Chapter 1 General Provisions |
| Article 1 |
This Act is enacted to promote the sound operations and development of electronic payment institutions, to ensure safe and convenient funds transfer services, and to protect consumer rights and interests. |
| Article 2 |
The competent authority under this Act shall be the Financial Supervisory Commission. |
| Article 3 |
The terms used in the Act are defined as follows:
1. Electronic payment institution: An electronic payment institution refers to an institution approved by the competent authority to operate businesses specified in Paragraph 1 and Paragraph 2 of Article 4.
2. Contracted institution: A contracted institution refers to an institution which signs a contract with an electronic payment institution that allows users to use electronic payment accounts or stored value cards to pay for actual transactions.
3. User: A user refers to an individual or an entity that signs a contract with an electronic payment institution for using an electronic payment account or stored value card to transfer payment funds or store the value.
4. Electronic payment account: An electronic payment account refers to a payment instrument that accepts the registration and account opening by users to keep track of their payment funds transfer and stored value through a network or electronic payment platform and uses electronic equipment to convey the receipt/payment information via connection.
5. Stored value card: A stored value card refers to payment instrument issued in the form of a chip, card, certificate, or other physical or non-physical form, with data storage or computing functions, that uses electronic, magnetic, optical, or other technology to store monetary value.
6. Collecting and making payments for actual transactions as an agent: This business refers to the acceptance of funds transferred by the payer based on an actual transaction and the transfer of the payment for the actual transaction to the payee after certain conditions are met, upon the expiry of a certain period, or based on the payer’s instructions.
7. Accepting stored value funds: This business refers to the acceptance of funds deposited by the payer in advance and the use of an electronic payment account or a stored value card for multiple purposes of payments.
8. Domestic or international small-amount remittances: This business refers to the use of an electronic payment account or a stored value card for funds transfer below a certain amount in accordance with payment instructions made by the payer that are not based on actual transactions.
9. Payment funds refer to an amount of money made within the following scope:
(1) Funds collected or paid by the institution as an agent: Funds collected or paid for actual transactions by the institution as an agent and payments collected or made in domestic or international small-amount remittances services.
(2) Stored value funds: Funds collected for operating stored value funds businesses.
10. Multiple purposes of payments: The payments refer to the stored value funds in an electronic payment account or a stored value card which may be used to pay for products or services provided by individuals or entities other than the electronic payment institution, for payments of government entities, and for other payments approved by the competent authority. However, the following conditions are not included:
(1) Cases where the stored value funds can only be used to pay for transportation, which has been approved by the competent authority of transportation in charge.
(2) Product (service) gift certificate that can only be used to request a person designated by the issuer for the delivery or supply of a product or service.
(3) The stored value card issued by, or the electronic payment account opened by, all levels of government agencies, whose stored value funds are pre-deposited by that government agency as the payer. |
| Article 4 |
The items of business operated by electronic payment institutions shall be approved by the competent authority respectively in accordance with the scope specified below:
1. Collecting and making payments for actual transactions as an agent.
2. Accepting stored value funds .
3. Domestic or international small-amount remittances.
4. Buying or selling foreign currencies and currencies issued by Mainland China, Hong Kong, or Macao (hereinafter referred to as foreign currencies) related to the businesses stipulated in the preceding three subparagraphs.
An electronic payment institution may engage in the following associated and derived businesses as approved by the competent authority:
1. Provide contracted institutions with integrated service of payment-related information communication.
2. Provide contracted institutions with terminal devices sharing.
3. Provide information communication between users and between users and contracted institutions.
4. Provide electronic invoice systems and related value-added services.
5. Provide custody of payments for product (service) gift certificates or tickets and assist in services related to their issuance, sales, and settlement.
6. Provide reward points integration and redemption for payments collected or made for actual transactions as an agent.
7. Provide storage segmentations in a stored value card or applications for others’ use.
8. Provide the planning, establishment, maintenance, or consulting services for information systems and equipment related to businesses specified in the preceding paragraph and Subparagraph 1 to Subparagraph 7.
9. Other businesses approved by the competent authority.
Where the items of business operated by electronic payment institutions require the approvals from other government authorities in charge, such approvals must be obtained before applying for the approval of the competent authority.
Non-electronic payment institutions may, with the approval of the competent authority, engage in international small-amount remittances services with migrant workers as defined in Subparagraph 8 to Subparagraph 11, Paragraph 1, Article 46 of the Employment Service Act. The conditions and procedures for approval application, reasons for approval abolishment, qualifications of the responsible persons, limitations on the amount of remittance, business management, business inspection and payment of fees, and other matters to be complied with shall be prescribed by the competent authority in consultation with the Central Bank and the Ministry of Labor. |
| Article 5 |
Non-licensed electronic payment institutions may not engage in businesses described in Paragraph 1 of the preceding article except for any of the following circumstances:
1. Where it is otherwise stipulated in this Act or other laws;
2. Where the institution operates businesses specified in Subparagraph 1, Paragraph 1 of the preceding article, the total balance of funds collected and made by the institution as an agent under its custody does not exceed a designated amount, and the institution does not engage in businesses specified in Subparagraph 2 or Subparagraph 3, Paragraph 1 of the preceding article.
The methods of calculation and the designated amount of the total balance of funds collected and made as an agent specified in Subparagraph 2 of the preceding article shall be prescribed by the competent authority.
Where conditions specified in Subparagraph 2, Paragraph 1 apply, the institution shall, within six months after the date that the total balance of funds collected and made as an agent under its custody exceeds the designated amount specified by the competent authority, apply for approval from the competent authority to operate as an electronic payment institution.
The competent authority may, for the purpose of verifying the conditions specified in the proviso in Subparagraph 10 of Article 3, request specific natural persons, juridical persons, or groups to provide related information within a specified period or notify them to answer questions at the office of the competent authority. Where necessary, it may also request banks and other financial institutions to provide their deposit and other related information. |
| Article 6 |
Electronic payment institutions shall operate businesses in accordance with the following requirements:
1. Businesses that involve foreign exchange shall be handled in accordance with regulations of the Central Bank.
2. The actual transactions specified in Subparagraph 1, Paragraph 1, Article 4 may not involve transactions prohibited by other laws or regulations.
3. Only the institution that operates businesses under Subparagraph 1, Paragraph 1 of Article 4 may operate businesses under Subparagraph 2 or Subparagraph 3, Paragraph 1 of Article 4.
4. The clearing of inter-institution payments for operating electronic payment institutions businesses must be processed through an institution that operates inter-institution payment clearing businesses as specified in Paragraph 1 of Article 8. However, where the clearing involves cross-border payments, it may be processed through methods approved by the competent authority in consultation with the Central Bank. |
| Article 7 |
An electronic payment institution must be organized as a company limited by shares; Except for institutions approved by the competent authority to engage concurrently in other businesses, it shall engage exclusively in businesses provided under Subparagraphs of Paragraph 1 and Paragraph 2, Article 4. |
| Article 8 |
Except for conditions prescribed in the proviso in Subparagraph 4 of Article 6, an institution that operates inter-institution payment clearing services must be a licensed financial information service provider that operates inter-institution funds transfer clearing services as specified in Paragraph 1, Article 47-3 of the Banking Act.
The financial information service provider prescribed in the preceding paragraph must maintain the sound operation of its information system. It shall eliminate any obstacle and maintain its system and related equipment as soon as possible. Where necessary, it shall adopt appropriate backup measures to minimize the impact of the system obstacle.
Where the financial information service provider prescribed in Paragraph 1 must suspend the transmission, exchange, or processing operations due to an information system obstacle, it shall, except where there is a legitimate reason, notify the connected institutions, the competent authority, and the Central Bank in advance. |