originally obtained as a gift or inheritance, or if the value of the donations has changed significantly from the cost due to depreciation, damage, or market trends, the tax-collecting authorities should review the case according to the MOF's standards, which are based on the actual trading conditions at the time of the donation, in order to comply with the spirit of the law, prevent arbitrage and uphold tax equity.
The draft amendment will be sent to the Legislative Yuan for deliberation. Premier Sean Chen directed the MOF to work out the details with legislators to fast-track the revision process.