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tuvia
Joined: 29 Mar 2006
Posts: 34
Location: beijing
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 Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2008 5:28 am Post subject: tax document? |
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| is there a document that the (in my case) university has which shows the taxes we have paid? each month, i sign for a pay amount, but no receipts are given of any kind. if there are some docs i should be receiving, any one know what they are called? thanks. |
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JohnC
Joined: 06 Oct 2006
Posts: 47
Location: London
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| Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2008 5:44 am Post subject: Re: tax document? |
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| tuvia wrote: |
| is there a document that the (in my case) university has which shows the taxes we have paid? each month, i sign for a pay amount, but no receipts are given of any kind. if there are some docs i should be receiving, any one know what they are called? thanks. |
They must give it to you. Just say "gei wo fa piao!!!"
If they don't provide it, something fishy is going on. |
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North China Laowei
Joined: 08 Apr 2008
Posts: 419
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| Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2008 1:00 am Post subject: Re: tax document? |
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| tuvia wrote: |
| is there a document that the (in my case) university has which shows the taxes we have paid? each month, i sign for a pay amount, but no receipts are given of any kind. if there are some docs i should be receiving, any one know what they are called? thanks. |
Most cities or municipalities have either a "Foreigner Taxation Office" or a "Foreigner Taxation Window" within the local Taxation Office. Tax receipts are issued to foreigners by these respective offices once a year at the end of the calendar year or upon application by the foreign teacher at the end of the contract. They will verify their computer-based records to see how much tax was being withheld and will issue you a receipt accordingly. Some, but not all, provinces may ask for a tax receipt when the foreign teacher renews his or her residence permit. Again, this is China and it varies.
The records in the Foreigner Taxation Office are kept either under your name or under the serial number of the supporting passport -- again it varies from one place to another. In your shoes, I would first find out where the Foreigner Taxation Office is, then with passport-in-hand, go pay them a visit. Additionally, take the Chinese language version of your contract with you. Once there, please look relatively helpless -- it actually will assist you. Usually they will bring you a leader, albeit a lower-ranking one, and ask them how much tax your employer has paid in your name. They will check their records and if, as you suspect perhaps, nothing has been paid, then hand them the telephone number of your employer -- the FAO number (I know of one hardy FT who handed them the telephone number of the president's office of the university). They will call, for sure, and your school, if it has not paid the money it took from you, will be made to pay the amount due and it will be fined. My own experience has been that the Taxation Offices here in the PRC tend to be just as efficient in most cases as their Western counterparts.
In any case, start by asking your FAO for the official "fapiao" from the Foreigner Taxation Office. That will be step one. Step two will be the visit. I would do it unannounced however (meaning unannounced to the your FAO).
I myself was in a very, very similar situation where a university was withholding tax from more than 25 foreign teachers (most of whom didn't care whether it was paid or not) but in my case my new employer required a tax document. The university couldn't produce it because it hadn't been forwarded the money to the Tax Department (and apparently this had been going on for more than 15 years). I couldn't even begin to fathom where the money that was collected but not forwarded was going...(actually I could). In any case, one visit to the Tax Department and the Tax Department was all over the school...they paid, they paid up the money from my salary, from the other teachers' salaries and from all of the ghosts of Christmas past. |
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kev7161
Joined: 06 Feb 2004
Posts: 5880
Location: Suzhou, China
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| Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2008 8:49 am Post subject: |
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| As an aside, I always negotiate (when it is time for new contracts) for a NET salary, how much I want to take home in my pocket every month. They can calculate the gross pay and do what they will. If they pay the taxes honestly, fine. If they don't, it doesn't affect me (so far). My school seems to be on the up-and-up though, so I don't worry about it should the need arise for me to prove the taxation. |
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Voldermort
Joined: 14 Apr 2004
Posts: 597
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| Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2008 11:01 am Post subject: |
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What is the tax threshhold for us and when did it last change?
I want to work out how much tax I should have paid over the last 3 years just in case I run into a similar situation with my employer. |
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North China Laowei
Joined: 08 Apr 2008
Posts: 419
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| Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2008 1:00 pm Post subject: Taxation |
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| Voldermort wrote: |
What is the tax threshhold for us and when did it last change?
I want to work out how much tax I should have paid over the last 3 years just in case I run into a similar situation with my employer. |
Voldermort,
As far as I know, meaning I returned from the Foreigner's Taxation Window this morning, the current threshold is RMB 4800 per month (it has not changed these past years). Taxation is gradual and incremental and I remember that someone actually pasted the taxation table for foreigners into a thread here.
All the best,
NCL |
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eslstudies
Joined: 17 Dec 2006
Posts: 1061
Location: East of Aden
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| Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2008 10:08 pm Post subject: |
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| OP, as I used to send the bulk of my salary home by bank transfer, I was required to have a tax statement for each month. My university's finance dept. was able to provide this easily, and I suggest any honest and competent employer would do the same..............if you follow me. |
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lf_aristotle69
Joined: 06 May 2006
Posts: 546
Location: HangZhou, China
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| Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 7:33 am Post subject: |
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tuvia, the lowest tax threshold currently starts if you're earning more than 4800rmb/month in your fulltime hours (I think including any overtime in the same job, but not including accommodation/utilities allowance).
Any other legal part time work you do has its own separate, and higher, tax scale.
After 4800 it steadily goes up in increments. Do a search on 'tax table' here on the China Job forum and your sure to find what's been written before.
I think it was in 2006 that it changed from 4200rmb/month up to the present level. Before that it hadn't changed for 5 or 6 years I believe. Don't quote me exactly though... 
If you're earning below 4800 then the only reason you would need salary receipts (besides if you were being audited, which would only happen if you were very unpopular with someone, i think) would be if you had saved large amounts of RMB that you wanted to wire/take overseas.
It's a good idea to try and arrange for the contract to give your base salary as the net amount (after tax). But, this might only be possible if you are renewing for a second contract with a friendly FAO.
Cheers.
LFA |
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eddy-cool
Joined: 06 Jul 2008
Posts: 1008
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| Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 9:05 am Post subject: Re: Taxation |
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| North China Laowei wrote: |
| Voldermort wrote: |
What is the tax threshhold for us and when did it last change?
I want to work out how much tax I should have paid over the last 3 years just in case I run into a similar situation with my employer. |
Voldermort,
As far as I know, meaning I returned from the Foreigner's Taxation Window this morning, the current threshold is RMB 4800 per month (it has not changed these past years). Taxation is gradual and incremental and I remember that someone actually pasted the taxation table for foreigners into a thread here.
All the best,
NCL |
Seems to me to be out of date - 4800 yuan threshold.
As early as spring of this year it was hiked to 5200 a month. |
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lf_aristotle69
Joined: 06 May 2006
Posts: 546
Location: HangZhou, China
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| Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 9:36 am Post subject: |
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Are you sure about that eddy?
I know there was confusion at that time (early this year 2008) as the tax free threshold for Chinese people was raised by 400rmb/month, so people assumed that it would also lead to the tax free threshold for foreigners also rising by 400rmb/month (as on 2 or 3 previous occasions in the last 10 years the Chinese rise was immediately followed by an equivalent foreign rise). However, in this instance I thought it turned out that the pattern was broken and the tax free threshold for foreigners remained unchanged on 4800rmb/month...?
I presume the Government is eventually aiming for equality in taxation for Chinese and foreigners...?
LFA |
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North China Laowei
Joined: 08 Apr 2008
Posts: 419
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| Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 10:15 am Post subject: See Below |
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I do not mean to counter what Eddy-Cool writes at all but on Friday, October 31, 2008 at 08:30 a.m. I was in the Shanghai Foreigners' Taxation Office to obtain the "fapiao" that I needed for my visa renewal at the request of the employer. We (that is myself and a representative of the school) met with a staff member whose English was quite good. I raised the issue that I had seen on this Board, in a posting by Arioch36, in which he mentioned that the tax rate for foreigners had been increased. Now, according to printed table that I was given by the Shanghai Foreigners' Taxation Office, and according to explanations of this gentleman, he stressed to me that the kick-in level for taxes for foreigners as of this was date was RMB 4,800 per month.
I realize that the Eddy-Cool is in Guangzhou but I was under the impression that income tax in the PRC was determined nationally by the authorities in Beijing. Perhaps I could be mistaken. |
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ymmv
Joined: 14 Jul 2004
Posts: 387
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North China Laowei
Joined: 08 Apr 2008
Posts: 419
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| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 12:24 pm Post subject: Re: Taxation |
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YMMV,
Thank you for your new post and helpful information.
NCL |
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arioch36
Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 3589
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| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 12:27 pm Post subject: |
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concur 100% with YMMV, and his perfect explanation
also show part of the trend of them thinking laowai not as important as they used to |
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lf_aristotle69
Joined: 06 May 2006
Posts: 546
Location: HangZhou, China
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| Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 1:23 pm Post subject: |
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That is one interpretation Arioch. And, in some sense I'm sure it's true. However, I'm sure the larger motivation of the powers that be is the higher value they hold on the satisfaction of their own Chinese public.
As I said, eventually they would naturally (and justifiably/fairly) be aiming for taxation equality...?
The pace of the change to equality probably won't be in our favour though...
LFA
Last edited by lf_aristotle69 on Sun Nov 02, 2008 2:21 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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