Taiwan Legislature Committee Preliminarily Approves Amendment to Anti-Corruption Act, Adding Exemption from Punishment for Minor Civil Servant Corruption Cases Under NT$50,000
On April 13, Taiwan's Legislative Yuan Judiciary and Organic Laws and Statutes Committee preliminarily passed an amendment to Article 12 of the Anti-Corruption Act. This amendment introduces a provision allowing for exemption from punishment for civil servants involved in minor corruption cases where the illicit gain is less than NT$50,000. Previously, only sentence reduction was allowed for such cases. The change aims to address disproportionately heavy penalties for minor offenses and provide greater judicial discretion. The Ministry of Justice supports the direction of this amendment.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 13, 2026 at 16:12
- 🔍 Collected: April 13, 2026 at 16:31 (19 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 13, 2026 at 16:59 (27 min after Collected)
The Legislative Yuan's Judiciary and Organic Laws and Statutes Committee on April 13, 2026, preliminarily approved a revision to Article 12 of the Anti-Corruption Act. This revision adds a provision for 'exemption from punishment' for civil servants whose corruption offenses are minor and involve illicit gains of less than NT$50,000. This expands judicial discretion beyond the existing 'reduction of sentence' provision for such cases. The amendment was proposed by several legislators, including Lin Qian-qi, Wang Hong-wei, and Weng Xiao-ling, to address the issue of 'light offense, heavy penalty' and ensure proportionality in sentencing. Ministry of Justice Deputy Minister Feng Cheng confirmed that the proposed amendments align with the Ministry's own draft, which is currently undergoing its third review by the Executive Yuan. The preliminary passage by the committee means the amendment will not require further party caucus negotiation.