Tariff reduction and exemption is an important part of the tariff policy, tax reduction and exemption is linked to the object of taxation and other conditions, in a certain period of time to give encouragement to certain taxpayers and care of a special provision. It reflects the combination of seriousness and flexibility of the tax system.
According to the provisions of the Customs Law, tariff reductions and exemptions can be categorized into three types: statutory reductions, specific reductions and temporary reductions.
(I) Statutory exemptions
Statutory exemptions refer to the exemptions and reductions of tariffs granted to imported and exported goods as stipulated in the Customs Law, the Customs Tariff Regulations and the Import and Export Tariff Rules. Import and export goods belonging to the statutory duty exemption, importers and exporters or agents do not need to apply to the Customs in advance, the Customs tax collector can be based on the relevant documents and customs declarations in accordance with the provisions of the direct grant of duty exemption, the Customs and Excise Department on the statutory duty exemption of the goods generally do not follow up the management of the duty exemption, and do not make the statistics of the duty exemption.
1. Duty-free goods
(l) One-vote goods with tariff amount of less than RMB 10 yuan;
(2) Advertisement goods and samples of goods with no commercial value;
(3) Goods freely given by foreign governments and international organizations;
(4) Necessary fuels, materials and dietary supplies loaded by inward and outward means of transport on their way to and from the country.
(5) the export of goods returned for any reason, by the original consignor or his agent to declare imports, and can provide the original export documents, the Customs examination is true can be exempted from import duties. However, the export tariffs levied will not be refunded.
(6) the return of imported goods for any reason, by the original consignor or his agent to declare the exit, and can provide the original import documents, verified by the Customs and Excise Department can be exempted from export duties. However, the import duties levied will not be refunded.
(7) approved by the temporary import or export, and to ensure that within six months of reshipment, imported dutiable goods, exempt from taxation.
(8) imported goods without consideration, in line with the provisions of the imported goods without consideration and the original imported goods have been subject to import tax, may be exempted from tax.
2. Discretionary tax exemption goods
(1) in transit outside the country or in the unloading and picking up, suffered damage or loss;
(2) unloading and picking up before the Customs release, due to force majeure and suffered damage or loss;
(3) Customs inspection has been broken, damaged or rotten, proved to be not caused by careless storage.
3. The Chinese People's Republic of China **** and the international treaties concluded or participated in the provisions of the reduction or exemption of customs duties on goods, articles, the Customs shall, in accordance with the provisions of the tariffs shall be reduced or exempted.
(2) specific exemptions
Specific exemptions are policy exemptions, meaning that the State Council or the General Administration of Customs authorized by the State Council, the Ministry of Finance, in accordance with the needs of the country's political and economic policies, the import and export of goods to and from a specific region, for a specific purpose, a specific source of funds to formulate a specific exemption or reduction of tax regulations. In the Customs Law, the Customs Tariff Regulations and the Import and Export Tariff Regulations, although the statutory provisions have been made for tax exemption and reduction, but in the actual work of some of the statutory provisions of tax exemption and reduction has not been resolved, and according to the situation of China's economic development and the opening-up policy is very much in need of further tariff preferential provisions. Since the implementation of reform and opening-up, in order to adapt to and support the opening-up, encourage the utilization of foreign capital and the introduction of technology, expand foreign trade, develop industrial and agricultural production and scientific and educational undertakings, the State has successively formulated a series of supporting preferential policies for the import and export of goods for specific purposes such as special economic zones, economic and technological development zones and other specific areas, foreign-invested enterprises and other specific enterprises, technological upgrading of domestic enterprises and foreign loan projects. Preferential policies have played a positive role in promoting reform and opening up, promoting technological progress and developing the national economy. With the further development of China's opening up to the outside world and the gradual establishment of the socialist market economy system, some preferential policies have become incompatible with international practice and the requirements for the establishment of the socialist market economy system. Therefore, since 1993, the State Council began to clean up the tax exemption and reduction policies, adopting the approach of "cleaning up at one time and putting them in place step by step", so that the tax exemption and reduction policies and regulations which do not violate international practices and which have a better role to play in promoting China's economic development and opening up to the outside world will be retained and continue to be enforced; and those policies and regulations which are not in line with the requirements of international practices and the socialist market economy, and which are not conducive to equal competition, will be maintained. For those policies and regulations that are not in line with international practice and the requirements of socialist market economy, and are not conducive to equal competition or are obviously unreasonable, they are generally due or expired, and will not be extended for a longer period of time or increased in amount. With the downward adjustment of China's import tax rate, China from January 1, 1994, January 1, 1995, April 1, 1996 and January 1, 1998 onwards, there have been four times on the specific exemption and reduction policy for a larger adjustment. As China has joined the WTO, it is estimated that further adjustments will be made in the future, and readers are advised to keep abreast of the policy changes.
To December 31, 1995, the expiration or cancellation of the tax exemptions and exemptions are: along the river, along the border and the inland capital cities of the technical transformation project tax exemption provisions; coastal open area cities and counties under the jurisdiction of the rural areas in order to arrange for the processing of agricultural products for the export project required to import seeds, breeding animals, feed and other agricultural raw materials tax exemption provisions; economic and technological development zones, the infrastructure required for the construction of imported machinery and equipment and other infrastructure materials; ocean fishing enterprises to import raw materials for their own use, fishing production vessels, equipment tax exemption; barter trade (including trade with Eastern European governments) and economic and technical cooperation under the import of goods under the provisions of tax relief; imported sporting goods tax relief and tax exemption, as well as overseas Chinese, Hong Kong and Macao compatriots to donate goods tax relief, and so on.
After the adjustment of China's tax exemption policy, the current provisions for specific exemptions are as follows.
The first category, tariff preferences implemented by specific regions. At present, the tariff preferences implemented by region have been mostly canceled, and only the provisions of tax exemption for imported and exported goods in bonded zones, imported goods and articles in the Border Mutual Markets and Border Small Scale Trade have been retained. For the Special Economic Zone, Shanghai Pudong New Area and Suzhou Industrial Park, imported goods for personal use are subject to the method of "first levy of tariffs and import link value-added tax and then return", which includes the following: imported and exported goods in the bonded zone are exempted from tariffs, and the preferential tax policies for bonded zones are carried out in the Yangpu Economic Development Zone in Hainan; imported goods and articles in the Border Mutual Exchange Market and Border Small Trade are exempted from tariffs; and the preferential tariff policies for the Special Economic Zone, the Border Mutual Exchange Market and Border Small Trade have been mostly abolished. The imported goods and articles of the Border Mutual Trade and Border Small Scale Trade shall be exempted from tax; the imported materials for self-consumption of the Special Economic Zone, the Shanghai Pudong New Area and the Suzhou Industrial Park shall be implemented within the approved amount of the State, and the customs duty and import link VAT shall be "levied first and then returned, with a transition of five years and decreasing year by year", i.e., the customs duty and import link VAT shall be fully returned in 1996, and the proportion of return shall be decreasing annually from 1997 to 2000. In 1996, all customs duties and import link VAT were refunded, and from 1997 to 2000, the proportion of refund was reduced by 20% annually, and from January 1, 2001, the tax refund policy was canceled.
The second category is the tariff preference implemented by specific enterprises. This includes tax exemptions for equipment and raw materials imported by foreign-invested enterprises approved by law, and processing equipment imported for processing and assembly and compensation trade projects.
The third category, tariff preferences implemented by specific purposes. Including the following.
1. Imported scientific and educational supplies
Approved by the State Council, the General Administration of Customs on April 10, 1997 issued the implementation of the "scientific research and teaching supplies exempted from import tax temporary provisions. The Regulations state that scientific research institutions and schools in a reasonable number of imported scientific research and teaching supplies that can not be produced domestically, directly used for scientific research or teaching, exempted from import tariffs and import-related value-added tax, consumption tax. The scope of duty-free supplies is as follows:
(1) Instruments and meters and their accessories for analysis, measurement, checking, metering, observing and generating signals for scientific research, scientific experimentation and teaching;
(2) Laboratory equipments (excluding pilot equipments) that provide necessary conditions for scientific research and teaching;
(3) Computer workstations, small, medium and large-size Computers and programmable controllers;
(4) in the customs supervision period for the maintenance of the provisions of the duty-free imported instruments, instruments and equipment, or for the improvement and expansion of the function of the instruments, instruments and equipment imported separately, the amount does not exceed the value of the entire machine 10% of the special parts and accessories;
(5) all kinds of books, newspapers, magazines, lectures in various forms of carrier, computer software;
(6) specimens, models;
(7) teaching slides;
(8) chemical, biochemical and medical experimental materials;
(9) experimental animals;
(10) scientific research, scientific experiments, and teaching of medical instruments and their accessories (limited to the medical colleges and universities, specialized medical scientific research institutions);
(11) medical equipment and its accessories (limited to medical institutions, specialized medical scientific research institutions);
(12) medical equipment and its accessories; and
(11) fine varieties of plants and seeds (limited to agricultural and forestry colleges and universities, professional and agricultural and forestry scientific research institutions);
(12) professional-grade musical instruments and audio-visual materials (limited to art colleges and universities, professional and artistic scientific research institutions);
(13) special needs of sports equipment (limited to sports colleges and universities, professional and sports scientific research institutions);
(14) special needs of sports equipment (limited to sports colleges and universities, professional and sports scientific research institutions); and Institutions);
(14) Trainer aircraft (limited to flight institutions);
(15) Critical equipment used in teaching and experimental ships (limited to shipping institutions);
(16) Non-gasoline and diesel-powered prototype vehicles for scientific research (limited to automotive majors of the institutions).
Before the importation of the above goods, the following documents should be submitted to the Customs to apply for tax exemption: two copies of the completed "Application Form for Tax Exemption for Scientific and Educational Supplies", a copy of the order contract and the list of the goods, the goods are under the management of the importing department to submit the documents of the importing department, and other relevant explanatory information.
2. Imported goods for disabled organizations and individuals
Approved by the State Council, the General Administration of Customs issued the "Interim Provisions on Exemption of Import Duty on Special Supplies for the Disabled" and its implementation measures in 1997.
(1) Individuals importing articles for the exclusive use of persons with disabilities within a reasonable amount for their own use, the taxpayer shall go through the tax-free import procedures directly at the customs office of the place of importation. Batch import of special goods for the disabled, the importing unit should provide the purpose of the documents before importation, apply to the competent customs office in the location, the competent customs office in the location of the examination and approval, the issuance of "import and export of goods tax exemption certificate" (triple) to notify the customs office in the place of importation to handle the tax exemption formalities.
(2) Welfare and rehabilitation organizations importing special goods for the disabled that cannot be produced domestically shall go through the tax exemption procedures according to the following provisions.
Prior to importation, the relevant welfare and rehabilitation organizations shall, according to their affiliation, fill in the Application Form for Importation of Duty-Free Specialty Goods for Persons with Disabilities in triplicate, and apply to the Ministry of Civil Affairs or the China Disabled Persons' Federation respectively;
After being examined and approved by the Ministry of Civil Affairs or the China Disabled Persons' Federation, they shall sign and seal the Application Form, and file one copy of it, and send the other two to the General Administration of Customs; after the examination and approval of the Customs Division of the General Administration of Customs, they shall notify the customs office where they are imported for duty-free formalities. Customs Department of the General Administration of Customs after examination and approval, notify the competent customs where the welfare and rehabilitation organizations.
With the approval document issued by the Department of Customs, the competent customs office of the welfare and rehabilitation institution shall fill in the three copies of "Certificate of Tax Exemption for Imported and Exported Goods", of which the first copy shall be handed over to the competent customs office of the welfare and rehabilitation institution to keep; the second and third copies shall be sent to the customs office of the place of importation to be exempted from tax, and the customs office of the place of importation, after the tax exemption, shall return the third copy to the competent customs office of the welfare and rehabilitation institution in a timely manner.
(3) overseas donations to individuals with disabilities or the relevant welfare, rehabilitation institutions for the disabled can not be produced domestically, special supplies for the disabled, with proof of donation in accordance with this Law.
Any specific tax relief for import and export of goods, its consignee or agent must be before the import of goods, in accordance with the prescribed procedures to the Customs for application for approval of tax relief. Approved by the Customs, in line with the provisions of the specific tax exemption, the Customs issued by the Customs tax exemption certificate, with which the import and export customs formalities; no tax exemption certificate, the Customs in the import and export links in accordance with the tax levied.
The Application Form for Tax Exemption for Import and Export Goods is shown in Exhibit 5-2, and the Certificate of Tax Exemption for Import and Export Goods is shown in Exhibit 5-3.
(C) Temporary Exemption
Temporary exemption, also known as special exemption, refers to other forms of tax exemption other than the statutory exemptions and specific tax exemptions. Temporary relief by the General Administration of Customs or in conjunction with the Ministry of Finance in accordance with the provisions of the State Council, according to a unit, a certain type of goods, a certain period of time or a batch of import and export of goods in special circumstances, the need for its imports of dutiable goods on special cases to be tariff reductions and exemptions. For temporary tax relief for import and export goods, in addition to the General Administration of Customs approval of the use of restrictions to be managed, the rest of the goods, the Customs and Excise Department generally do not need to follow up the management, but to carry out duty-free statistics.
Temporary duty exemptions were stopped in June 1993 for approval.