(ECNS) -- The southern city of Shenzhen in Guangdong Province on Monday refuted an online rumor that it would soon implement a pilot program to levy a much-discussed inheritance tax, Guangzhou Daily reports.
Accordingly, the inheritance tax rate for estates of no more than 800,000 yuan ($120,000) would be zero, then it rises to 20 percent for 800,000 to 2 million yuan, 30 percent for 2 to 5 million yuan and 40 percent for 5 to 10 million. For estates exceeding 10 million yuan, the tax rate would jump to 50 percent.
The rumor added that tax should not come from the legacy and must be paid within three months or the estate would be nationalized.
An official with the Shenzhen municipal government's publicity department said, "We have received no notice at all and don't know where the rumor came from."
"Such a major policy should certainly be released by an authority. Online rumors are unreliable," the official noted.
Shenzhen has refuted similar rumors about inheritance tax many times in the past few years.
