China to Revise Income Tax Law

China is revising its Personal Income Tax Law, but the details will not be available until draft amendments are tabled at a forthcoming session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), the top legislature.

A meeting of the chairman and vice chairpersons of the NPC Standing Committee, presided over by Committee chairman Li Peng, today discussed the agenda for the week-long session which starts on August 24. Ten draft laws will be deliberated, including the draft amendments to the Personal Income Tax Law promulgated in 1993.

Sources with the legislative body disclosed that the changes to the law are intended to "guide and stimulate individual consumption, with the aim of bolstering the slack domestic market. "

Top on the NPC Standing Committee session is also a bill, put forward by the State Council, on increasing national debt for fixed-assets investment and adjusting the central government budget plan of this year. This is yet another move by the government to invigorate domestic demand.

Besides the draft amendments to the Personal Income Tax Law, four new laws to be submitted for review are: draft regulations on supervision over major law-breaking cases in adjudication and prosecution work, draft regulations on examination and supervision of the central government budget, draft amendments to the law on the prevention of air pollution and a draft law on the ad hoc procedures of maritime lawsuits.

During the session, Chinese lawmakers will also review five draft laws that had been previously deliberated on and revised. They are on solely-funded enterprises, public bidding, maritime environment, weather services, and accountancy.

Two government reports are scheduled for examination by the lawmakers. One is on the implementation of the national economic and social development plan, and the other is on the basic guarantees for workers laid off by state-owned enterprises and pensions for the retirees from those enterprises.

A law-enforcement inspection group of the NPC Standing Committee will explain to the session how the country's forestry law has been implemented.