On November 13, 2024, President Lai announced an amendment to Article 65 of the Urban Renewal Act (the “Act”). The amendment aims to expand the eligibility of legal buildings for urban renewal projects to increase public participation, enhance residential safety, and accelerate the revitalization of old structures.

The key points of the amendment are as follows:

1. Recognizing that the building volume of structures built before the implementation of floor area ratio (FAR) regulations often exceeded later legal limits, and that these buildings were subject to pre-921 Earthquake seismic design standards, the amendment broadens the scope for utilizing original building volume in reconstruction projects. The new rule extends eligibility from buildings already completed before FAR regulations were enacted to also include building sites for which a construction permit application was registered before the regulations took effect (Article 65, Paragraph 2, Clause 1 of the Act). It’s estimated that this will benefit approximately 270,000 households in 8,216 legal buildings of six or more stories nationwide. By providing greater incentives for redevelopment, the government seeks to encourage building owners to participate in urban renewal, thereby enhancing overall building and residential safety.
2. In conjunction with the above amendment to Article 65, Paragraph 2, Clause 1, the new provision also allows urban renewal business plans that were drafted and submitted for approval prior to the amendment’s effective date to apply the new rules of Article 65, Paragraph 2, Clause 1 (the latter part of Article 65, Paragraph 9 of the Act).