Taxpayer Service for Replacement of Business Tax with VAT to be improved

Recently, the State Administration of Taxation has issued the Circular on Further Improving Taxpayer Service for the Replacement of Business Tax with Value-added Tax (the "Circular").

This month is the first tax reporting period for the taxpayer of Replacement of Business Tax. In order to settle the practical matters such as the return filling of VAT for part of the taxpayers for the first time, unfamiliarity with the declaration process and so on, the State Administration of Taxation took measures to better the taxpayer service, ensuring the smooth declaration, through the issue of the Circular.

It is stipulated in the Circular that the smooth declaration by taxpayers subject to the replacement of business tax with value-added tax (VAT) shall be guaranteed from twenty perspectives, such as strengthening the publicity and training of tax declaration, instructing taxpayers subject to the replacement of business tax with VAT to declare tax online and setting aside the specific window to handle the whole process. According to the requirements proposed in the Circular, tax authorities shall give guidance to those taxpayers subject to the pilot program of VAT in lieu of business tax for their declaration of tax relief, registration and other work, so as to ensure the complete and accurate declaration by taxpayers. Besides, the Circular emphasizes that tax windows set up in the government affairs centre shall make sure that the whole process for a single matter could be handled there and shall not make taxpayers travel between the government affairs centre and the tax authority on ground that relevant materials shall be signed by certain departments of the tax authority.

Besides, the Circular put forward that the quality and efficiency of the consulting hotline 12366 shall be improved and establish the mechanism for the hard problem solving. Finally, the Circular also clarifies that supervision shall be strengthened to such illegalities as the rise in price with the excuse of replacement of business tax with VAT and investigation and rectification for other problems shall be made in time. These measures not only facilitate the inquiry service of the taxpayer subject to the replacement of business tax with VAT, but also broaden the approaches to express demands and safeguarding the rights and interests for them.

(Source:http://www.chinatax.gov.cn/n810219/n810744/n2048831/n2059355/c2155676/content.html)