Breaking News! Nation Issues New Export Tax Rebate Rules! Tax Rebates Tightened! Involving Agent Payment, Declaration Deadlines, and More

This article provides a detailed interpretation of the new regulations, which is summarized as follows:

Articles 51 and 52 of the new regulations stipulate:

The application for export tax refund of goods should be completed, along with the receipt of foreign exchange, from the month following the date of customs declaration for export to before April 30 of the following year.

Foreign exchange collection must be completed within the declaration period (if not collected, supplementary documents are required), otherwise it will affect the tax refund.

Additional payment receipt materials are required for overdue declarations.

If not declared within 36 months, it will be deemed as domestic sales and taxed accordingly.

Interpretation: The original policy allowed VAT tax declaration from the time of export up to the declaration period before April of the following year (in practice, nearly 16 months at most). The new regulation compresses the declaration window to ≤12 months.

Reminder: Foreign trade enterprises must complete foreign exchange collection within the declaration period (if not collected, additional materials are required), otherwise it will affect tax refunds. Enterprises need to accelerate the collection of documents and the foreign exchange payment process. For export businesses with payment terms exceeding 180 days, such as those in South America and Africa, tax refunds may be denied due to overdue foreign exchange collection. It is recommended that foreign trade export enterprises ensure that the customer's final payment period is ≤90 days.

Article 54 of the new regulation stipulates:

If goods for which tax refunds have been processed are returned, subject to sales allowances, or discontinued, the refunded tax must be repaid.

Reminder: Traditionally, some companies have used "exchange" instead of returns to avoid supplementary taxes. The new regulations clarify that "allowances" also require supplementary taxes. Foreign trade enterprises can include additional clauses in contracts requiring buyers to bear the cost of supplementary taxes for returns; or they can prioritize conducting after-sales services in bonded areas to avoid goods being taxed upon entry.

Article 50 of the new regulations stipulates:

For goods exported by consignment, the consignor shall enjoy tax refund/exemption according to the procedures stipulated by the tax authorities of the State Council. If the relevant procedures are not completed, the domestic shipper of the exported goods shall assume the obligation of tax refund/payment.

Reminder: The "export through third-party billing" tax avoidance model used by small and medium-sized foreign trade enterprises will become completely ineffective.

Foreign trade export enterprises should standardize tripartite agreements: the principal, manufacturer, and agent must sign contracts clearly defining tax responsibilities.

● Complete electronic tax filing: Register the entrusted relationship through the "Single Window for International Trade".

Avoid the "Four Selfs and Three No-Sees": self-supplied customers, goods, bills of exchange, and documents; no sight of goods, production factories, or foreign merchants.

Article 53 of the new regulations stipulates:

After voluntarily forfeiting the tax refund, reapplication is not allowed within 36 months.

Reminder: Situations where it is more beneficial to forgo tax refunds: Enterprises with insufficient input invoices (e.g., purchasing agricultural products without special invoices); products where the refund rate is lower than the tax rate, resulting in an "inverted" situation (e.g., certain textiles).

Article 9 of the new regulations states:

Beneficial industries:

Offshore service outsourcing: R&D, design, software, and other services are subject to a zero tax rate.

● Aerospace transportation: For the first time, a tax rebate has been explicitly provided for commercial satellite launch services.

- External Maintenance: Tax exemption, offset, and refund for overseas maintenance of ships and aircraft.

Key operational points: It is required to provide the Technical Export Contract Registration Certificate (from the Ministry of Commerce system) and the Cross-border Service Authenticity Proof (such as an overseas acceptance report).