Act of Preferential Treatment for Military Personnel and Their Dependents

This Act is enacted pursuant to Article 50 of the Enforcement Act of Act of Military Service System.

Beneficiaries entitled to the preferential treatments provided in this Act include: 1. Active service personnel and their dependents. 2. Reservists who: (1) Have completed Standing Commissioned Officer Service, Reserve Officer Service, Standing Non-Commissioned Officer Service,Reserve Non-Commissioned Officer Service, or Regular Service and have been duly discharged from active duty. (2) Have been duly discharged from active duty due to injury sustained in combat or in performance of official duties. (3) Are Reserve Officers or Reserve Non-Commissioned Officers who have successfully completed the required training but have not yet been called to active duty.

Dependents referred to in this Act include: 1. Spouse of the service personnel. 2. Direct blood relatives of the service personnel. 3. Any other person who is legally supported by and lives together with the service personnel.

Preferential treatments for military service personnel and their dependents shall be administered by the following authorities: 1. At the central level, the Ministry of Interior (MOI) shall be the primary regulatory authority; the Ministry of National Defense (MOD), Ministry of Education (MOE), and Veterans Affairs Commission of the Executive Yuan shall be the co-regulatory authorities. For matters involving other ministries, consultations shall be conducted as needed. 2. At the local level, the government of special municipalities or county (city) governments shall be the primary regulatory authorities, and the Division/Regiment Command Headquarters in their respective jurisdictions shall be the co-regulatory authorities.

The governments of special municipalities, county (city) governments, and township (town, city, district) offices shall conduct annual surveys and compile statistics on the conditions of service personnel 's families; the procedures thereof shall be prescribed by the MOI.

Regardless of their native place, temporary or the duration of the temporary registered domicile address, service personnel and their dependents may apply for preferential treatments with the township (town, city, district) office where they reside by presenting the military service entries on their national identification cards or other specified documents.

Any serviceman called or drafted during the mobilization period has any public/private debts or any pledged real estate incurred before the call or draft and fails to settle or redeem such debts or real estate upon the expiry of the legal term or that as contracted during his active service, one (1) year of grace may be allowed upon the completion of his military service if the legal term of service is not longer than one (1) year; or two (2) years of grace, if the legal term of service is longer than one (1) year. Failure to settle or redeem as referred in the preceding paragraph shall be investigated and arbitrated by the local conscription association and referred to the local government for approval; if according to the creditor, such arbitration is not properly made, the creditor may request for an re-examination by presenting evidences.

In cases where a service personnel referred to in the preceding Article is killed in action or dies or becomes disabled due to injuries or illness incurred in the performance of official duties, the settlement of debts or redemption of property may be carried out by the service personnel or their heirs within three (3) years from the date of death or disability.

Where a service personnel called up or drafted during the mobilization period, or their dependents, have leased or received in pledge any farmland or housing before the service personnel entered service, and such property is proven to be essential for their livelihood or habitation, the lessor or pledgor shall not terminate the contract or redeem the pledged property upon the expiration of the contractual or statutory period while the service personnel remains in active service.

During the mobilization period, the property essential for the livelihood of dependents of a service personnel called up or drafted for active service shall not be subject to forced execution by creditors while the service personnel remains in active service.

Where a service personnel called up or drafted for service owns, leases, or holds in pledge agricultural land before entering service, and their dependents are proven to be incapable of farming such land while the service personnel is in active service, an application for farming assistance may be submitted to the township (town, city, district) office. The regulations thereof shall be prescribed by the MOI.

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If the serviceman before being called or drafted was an employed worker and the original employer upon seeking a substitute to fill the vacancy left by the serviceman shall have first offer to a competent member who is qualified for that job from the family of the serviceman.

If the serviceman before being called or drafted was an employee to a government agency, public school and any entity of the public sector, the government agency, public school or the entity shall not suspend any and all dependent support allowance, ration of kind or money in lieu otherwise payable if the serviceman has not been called or drafted: Provided, however, that, the dependent support allowances should be suspended if the same is collected by the serviceman in the army. In addition to collecting the ration of kind, any acting proxy shall be entitled to the dependent support allowances, ration of kind or money in lieu.

Active service personnel participating in Senior, Junior, or Special Examinations shall be granted official leave, provided that such participation does not interfere with national defense or military operations. If a person is called or drafted for military service on a date that coincides with such examinations, their entry into service may be postponed.

To pay tributes to any active serviceman who is decorated for outstanding performance in the operation, the local government and any academic institute related at where the native or temporary household registration is maintained shall separately give public recite to the serviceman.

The MND shall prescribe measures for the treatment of dependents of active service personnel who are missing in action or taken prisoner while engaged in combat or performing official duties, and who either remain loyal under captivity or whose status remains unclear.

Any active serviceman may be offered at favored rates whenever riding a train, sea vessel, airplane, bus and other transportation means operated by the public agency according to the procedure to be set forth by Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC).

Should the land leased or used for the construction of a residential house by an active serviceman and his dependents be related to public property, the serviceman may be entitled to a favored rate of lease during his term of service according to the procedure to be set forth by MOI. The favored rate of lease described in the preceding paragraph shall be limited only to the house occupied by the dependants of the active serviceman.

Any active serviceman may be entitled to a favored admission rate to public entertainment places including theater, cinema house, etc. pursuant to the procedure to be set forth by MOI jointly with MOD.

Dependents of active service personnel who are verified to be in financial hardship and unable to maintain their livelihood may apply to the government for small loans. The government shall establish a Military Personnel Loan Fund for the loans mentioned in the preceding paragraph. The regulations governing such loans shall be prescribed by the Executive Yuan.

The dependents of an active serviceman may apply for a favored rate of the state-owned civil utilities necessarily for life maintenance of the residential house occupied by the dependents of the active serviceman by presenting the Dependent Ration Card according to the procedure to be set forth by Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) jointly with MOD.

Dependents of active servicemen seeking medical care at a military hospital, public hospital and public service medical institute may be entitled to cost free or reduction according to the procedure to be set forth by MOI jointly with MOD.

Dependents of active service personnel who are either under six years of age and without adequate care, or over sixty years of age and unable to support themselves, may be given priority for free admission to public daycare centers, children's homes, or welfare institutions.

Any child who attends junior high school or above of an active serviceman may be entitled to tuition exemption or reduction; the tuition to be exempted or reduced in case of the child attends a private school may be applied for subsides from the government according to the procedure to be set forth by Ministry of Education.

Upon purchasing or collecting rationed goods of consumer necessities, the dependents of the active servicemen may be entitled with the first option.

If any active serviceman and his dependents fail to afford holding marriage and/or funeral ceremonies, the local Public Office or the conscription association shall provide reasonable supports.

If any dependent of the active serviceman is killed by the enemy during the war, the local government shall give a proper burial to the deceased and grant a reasonable sum of pension.

Upon considering the successful candidate of newcomer by any government agency, public school or state-owned business entity, the candidate who is a reservist and with equivalent qualification with other candidates shall be registered and employed on top priority.

Government agency, public school or state-owned business entities shall employ qualified reservist at top priority to undertake the following job functions that are: 1. Applicable to military management organization and military training and education; or 2. Meeting the professional training background of the reservist.

When military reservists transition to public service positions, their years of military service shall be combined with their public service years. The method for calculating the service years mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall be jointly determined by the Executive Yuan and the Examination Yuan.

Should any reservist get rusty on his professional technique as a result of taking the military service shall be allowed an opportunity of supplementary training for his professional technique upon being restored to his school or work place or admitted to a school or work place.

If any reservist fails to maintain an affordable life before being employed, the social administration agency or the conscription association depending on its financial strength shall grant reasonable supports to the reservist.

Among the applicants for leasing, collecting, developing a parcel of public land, the applicant reservist when qualified the same with other applicants shall be entitled to the first option.

In the event that any reservist seeks to transfer to take public service, the examination and employment for the reservist shall be separately provided by the law.

When an organization where a military reservist has transitioned to public service undergoes downsizing or reorganization, the reservist's position may be retained with priority.

During important ceremonies held by central or local governments, honorary seating may be specially arranged to invite the following personnel as a gesture of respect: 1. Those who have achieved extraordinary merits during their military service. 2. Those who have served in the military for twenty years or more.

The preferential treatment stipulated in Chapter 3 of this Act shall be suspended for active service personnel who have lost their military status or are wanted by the authorities.

The preferential treatment stipulated in Chapter 4 of this Act shall be suspended for military reservists who have lost their status or are in any of the following situations: 1. Currently serving a prison sentence. 2.Currently wanted by the authorities. The preferential treatment shall be permanently suspended for those convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for crimes of treason, sedition, or corruption.

Dependents receiving preferential treatment shall have such treatment suspended in any of the following circumstances: 1. Loss of nationality. 2. Currently serving a prison sentence. 3. Currently wanted by the authorities. 4. Divorce of spouse, marriage of a daughter, or a son becoming an adopted son-in-law of another family. 5. Becoming an adopted child of another person.

The preferential treatment for service personnel who have been legally discharged or exempted from military service shall be administered by the Veterans Affairs Council in accordance with the law.

When a priority sequence must be established for the preferential treatment stipulated in this Act, it shall follow the order of: active service personnel, dependents of active service personnel, and reservists. In cases of identical status, the following sequence shall apply: 1. Those who have participated in combat operations during their service. 2. Those with longer periods of service. 3. Those with more financially disadvantaged family circumstances.

In addition to being processed in accordance with the Indemnities Act for Military Personnel and related regulations, surviving family members of military personnel who hold death benefit payment certificates may receive preferential treatment as stipulated in Articles 23 through 29 of Chapter 3 of this Act during the valid period of receiving compensation.

This Act shall take effect from the date of its promulgation.