AEA had all hands on deck to enforce the cases related to the punishments for violating disease-related regulations

In the morning of February 27, the Premier of the Executive Yuan, Su Tseng-Chang announced that level 1 of the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) was established. The Minister of Justice Tsai gave multiple directions to improve and enhance the anti-COVID-19 measures of the personnel and the agency and ordered rapid and solid enforcement against the obligor who did not pay the fines of administrative sanctions in the time limit to ensure that there was no epidemic prevention flaw and the power of the government could be manifested.

Therefore, AEA and all the branches followed the said instructions and fully mobilized the personnel to arrange early deployment measures and cooperated with the government prevention policies actively.

As of March 10th, 2020, the number of cases related to the punishments of each competent authority for violating the relevant epidemic prevention regulations was 177 and the total amount of the fines was NTD 6,968,000.

Among the said cases, 27 cases had been paid before enforcement. The total amount was NTD 560,000.

 1 case had been transferred to enforcement due to the overdue fine of NTD 100,000.

AEA established the “Response Team” on January 30, 2020 to instruct the transfer and enforcement of the punishment cases for violating epidemic prevention regulations. AEA ordered the branches on February 21st, 2020 to assign the chief enforcement officer or senior enforcement officer as the contact person with the referring authority and to understand the numbers, amount, time limit of the fine and payment status of relevant cases, in order to cooperate with the referring authority to control the enforcement of the said cases.

On February 27th, 2020, AEA asked the branches to establish the “Special Team for the Enforcement under the Epidemic Prevention.” The punishment cases related to the violations of epidemic prevention regulations will be assigned to special divisions and be handled by special officers. Once the case had been transferred, it would be enforced rapidly.  

AEA made the instructions to indicate the branches once the cases of the obligors who were able to pay the fines had been transferred, the branches shall enforce the cases actively to implement the power of the government. 

For those who were economically disadvantaged obligor and did not have property to be garnished, the branches shall advise them to pay in installments, provide relevant epidemic prevention information, and urge them to follow.

For the future enforcement of the said cases, the priority would be “epidemic prevention”. The branches would do their best to avoid creating epidemic prevention flaws during the enforcement. 

Therefore, for those who already “passed” the home quarantine or home isolation period or those who did not have to be isolated, AEA would investigate the property information of the obligors actively and seize the deposit or automobiles of the obligors, implement on-site enforcement, such as the seizure of personal properties and real properties at the household address of the obligor. If it is necessary, AEA would apply arrests of persons or take him/her into custody to implement the power of the government and show the determination to enforce the epidemic prevention policies.

For those who were “still in” the home quarantine or home isolation period, AEA should also investigate the property information of the obligors actively and take the enforcement measures which did not obstruct the epidemic prevention, such as enforcement of the deposit, to inform the Land Office to seize the registered real properties, and to contact the isolated obligor that his real properties had been seized and registered. If the obligor did not pay off the fines after the home quarantine or home isolation period expired, the real property would be auctioned to ensure the performance of the fines. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, AEA urges people to fully cooperate with the anti-COVID-19 measures stipulated by the CECC to protect the health of all citizens. Those who were punished due to violations of the regulatory requirements would face strong enforcement by the AEA, if the related fines were not paid in time!