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Article 228
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At the close of each fiscal year, the board of directors shall prepare the following statements and records and shall forward the same to supervisors for their auditing not later than the 30th day prior to the meeting date of a general meeting of shareholders:
- the business report;
- the financial statements; and
- the surplus earning distribution or loss off-setting proposals.
The financial statements and records as required in the preceding Paragraph shall be prepared in accordance with the rules prescribed by the central competent authority.
Supervisors may request the board of directors to provide in advance the financial statements and records for auditing as required in Paragraph I hereinabove.
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Article 228-1
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A company may explicitly provide for in its Articles of Incorporation that the surplus earning distribution or loss off-setting proposal may be proposed at the close of each quarter or each half fiscal year.
The proposal of surplus earning distribution or loss off-setting for the first three quarters or half fiscal year, together with the business report and financial statements, shall be forwarded to supervisors for their auditing, and afterwards be submitted to the board of directors for approval.
A company distributing surplus earning in accordance with the provision of the preceding paragraph shall estimate and reserve the taxes and dues to be paid, the losses to be covered and the legal reserve to be set aside. Where such legal reserve amounts to the total paid-in capital, this provision shall not apply.
A company distributing surplus earning in the form of new shares to be issued by the company in accordance with the provision of Paragraph Two shall follow the provisions of Article 240; if such surplus earning is distributed in the form of cash, it shall be approved by a meeting of the board of directors.
Surplus earning distribution or loss off-setting proposal by a public company in accordance with the provisions of the preceding four paragraphs shall be made based on the financial statements audited or reviewed by a certified public accountant.
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Article 231
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Only after all the statements and records of accounts have been approved by the meeting of shareholders shall directors and supervisors be deemed to have been discharged from their liabilities, except in the event of any unlawful conduct on the part of directors or supervisors.
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Article 232
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A company shall not pay dividends or bonuses, unless its losses shall have been covered and a legal reserve shall have been set aside in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
A company shall not pay dividends or bonuses, if there is no surplus earnings.
The responsible person(s) of a company who violates the provisions of the preceding two Paragraphs by making distribution of dividends and bonuses shall (each) be punished with imprisonment of not more than one year, detention, and a fine in lieu thereof or in addition thereto in an amount of not more than NT$ 60,000.
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Article 233
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If a company pays dividends and bonuses in violation of the provisions of the preceding article, creditors of the company may request rescission and may also claim for compensation for loss or damage resulted there-from.
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Article 235
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Unless otherwise provided for in this Act, distribution of the dividends and bonuses shall be effected in proportion to the number of shares held by each shareholder accordingly.
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Article 235-1
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A fixed amount or ratio of profit of the current year distributable as employees’ compensation shall be definitely specified in the Articles of Incorporation. However, the company’s accumulated losses shall have been covered.
The provisions set out in the preceding Paragraph shall not be applicable to the government operated enterprises, except in the case where special approval has been granted by the authority in charge of the government operated enterprise concerned, and a fixed amount or ratio of profit distributable as employees’ compensation has been definitely specified in the Articles of Incorporation.
A company may, by a resolution adopted by a majority vote at a meeting of board of directors attended by two-thirds of the total number of directors, have the profit distributable as employees’ compensation in the preceding two paragraphs distributed in the form of shares or in cash; and in addition thereto a report of such distribution shall be submitted to the shareholders’ meeting.
A company which has the profit distributed to employees in the form of shares by a resolution of the meeting of board of directors in accordance with the provision of the preceding paragraph may resolve, at the same meeting of the board of directors, to distribute the shares by way of new shares to be issued by the company or existing shares to be re-purchased by the company.
Qualification requirements of employees, including the employees of parents or subsidiaries of the company meeting certain specific requirements, entitled to receive shares or cash in accordance with the provisions of Paragraphs One to Three, may be specified in the Articles of Incorporation.
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Article 240
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A company may, by a resolution adopted by a majority of the shareholders present who represent two-thirds or more of the total number of its outstanding shares of the company, have the surplus profit distributable as dividends and bonuses in whole or in part distributed in the form of new shares to be issued by the company for such purpose. In case the amount of balance of such distributable surplus profit is less the par value (or a fraction) of one share, it shall be paid in cash.
For a company whose shares are issued to the public, if the total number of shares represented by the shareholders present at a meeting of shareholders is less than the threshold specified in the preceding Paragraph, the resolution may be adopted by a large majority (2/3 or more) vote of the shareholders present at that meeting of shareholders attended by the shareholders representing a majority of the total number of the outstanding shares of the company.
Where a higher threshold of the number of shareholders to be present and the total number of shares represent is required by the Articles of Incorporation of the company, such higher threshold shall prevail.
Except for a company whose shares are issued to the public and which is subject to the provisions otherwise stipulated by the competent authority in charge of securities affairs, the resolution to issue new shares under this Article shall take effect upon close of the shareholders’ meeting whereat the resolution is adopted, and the board of directors shall forthwith notify each shareholder or cause the number of new shares distributable to the shareholder to be recorded under the name of the pledgee(s) of the said shareholder as registered in the shareholders roster.
A public company may explicitly stipulate in the Articles of Incorporation to authorize the distributable dividends and bonuses in whole or in part may be paid in cash after a resolution has been adopted by a majority vote at a meeting of the board of directors attended by two-thirds of the total number of directors; and in addition thereto a report of such distribution shall be submitted to the shareholders’ meeting.
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Article 245
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Shareholders who have been continuously holding one per cent of total number of the outstanding shares of a company for a period of six months or longer may apply to the court, together with reasons and supporting evidence, and explain the necessity for appointment of inspector to inspect, within the necessary scope, the current status business operations, the financial accounts, the property, particular items, document and record of a particular transaction of the company.
The court may, when it deems necessary based on the report made by the inspector, order the supervisor(s) of the company to convene a meeting of shareholders.
Any person who evades, impedes, or refuses the inspection to be conducted by the inspector, or the supervisor(s) who fails to convene a meeting of shareholders as ordered by the court shall be imposed with a fine of not less than NT$ 20,000 but not more than NT$ 100,000. If the inspection is still evaded, impeded, or refused or the supervisor still fails to convene a meeting of shareholders as ordered by the court, the above fine shall be imposed consecutively for each time of non-compliance.
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