14th session, 26 April 2024

Standing Committee of the National People's Congress

The 9th meeting adopted the Tariff Law of the People's Republic of China

Effective from December 1, 2024

Summary of major amendments and changes to the Tariff Law

01, it is clear that the excess tax should be returned in time to extend the active application time

The second reading of the draft adds provisions that when the customs finds excessive taxes, it shall promptly notify the taxpayer to go through the refund procedures. The time limit for taxpayers to claim a tax refund when they discover an overpayment is extended from one year to three years.

02, clearly aggregate tax rise as a legal provision

The second reading of the draft raises the practice of allowing taxpayers and withholding agents to pay taxes in aggregate to legal provisions, clarifying that taxpayers and withholding agents can pay taxes in aggregate before the end of the fifth working day of the next month if they meet the conditions stipulated by the Customs and provide guarantees.

03. Clarify cross-border e-commerce tariff withholding agents

In order to meet the development requirements of cross-border e-commerce, the second reading of the draft has made clear provisions on withholding agents in relevant fields. The second draft of the draft proposes that e-commerce platform operators, logistics enterprises and customs declaration enterprises engaged in cross-border e-commerce retail imports, as well as units and individuals who have the obligation to withhold and pay customs duties according to laws and administrative regulations, are the withholding agents of customs duties.

04. Enrich and improve rules and regulations of the system of origin

The second reading of the draft clarifies the rules of the system of origin: "If the goods are obtained entirely in a country or region, the country or region shall be the country of origin; Where two or more countries or regions participate in the production of goods, the country or region where substantial changes are finally completed shall be the country or region of origin. Where The State Council provides otherwise for the determination of origin in accordance with international treaties and agreements concluded or to which the People's Republic of China is a party, such provisions shall prevail."

05, clear import link customs collection management

The second reading of the draft further clarifies the collection and management of the customs agent tax in the import link. In response to some suggestions, in practice, VAT and consumption tax on imported goods have been collected and managed by the customs, and relevant provisions on the management of tariff collection have been applied, and provisions on the collection and management of customs collection on behalf of the import link have been added in the second reading of the draft.

In addition, to meet the needs of the development of new forms and models of foreign trade, the second reading of the draft stipulates that tariff collection and management should be upgraded to the level of electronic, intelligent, standardized and convenient.

The introduction of the Tariff Law is a concrete manifestation of the implementation of the principle of statutory taxation. It will provide a more solid institutional guarantee for maintaining import and export order, regulating the collection and payment of tariffs, and protecting the legitimate rights and interests of taxpayers, and is of great significance for promoting a high level of opening up to the outside world and creating a market-oriented and law-based international business environment.

With the enactment of the Tariff Law, 13 of the current 18 taxes in China have enacted laws, and the tax legislation has been further advanced.