MOF institutes control system for new tobacco and alcohol

September 1, 2004

The Ministry of Finance (MOF) has instituted a new management system for the tobacco and alcohol industry, which complements the abolishment of the traditional tobacco and wine monopoly in Taiwan. The new system features the following new policies:

• Simplified licensing procedures for tobacco and liquor manufacturers and importers.
• Amendment to the Regulations Regarding Liquor Labeling stipulating that regional trademarks should conform with the requirements of all regions and countries. The MOF will publish all protected EU regional trademarks on the Internet in compliance with TRIPS (trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights) requirements as reference for investigation and verification by local governments.
• Allowing non-manufacturers of tobacco and liquor products, with the permission of the MOF, to commission production to tobacco and liquor manufacturers.
• Increased in fines of up to NT$3million for the illegal production, import, and shipping of bootleg and substandard tobacco and liquor products.

To make information about the new tobacco and liquor management regulations more accessible to operators and consumers, the MOF has placed all relevant data on the tobacco and liquor section of the website of the Department of National Treasury. All interested parties are welcome to visit the website at http://www.dnt.gov.tw/dbmode (Chinese only), or call +886-2-2397-9491 for more information.

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