Date

Name of Meeting

Key Resolutions

Feb. 18, 2004

First meeting of the FTZ Coordinating Committee

Passed revision of the Guidelines for the Establishment of the Free Trade Zone Coordinating Committee, Executive Yuan

March 8, 2004

Second meeting of the FTZ Coordinating Committee

Approved establishment of Kaohsiung and Keelung FTZs

Jan. 13, 2005

Third meeting of the FTZ Coordinating Committee

1.        Asked CEPD for following interpretations regarding the Act for the Establishment and Management of Free Trade Zones: disciplinary agency in Chapter 7 and applicability of cargo “provided for operations” in Article 21, and legal basis for documentary reporting rules for shipment overseas of goods by FTZ enterprises.

2.        Approved establishment of Taichung FTZ

3.        Asked Ministry of Transportation and Communications to carry out planning and establishment of common FTZ cargo tracking information platform. Prior to the establishment of the platform, the “Container Status Checking System” will be linked with the harbor information system (MTNet) that is being set up by the MOTC and the dedicated vehicle fleet system to serve as a provisional monitoring mechanism for inter-FTZ cargo/container transport.

May 5, 2005

Fourth meeting of the FTZ Coordinating Committee

1.        For applications by shippers to become FTZ enterprises and engage in transshipping operations, their pure transshipment business should be handled in accordance with the provisions of the Customs Act. Transshipment trade operations should be handled by FTZ enterprises in accordance with regulations governing FTZ operations.

2.        According to the provisions of the Employment Service Act and the Act Governing Relations between Peoples of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area, foreign and mainland Chinese spouses (including those approved for long-term residence and residence with spouses) who have received approval to live and work in Taiwan are encompassed within the scope of “domestic labor” as defined in Article 11 of the Act.

3.        Approved establishment of Taipei and Taoyuan FTZs.

Aug. 23, 2005

Fifth meeting of the FTZ Coordinating Committee

1.        Asked the Council of Indigenous People together with the Ministry of Transportation and Communications to establish a job-seekers databank for enterprises to use; also asked the Council of Indigenous People to map out a Program for the Promotion of Employment among Indigenous People. After these measures are adopted, enterprises that are unable to employ the legal quota of indigenous people may report to the Executive Yuan for approval to delay payment of the differential subsidy.

2.        The Council of Labor Affairs is to set up a one-stop window for the resolving of worker-shortages in FTZs on a case-by-case basis.

3.        In addition to giving permission to FTZ processing and manufacturing enterprises to subcontract processing work outside the FTZs, FTZ enterprises engaged in distribution are also allowed to subcontract simple processing and, with the approval of the FTZ Coordinating Committee, to subcontract processing as well.

4.        Agreed to monthly reporting system for customs declarations by FTZs; asked the Ministry of Finance to establish the relevant reporting system, and to adopt temporary measures prior to completion of the system.

5.        FTZ enterprises that import mainland Chinese goods that are banned from import but are allowed to be imported after processing may ship the goods into tariff-liable areas following the payment of customs tariffs in accordance with the Act for the Establishment and Management of Free Trade Zones and other relevant regulations.