Travelers entering Taiwan from Vietnam with pork products face fine of NT$200,000

從越南進口台灣豬肉製品的旅客將處200,000新台幣的罰款

African swine fever has been detected in the north of Vietnam, the country's authorities said on Feb. 19 TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Starting Wednesday, passengers traveling from Vietnam with possession of pork products will face a fine of NT$200,000, announced the Taiwan government Tuesday, after the southeast Asian nation had confirmed cases of African swine fever (ASF). Taiwan’s Central Emergency Operation Center (CEOC) on Tuesday said passengers traveling from Vietnam carrying undeclared pork products will be fined NT$200,000 (US$6,436) in the first instance and NT$1 million (US$32,180) for each subsequent violation. Foreign offenders who cannot pay off the fine will be denied entry to the country and face deportation. The Vietnamese authorities confirmed on Tuesday that African swine fever has been detected on three farms in the northern region, reports said. The government culled all pigs on the farms where the virus had been tested. Following China and Mongolia, Vietnam is now the third country in Asia to be hit by the disease, which is highly contagious and fatal to pigs. New ASF cases were also reported on Tuesday in China’s Guangxi autonomous region, which borders Vietnam to the north, said the CEOC. Starting from last Saturday, all passengers arriving in Taiwan from Vietnam will have their carry-on luggage checked for possession of pork products after the Council of Agriculture confirmed finding the virus in a pork sandwich, carried by a traveler from Ho Chi Minh City on Feb. 5. The traveler received a fine of NT$30,000 (US$965) as there had not yet been any reported ASF cases in Vietnam at that time.
Teng Pei-ju, Taiwan News, Staff Writer
2019-02-20