萬國法律事務所

A proposal for a new National Land Planning Act (“Act”) was passed on July 24, 2014 by the Executive Yuan. If enacted, this will be a major act that governs the implementation of Taiwan’s national land policy
and has the primary purpose of preventing damage to the environment from excessive development.

The current administration’s attempt to push the proposed Act to be passed by the legislature has failed several times since 1993. This version of the proposed Act thus incorporates changes, which to some extent, reflect and address the expectations and opinions of various interested sectors.

This version of the proposed Act contains the following main ideas:

- National land planning and land zoning of lands or water areas of indigenous peoples will be determined by the Ministry of the Interior and the Council of Indigenous Peoples in accordance with the Basic Law for Indigenous Peoples.

- National land will be demarcated into four functional areas based on the characteristics of environmental resources, sensitivity, and developmental needs: National Land Conservation Areas, Marine Resources Areas, Agricultural Development Areas, and Rural Development Areas. Land use control regulations shall also be made for these respective areas in order to explicitly set out the various principles of land use.

- The functional areas of national land and the zoning thereof will no longer be changed for development purposes, so as to maintain stability in land planning.

- A National Land Sustainable Development Fund will be established to cover expenses for compensation made under the Act, planning studies, surveys, and monitoring of land use, among other matters.