Ministry of Economic Affairs Strengthens Crackdown on 'Origin Washing,' Changes Whistleblower Rewards to Bounties to Boost Willingness

Central News Agency (CNA) reporter Tseng Yun-ting, Taipei, April 28 – To strengthen the investigation of false origin labeling and prevent illegal transshipment, the International Trade Administration (ITA) of the Ministry of Economic Affairs today announced proposed amendments to the "Regulations Governing the Handling and Reward for Whistleblowers of False Origin Labeling Cases for Importers and Exporters." The proposed changes will shift the current whistleblower reward from certificates or trophies to a bounty equal to 20% of the fine amount, and will add a whistleblower protection mechanism, aiming to increase public willingness to report.

The ITA explained that to maintain trade order and the image of honest trade, the government continues to prevent businesses from circumventing regulations through illegal transshipment or false origin labeling, and intensifies penalties for violations to protect the rights of legitimate businesses.

The ITA pointed out that some manufacturers might, within their companies or factories, change origin labels, repackage, or perform simple processing to label imported goods as "Made in Taiwan" before re-exporting them, forming a situation known as "origin washing." To expand the sources of investigation information, the focus of the amendment is to increase incentives for whistleblowers, encouraging the public to provide concrete clues.

The ITA stated that to clearly regulate the reward distribution mechanism, if the same case is jointly reported by two or more individuals, the reward should be distributed equally. If the same case is reported separately by two or more individuals, the reward will be given to the first whistleblower; if the order cannot be determined, it will be distributed equally to avoid disputes and ensure fairness.

This amendment, based on Article 17-1, Paragraph 2 of the Foreign Trade Act, explicitly stipulates that the identity information of whistleblowers must be kept confidential to prevent leakage risks. Simultaneously, the reward method will change from the original spiritual encouragement to substantial monetary rewards.

According to the draft content, after a reported case is verified as true and the fine is finalized, the whistleblower will be issued a reward equal to 20% of the actual fine received, with an annual cap of NT$1.8 million per person. (Editor: Zhai Sijia) 1150428