News
Financial support for labourers and artists
The government is offering rescue loans for labourers facing financial difficulty due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Ministry of Labour says workers hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic can start applying for the loans today.
Each worker can get up to NT$100,000, and an estimated half a million labourers can benefit from this programme. 21 banks will accept applications at the start of the programme, with another set to join next week.
Successful applicants will have to repay the loan within three years, with the ministry covering the interest in the first year.
In other news, artists can apply for a second wave of relief funds starting today. The Ministry of Culture has approved NT$636 million in bailout funds for art groups and individuals.
The MOC says it received nearly 8,000 applications for the first phase, and some 4,200 of them had been approved as of 27 April. Some of the earlier applicants have already received the subsidies.
The central government allocated a NT$1.5 billion budget for the cultural sector as part of its relief and stimulus plan amid the coronavirus pandemic.
