Tax for home and foreign businesses to be unified
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2006-04-29 10:57
China is set to unify the income tax rate for domestic and
overseas-funded enterprises, Friday's Beijing News reports.
Wang Yukang,
deputy director of the Department of International Taxation under the State
Administration of Taxation, said at a meeting in Guangzhou that the
amended law on corporate income tax will be submitted to the State Council in
May.
By the end of August, the amendment is expected to be submitted to
the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee for review, said Wang.
According to Wang, there will be a transition period before the new law
takes effect in 2008.
China has been one of the world's major receivers
of foreign direct investment for years, but with foreign businesses establishing
dominance in some fields, there has been an increase in the calls to level the
playing field for home enterprises.
The current income tax rate for
Chinese companies now stands at 33 percent, compared to a maximum of 24 percent
for overseas-funded enterprises. The latter group also enjoys numerous
exemptions.
It has been generally agreed that a rate of around 25
percent will be a proper and likely choice for the unified tax
rate.
(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates) |