TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Cabinet is preparing the central government general budget for 2027, including funding for a new population strategy, for submission to the legislature by late August, CNA reported Sunday.
CTEE reported that the budget is still being prepared and that details will be announced after it is finalized. The report did not specify the planned amount for population measures or defense spending.
The budget will include funding for President Lai Ching-te’s (賴清德) “Taiwan Population Strategy 2.0: Family Support,” which he announced in May. The plan contains 18 measures in five areas and is expected to increase spending aimed at addressing low birth rate and other demographic challenges.
Defense spending is another major focus as the government prepares the budget. Lai has repeatedly said the country should spend more than 3% of GDP on defense to strengthen national security and maintain peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.
Lai has also said defense spending should be raised to 5% of GDP by 2030. UDN reported that the government has not yet announced the defense spending level for the 2027 budget.
For the 2026 budget, the government calculated defense-related spending at 3.32% of GDP using accounting standards similar to NATO’s. The figure included military pensions and Coast Guard spending.
CNA reported that the 2026 central government budget remains unpassed despite being submitted by the Cabinet on Aug. 29 last year. As of Sunday, it had been pending in the legislature for 339 days.
The opposition Kuomintang and Taiwan People’s Party initially blocked the budget from committee review. They argued that the Cabinet had failed to fund legally required military pay raises and increased retirement benefits for police and firefighters, per Liberty Times.
The parties agreed in April to send the budget to committees, but lawmakers have yet to complete its passage.
The delay has restricted spending on some new programs and emergency funds because funding cannot be fully used without legislative approval. Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) warned in June that lawmakers could end up reviewing the 2026 and 2027 budgets at the same time.
