Tax law draft closes public consultation

A draft law to provide taxpayers individual identification numbers has finished its public consultation round on Tuesday.

The new prospective law, drafted by the Ministry of Finance and State Administration of Taxation, will create a permanent taxpayer identification number (TIN) for individuals.

The move will pave ways for reforms on individual income taxes and property taxes, analysts said. Unlike most developed economies, which routinely issue such numbers to individuals, China assigns TINs only to enterprises.

According to the draft, "China shall establish and improve the tax credit system". Individual taxpayers will get a permanent taxpayer identification number that they will have to provide when signing contracts, paying social insurance premiums or registering real estate.

The reform on individual income tax, which is expected to be announced by the end of this year, aims at adding a series of criteria such as property income, equity investments and mortgage expenses into consideration, reported Southern Metropolis Daily on Wednesday.

Related story: Reforms will shift tax focus to direct approach, by Zheng Yangpeng, China Daily

Individuals may get a taxpayer identification number for the first time as China shifts its taxation system toward one based more on direct taxes, according to a draft version of the Tax Collection and Administration Law.

Some points in the draft, which has been released for public comment, also suggest that China will introduce taxes on small e-commerce businesses.

Both moves are part of the nation's drive to modernize its government revenue system to give direct taxes such as personal and corporate income tax a larger role, analysts said.

The Politburo earlier set a goal to complete establishing a "modern fiscal and taxation system" before 2020.