Taipei, Oct. 24 (CNA) Kuomintang (KMT) presidential candidate Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) proposed several measures Tuesday for people who have newly immigrated to Taiwan, including strengthening benefits for immigrant spouses under the national health insurance (NHI) program.
The policies for the most part were directed at immigrants who are in Taiwan as spouses of Taiwanese nationals, according to a statement released by Hou’s campaign Tuesday.
“Spouses who are living in Taiwan because of their marriages are all new Taiwan immigrants and new family members, and the government should treat them equally and without discrimination,” Hou said in the statement.
One of his main proposals was to address the current gap in NHI coverage for pregnant immigrants, who are not covered by the system until they held alien resident certificates for at least six months, except for having prenatal check-ups subsidized, Hou said.
The NHI program should be expanded to cover all new immigrants who are expecting children, instead of having them pay their medical costs out of pocket while waiting six months for NHI coverage, he said.
Another proposal focused on cutting the period Chinese spouses need to wait to get citizenship from six years after obtaining confirmed dependents resident visas to four years, which Hou said will prevent the unequal treatment overseas spouses from China currently face.
At the same time, advocates for overseas spouses have petitioned the government for years to improve the process used to interview foreign nationals who want to immigrate to Taiwan to get married to Taiwan nationals.
They have argued that the process invades their privacy, and Hou pledged to make the process more respectful and less invasive.
He also promised to establish a government committee devoted to help new immigrants, while crafting a new basic law that offers a framework of immigrant-friendly policies.
Another area Hou hoped to improve was helping new immigrants overcome language barriers, which he said affected the lives of immigrants in dealing with legal, occupational, and medical issues.
He proposed setting up new classes for immigrants to learn local languages, whether Mandarin, Taiwanese Hokkien, Hakka or Indigenous languages and beefing up translation services to help those who need them.
Hou also proposed cutting regulatory red tape for immigrants who want to participate in professional license exams, which would create a more equal opportunity environment in Taiwan.
