China sets new tax rules for online imports

China will change the tax rules on online retail goods from April 8 to level the playing field for e-commerce platforms and traditional retailers and importers.

中国将改变网上零售商品的税收规则，从4月8日起平衡电子商务平台、传统零售商和进口商之间的公平竞争。

Retail goods purchased online will no longer be classified as "parcels," which enjoy a "parcel tax" rate, lower than that on other imported goods. Instead, online purchases from overseas will be charged in the same way as any other imported goods, the Ministry of Finance announced on Thursday.

网上购买零售商品将不再被列为"包裹"，享有比其它进口商品低的"包裹税"率。相反，海外网购会和任何其他进口商品一样以同样的方式收税，财政部周四宣布。

"Parcel tax is not for trade purposes, which is exactly what online retailing is. It is unfair to conventional importers and domestic producers," said Zhang Bin of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"包裹税不是以商业为目的的，但网上零售却正是。这对传统进口商和国内生产商是不公平的"，中国社科院张斌说。

China levies parcel tax on imported goods worth less than 1,000 Yuan, and the rates is mostly 10 percept. Taxes under 50 Yuan are waived.

中国对价值不到1000元进口货物增收包裹税，税率一般是10％。50元以下的税金放弃。

As demand for overseas goods grows, online purchasing agents have taken advantage of parcel tax and used new methods such as repackaging and mailing products separately to avoid tax.

随着对海外商品需求不断增长，在线采购代理也顺包裹税之势，用类似重新包装和分开邮寄等新方法来避免税收。

The new policy only allows a maximum of 2,000 Yuan per single cross-border transaction and maximum of 20,000 Yuan per person per year. Goods that exceed these limits will be levied the full tax for general trade, the MOF said. The new policy will speed up customs clearance so consumers will receive most orders from overseas within two weeks, instead of the current two months.

新的政策只允许每项单一跨境交易最高2000元，每人每年最高2万元。超过这些限制的商品将被征收一般贸易全额税，财政部说。新政策将加快通关速度，让消费者两周内接收从国外来的大部分订单，而不是现在的两个月。

Cross-border e-commerce has been booming in China. The country plans to set up cross-borderer e-commerce pilot zones to attract businesses, create jobs and nurture new business models that will boost foreign trade and stimulate the economy, the State Council announced in January.

跨境电子商务在中国蓬勃发展。我国计划建立跨境电子商务试验区，吸引企业，创造就业机会和培育新的商业模式，这将提高对外贸易和刺激经济，国务院在1月份宣布。

The Ministry of Commerce predicted the volume of cross-border e-commerce in 2016 will reach 6.5 trillion Yuan and will soon account for 20 percept of China's foreign trade.

商务部预测跨境电子商务的数量在2016年将达到6.5万亿元，并将很快占中国对外贸易的20％。