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导航Document of the State Administration of Taxation
Several Opinions of the State Administration of Taxation on Further Deepening the Reform of “Streamlining Administration, Delegating More Powers to Lower-level Governments and Society, Improving Regulation and Optimizing Services” in the Taxation System to Optimize the Taxation Environment
SZF [2017] No. 101
The state taxation bureaus and local taxation bureaus of all provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government and cities under separate state planning, and all entities of the State Administration of Taxation,
These Opinions are developed for purposes of implementing in depth a series of arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council for optimizing the business environment and advancing the reform of simplification of administrative procedures, delegation of powers, combination of decentralization and control, and optimization of services (Reform of “Streamlining Administration, Delegating More Powers to Lower-level Governments and Society, Improving Regulation and Optimizing Services”), further deepening the Reform in the taxation system, optimizing the tax environment, and animating the entrepreneurship and innovation of market players.
I. General Requirements
Further deepening the Reform in the taxation system is key to transforming functions and using the role of tax, a major task to deepen the reform of the taxation administration system of the state and local taxation departments, an important foothold to optimize the tax environment and ease taxpayers' burden, and is of great significance in improving the taxation governance capability, creating a stable, equitable, transparent, and expectable business environment and realizing taxation modernization.
Over recent years, the taxation system across the country has been brave to make innovation, forged ahead, constantly advanced the Reform, and achieved conspicuous achievements. In terms of simplification of administrative procedures and delegation of powers, taxation administrative approval matters have been significantly reduced, approval process has been further optimized, tax-related documents have been simplified, and taxpayers have been effectively facilitated; in terms of follow-up administration, taxation administration modes have been transformed at a faster pace, a series of work specifications have been issued, information-based tax administration and risk management have been enhanced by depending on the Golden Tax System Phase III and the new VAT invoice administration system, and an interim and ex-post administration system has been established and improved; and in terms of optimization of services, the "Spring Breeze Action to Facilitate Citizens" has been constantly conducted, the cooperation between state and local taxation bureaus has been advanced in depth, and the fulfillment of taxpayers has been enhanced. Meanwhile, it should be noted that, in contrast to the new situations and requirements of comprehensively deepening the reform and to the expectations of taxpayers and basic-level tax officials, the Reform needs further deepening, some problems in the aspects including thoughts, ideas, systems, mechanisms, and administrative means need solving, and the tax environment needs further optimization.
The taxation system across the country shall study and implement in depth the spirit of a series of important speeches delivered by General Secretary Xi Jinping and new ideas, thoughts and strategies of the CPC Central Committee to rule the country, conscientiously implement a series of arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council for optimizing the business environment and deepening the Reform, based on deepening the local and state taxation administration system, comprehensive launch of the Golden Tax System Phase III, and other follow-up reform inspections, adhere to problem, integration, objective-oriented approaches, focus on taxpayers' demand and basic-level officials‘ expectations, continue enhancing simplification of administrative procedures and delegation of powers, advance the tax facilitation reform in a consolidated manner, innovate on the mode of interim and ex-post regulation, fully release the potential of information-driven taxation, promote the quality improvement and upgrading of the Reform in the taxation system, further optimize the taxation environment, and improve or raise the taxation system‘s governance capability and level.
II.Main Task
(I) Further deepen the reform of streamlining administration and delegating government powers
Adhere to carrying out the reform of streamlining administration and delegating government powers thoroughly and orderly, further cancel the items of tax administrative approval and precedent review, simplify the submission of the data of taxpayers, create a “power streamlining mode”, and practically reduce the taxpayers’ burden.
1.Reduce and optimize the tax administrative approval. Cancel the approval for the site of the agency handling the consolidated payment of corporate income tax by non-resident enterprises after it is approved by the State Council, and ask the taxpayers to independently select the tax declaration site. Determine the highest limit of VAT special invoice and the number of invoices used in combination with the taxpayers’ credit point, complete the management of highest invoicing limit, advance the cancellation of the approval for the highest invoicing limit and facilitate the taxpayers’ production and operation.
2.Boost the lists of tax rights and responsibilities. Formulate the model lists of tax system rights and responsibilities, advance the standardization of the lists of rights and responsibilities, ensure the identical items of power and responsibilities, unifiedly standardize the names, types, bases, modes of the responsibility performance and responsibility tracing by tax authorities at all levels, in an effort to form a cut-through, organically connected, smooth, transparent and efficient operation system of the lists of nationwide tax system power and responsibilities.
3.Simplify the taxpayers’ setup, removal and cancellation procedures. The tax service hall doesn’t set the supplementary registration window for new taxpayers, and the taxpayers who integrate certificates into one do not carry out supplementary information collection when handling tax for the first time. Enhance the communication and coordination with the industry and commerce department, establish the reporting, account checking and management methods for the quality and transmission of industrial and commercial registration, and improve the accuracy and completeness of shared information. Cancel the certificate for outward business administration, and execute the online application for inspection. Simplify the taxpayers’ trans-city and trans-county change registration process for facilitating the free removal of market players. Formulate the simple cancellation method to realize convenient exiting of market players.
4.Improve the taxpayers’ preference and contract filing. Improve the modes of preference recording of tax categories, basically replace submission of tax preference data to the tax authority with reservation of them by the taxpayers, to reduce the taxpayers’ burden of recording. Simplify architectural enterprises’ selecting the items of simple taxation and recording. Cancel non-resident enterprises’ contract recording of the withholding of tax at source, and optimize the recording procedure of outward payment.
5.Simplify the submission of tax-related data. Sort the data submitted by taxpayers to tax authorities. More than one fourth shall be downsized before the end of 2018. Carry out the list management of tax-related data, and require the taxpayers to submit nothing but the list in principle. Change the submission mode of the financial statement of small and micro enterprises from monthly to quarterly, to reduce the times of the submission by them. Advance the tax-related data electronization, to reduce the paper data submitted by the taxpayers.
(II) Practically innovate the supervision mode
Stick to standard and effective management, build such tax management concepts as honest presumption, risk monitoring, credit management, etc., enhance building of the mechanisms and systems adopted in and after tax collection, boost the change of tax collection and management and improve the tax collection and management efficiency.
6.Reform the tax administrator system. Rationally determine the responsibilities of tax administrators based on the requirement of transforming fixed management of accounts of certain region into classified and graded management, simplify and integrate the items of routine matters management, and complete the connecting mechanism and supporting system of tax source management. The tax administrator is mainly responsible for the management in and after tax collection dominated by risk response to further realize the management mode transformation.
7.Fully promote the real-name tax handling. Establish and complete the real-name tax handling system, and rationally determine the scope of collection of real-name information based on such factors as enterprise type, tax-related risk, etc. Advance the mutual recognition of real-name information by the state and local taxation bureaus to realize multiple uses at multiple positions after every collection. Make full use of real-name identity information, simplify relevant enclosed materials, optimize the tax handling process, enhance the credit management, and prevent various tax-related risks like reception, proxy invoicing, etc.
8.Advance the cooperation in managing trans-regional risks. Smoothen the horizontal passage between provinces and between the state and local taxation bureaus, establish an internal tax evasion pursuit list of tax system, strengthen the exchange of the risky information on abnormal ordinary invoices, out-of-control VAT special invoice, etc., advance the sharing of the risky information on abnormal accounts, Grade D credit accounts and taxpayers suspected of tax fraud and false invoice issuance, and enhance the capability of supervising trans-regional risks.
9.Create a dynamic credit supervision mode. Improve the tax payment credit management system, expand the scope of tax payment credit evaluation, and shorten the evaluation cycle With the chance of promoting the real-name tax handling, centralize the credit records on tax handling personnel, establish the tax-related credit management system for tax handling personnel, and enhance the linkage between personal and corporate credit. By applying tax big data, establish a credit point system, complete a dynamic credit evaluation and risk evaluation indicator system to realize the dynamic monitoring and evaluation of the credit and risk statuses of the taxpayers, and carry out the classified service and differentiated management based on the results of monitoring and evaluation.
10. Optimize the allocation of collection and management resources. Tax authorities shall establish the job responsibility system supporting the system reform and business innovation, ascertain the professionalized labor division relation among departments, optimize and integrate the tax handling service resource, enhance the allocation of risk management resources, and well connect the division of foreground and background responsibilities to realize the centralized utilization of collection and management resources.
11. Strengthen the collaborative cooperation among departments. State and local taxation bureaus shall jointly enhance their cooperation with external departments, for improving the external tax management assistance levels. Further boost the integration of tax payment credit system into the social credit system, enhance the joint credit keeping motivation and joint credit breaking punishment, and build a cooperative mechanism combining the taxpayers’ self-discipline, social supervision and administrative supervision. Deeply advance the “bank-tax bureau interaction”, enhance the cooperation between the bank and the tax bureau, gradually expand the items shared between the tax bureau and the bank, and assist the resolution of the issue of expensive and difficult financing by small and micro enterprises.
(III) Persistently optimize the tax service
Stick to providing high-quality and sensible services, be problem-oriented, master major contradictions, adjust the key link, and innovate the service mode by making full use of the modern information technology, so make the taxpayers feel more convenient, considerate and easy during tax handling.
12. Advance the “zero-threshold” tax handling for new taxpayers. Provide new taxpayers with “packaged” services, i.e., multiple items are completed at one time for them. Change the completion of the approval items of VAT ordinary invoice from time-limited to immediate, greatly shortening the handling time. Include the new taxpayers without poor credit record in the scope of freedom from the certification of VAT special invoice to reduce the taxpayers’ burden of invoice certification and the tax service hall’s working pressure.
13. Innovate the invoice service mode. Advance the connection between the tax information system and highway toll system, and issue the VAT electronic ordinary invoice based on the VAT invoice service platform for highway tolls to advance the cost reduction and efficiency enhancement of logistics industry. Implement the mode of “online application, online tax payment and autonomous invoice issuance” for VAT ordinary invoices on trial, and expand the scope of the pilot projects of the VAT special invoices autonomously issued by small-scale taxpayers in industries to promote the development of small and micro enterprises. Adapt to the requirements of business system reform, and promote the online change of tax control instruments. Drive the completion of invoice management system, and cancel the specifications on the invoice purchase and reception books.
14. Facilitate the tax declaration. Simplify and optimize the declaration forms for such tax categories as VAT, excise and corporate income tax, provide the function of online declaration correction, simplify the form filling and submission to a large extent, and shorten the time required for the taxpayers to prepare for tax declaration. Cancel the annual summary declaration, in case the amounts of the actual business and income of a privately or individually-owned regular and fixed-amount business doesn’t exceed the quota.
15. Energetically advance the online and nearby tax handling. The State Administration of Taxation has prepared the List of Tax Matters Handled on a One-time Basis to advance the nationwide handling of the tax-related matters of enterprises running in different provinces, and minimize the number of the times for which the taxpayers go to the tax service hall. The provincial tax authority has compiled the list of tax matters completely handled “online” to implement the provincial state and local tax business handling in some places of the province, in order to realize nearby tax handling by the taxpayers.
16. Deepen the cooperation between the state and local taxation bureaus. Extend the online tax handling function, to realize the integrated declaration of such main taxes and local surtaxes as VAT payable, excise, etc. Promote the practice that a tax bureau-bank agreement is jointly signed by the state and local taxation bureaus to realize online and offline two-party mutual recognition with one party signing, in order to solve the issue that the taxpayers have to go to the two bureaus. Break the information barrier between the state and local taxation bureaus, and expand the scope of one-party collection and two-party sharing. Within a larger scope, enable the taxpayers’ “handling the business of two bureaus by going to one bureau or logging in the website of one bureau”.
17. Improve the degree of transparency of policy service. Scientifically classify the tax policies, ascertain the online distribution channel and form, upgrade the 12366 tax service platform, and enhance the transparency of tax policy. The provincial tax authority shall smoothen the 12366, portal website, online tax service hall and other channels, boost the propagation and explanation of hot tax topics, and timely respond to the taxpayers’ definite service demand for the tax policies.
18. Improve the tax service evaluation mechanism. By referring to the World Bank’s tax payment evaluation indicator for business environments, actively participate in the development and evaluation of the tax payment indicator for the national business environment. In combination with the domestic national and tax conditions, establish the tax payment facilitation evaluation indicator system, and complete the mechanism of further deepening the Reform of tax system and the effect of tax environment optimization for taxpayers.
(IV) Continuously improve tax enforcement
Adhere to the thinking of the rule of law, standardize the operation of tax enforcement power, strengthen the supervision of law enforcement, safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of taxpayers, and create an open, fair and civilized tax and legal environment to promote fair competition among market players.
19. Standardize tax administrative penalty. Provincial state taxation bureaus and the local taxation bureaus shall jointly formulate and implement discretionary benchmarks for tax administrative penalty, conduct collective review of major tax administrative penalty, and narrow discretionary scope for tax administrative penalty. Improve the simple penalty process, simplify the handling process, and consolidate law enforcement documents to improve the efficiency of law enforcement.
20. Strictly approve tax collection management. Strictly exercise the tax assessment rights in strict accordance with the law, and further normalize the standards, procedures, and calculation methods for the assessment and collection of various taxes and regular fixed amount of individual industrial and commercial households; the state and local taxation bureaus shall jointly carry out assessment and collection, uniformly assess the tax basis, and ensure the assessment results of the same or similar taxpayers of the same size in the same area are basically equivalent. Promote the disclosure of assessment information, improve disclosed content and procedures, and increase the transparency of assessment and collection.
21. Apply scientific risk response strategies. Guided by risk management, for taxpayers with low credit ratings and high risk levels implement focused monitoring and issue risk warnings to promote their self-correction and voluntary compliance; for taxpayers with high credit ratings and zero risk, avoid unreasonable disturbance.
22. Improve tax inspection and enforcement mechanisms. Strengthen the “double-random, one-public” supervision in tax inspection, further strengthen the use and management of the Golden Tax System Phase III double-random working platform, reasonably determine the proportion and frequency of random inspections based on both credit management and “blacklists,” and publish the checklists and results of random inspections in a timely manner, to improve the pertinence, effectiveness and transparency of random inspections. Expand the scope of cross-regional inspection and improve the efficiency of the allocation of tax inspection resources.
23. Strengthen centralized risk response management. Provincial tax authorities shall establish sound centralized management mechanisms for risk response tasks, and collectively push risk response tasks through the Golden Tax System Phase III risk management platform. Strengthen the management of on-site law enforcement plans, consolidate the on-site law enforcement items, implement the joint enforcement of the state and local taxation bureaus, and avoid excessive enforcement and repeated inspections on the same taxpayer.
24. Strengthen tax law enforcement supervision. Expand the pilots for the publicity system for tax administrative law enforcement, the recording system for the entire process of law enforcement and the reviewing system for major law enforcement decisions to ensure and supervise the tax authorities to perform their duties effectively. Deepen the implementation of the tax law enforcement responsibility system, and investigate and affix the responsibility post-enforcement responsibility for law enforcement faults by relying on informational means. Further strengthen and improve the work of responding to tax administrative suits and actively prevent and resolve tax administrative disputes.
(V) Upgrade information system as a whole
Adhere to the science and technology-guided and user experience-centered principle, improve the function of the information system, optimize the user interface, promote data sharing, give full play to the important role of the support of tax informatization in deepening the Reform.
25. Optimize the functions of the Golden Tax System Phase III. Expand the functions of the core collection and management system, and enhance the stability and efficiency of the system. Improve the decision support system, accomplish the construction of the two basic libraries of the State Administration of Taxation and provincial taxation bureaus, and optimize risk analysis models, indicator systems, and case libraries. Extend the application functions of the big data platform of the State Administration of Taxation, and support provincial taxation bureaus to implement relevant data applications based on the big data platform of the State Administration of Taxation to meet individual needs.
26. Improve the new VAT invoice management system. Integrate the related subsystems of the new VAT invoice management system, optimize system architecture and functions, strengthen taxpayer-side technical support, improve tax classification and coding of goods and services, strengthen system security management, and improve the support for the application of invoice data.
27. Accelerate the construction of the e-tax bureau. Formulate the technical standards and launch the business of the national e-tax bureau, reform and upgrade the provincial online tax service halls, and establish a unified and standardized e-tax bureau to realize the online processing of tax matters by taxpayers, such as tax declaration, tax payment, receipt and issuance of invoices, certification, etc., allowing taxpayers to pay tax more quickly and efficiently.
28. Integrate information systems. Accelerate the integration of the new VAT invoice management system with the Golden Tax System Phase III and the online taxation system, to realize the functional integration of the three major systems, data communication and unified operation and maintenance. Promote the integration of information processes across the information systems, automatic data transmission, and multiple-place use of data entered in one system, to facilitate taxpayers’ taxation and grassroots tax cadres’ operations. Strengthen the application of a unified operation, maintenance and management platform to comprehensively improve support and protection capabilities for system operation and maintenance, network security, and emergency management.
29. Accelerate the connection with national data sharing and exchange platforms. The State Administration of Taxation and the provincial taxation bureaus shall jointly carry out self-examination of the tax information systems and information resource surveys, eliminate “zombie” information systems, present a list of information systems that the unit has cleaned up and integrated and the request of the needs for information resources to be shared by other departments, and prepare the directory of the government's government information resources. According to the unified national regulations, the integrated information system will be joined up with the national data sharing and exchange platform.
30. Promote data convergence and connectivity. Strengthen data quality management, form institutionalized and normalized problem data discovery, analysis, and repair mechanisms, and fix problematic data from the source. Orderly open the integrated data interface of the State Administration of Taxation and delegate the query authority to facilitate tax authorities at all levels to obtain accurate data query results. Improve the data sharing and sharing mechanism and accelerate the promotion of front-back-ground, system-to-system, level-to-level, state tax-local tax, and internal-external data interconnection and sharing to provide firm data support for taxation services and management.
III. Work Requirements
(I) Strengthen organizational leadership. Further deepen the taxation system’s Reform, optimize all aspects of taxation environment involving taxation work, and earnestly enhance the sense of mission and responsibility for promoting the reform. The principal responsible comrades of the tax authorities at all levels, as “the first responsible person”, shall personally carry out overall planning; it is necessary to designate a specific leader of a bureau to be responsible for implementation; relevant departments shall actively communicate and work together to steadily promote the implementation of various reform measures in accordance with the established roadmap, timetable, and mission statement. The relevant divisions and bureaus of the State Administration of Taxation must prepare and issue a document on the reform measures at a global level to strengthen the guidance for the work at lower levels. The provincial tax authorities shall, in accordance with the laws and regulations and under the unified requirements of the State Administration of Taxation, organize the implementation of reform tasks based on the local conditions. The tax authorities shall submit the information of implementation to the State Administration of Taxation (Collection Administration and Technology Development Division) every six months. The municipal and county tax authorities shall undertake the various reform measures, and strictly follow the unified arrangements and various work regulations of the State Administration of Taxation.
(II) Focus on pilot guidance. All local tax authorities are encouraged to explore and innovate measures based on local conditions in the overall framework of the top-level design of the State Administration of Taxation. Superiors must integrate and popularize good practices at the grass-root level to better utilize the typical demonstration. The state and local taxation bureaus of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Jiangsu Province (cities) shall actively carry out the pilot work to optimize the business environment to take a step first and upward. Significant results must be achieved by the end of June 2018. The State Administration of Taxation must sum up and popularize the pilot experience in time.
(III) Make staged progress in an orderly manner. Carry out various tasks in batches and in stages according to the urgency, importance, and complexity of the reform measures. By the end of October 2017, introduce a number of specific down to earth, unblocking and pain-eliminating, targeted and operational reform measures, to maximize the convenience of taxpayers. By the end of February 2018, introduce a series of further reform measures to significantly reduce taxpayers’ tax burden. By the end of October 2018, continue to improve various reform measures and promote the quality upgrading of the tax system’s Reform. After October 2018, integrate with other reforms to promote modernization of taxation. In the process of advancement, continue to enrich and improve the reform measures and implement them in depth according to the new requirements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, combined with the new experience summarized from grass-root practice.
(IV) Perform strict supervision and assessment. Improve the internal control system, use information technology to achieve endogenous internal control, and prevent the law enforcement risk, administrative risk and integrity risk in tax cadres. Strengthen propaganda and guidance on public opinions, further deepen the taxation system’s Reform, and optimize the social identity of the tax environment. Give full play to the role of social supervision and public opinion supervision, conduct thorough public sentiment research, smooth the channels for taxpayers' complaints and reports, promptly resolve various problems reported by taxpayers, and actively respond to social concerns. Carry out regular inspection and implement accountability for failure in pushing forward the implementation of reform. Include “further deepening the taxation system’s Reform and optimizing the tax environment as an important part of performance management, and intensify the assessment.
State Administration of Taxation
September 14, 2017
(Electronic document only within the tax system)
Information Disclosure Option: positive disclosure
CC: The Office of the Coordination Group for the Promotion of Functional Transition of the State Council and the Office of the Resident Discipline Inspection Group in the State Administration of Taxation.
Undertaken by the Collection Administration and Technology Development Division of the State Administration of Taxation
Issued by the General Office on September 15, 2017
