Implementing Regulations of the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law of the People's Republic of China

Order of the State Council No. 611

December 5, 2011

The Implementing Regulations of the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law of the People's Republic of China, which were adopted at the 182nd executive meeting of the State Council on November 23, 2011, are hereby promulgated and shall come into effect on January 1, 2012.

Premier: Wen Jiabao

Implementing Regulations of the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law of the People's Republic of China

Article 1 These implementing regulations are formulated in accordance with the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law).

Article 2 The vehicles and vessels as prescribed in Article 1 of the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law shall refer to:
1. motor vehicles and vessels that shall be registered with the administrative departments of vehicle and vessel registration according to the laws;
2. motor vehicles and vessels that do not require to be registered with the administrative departments of vehicle and vessel registration according to the laws, and are driven or operated within the premises of units.

Article 3 The people's government of each province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government shall determine the specific tax amounts applicable to vehicles in accordance with the Schedule of Vehicle and Vessel Tax Items and Amounts as attached to the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law, and it shall comply with the following principles:
1. for passenger vehicles, the tax amounts shall increase by degrees according to the displacement from small to large;
2. for passenger vehicles, the tax amounts shall increase by degrees according to the approved passenger number that classified into 2 brackets, less than 20 persons and over 20 persons (included).
The specific tax amounts applicable to vehicles shall be determined by the people's government of each province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government, and reported to the State Council for record.

Article 4 The specific tax amounts applicable to motor vessels are as follows:
1. the net tonnage not more than 200 tons, 3 yuan per ton;
2. the net tonnage more than 200 tons but not exceeding 2,000 tons, 4 yuan per ton;
3. the net tonnage more than 2,000 tons but not exceeding 10,000 tons, 5 yuan per ton;
4. the net tonnage more than 10,000 tons, 6 yuan per ton.
The tugboats shall be imposed the vehicle and vessel tax according to every 1 kilowatt of engine power computed equivalent to the net tonnage of 0.67 ton.

Article 5 The specific tax amounts applicable to yachts are as follows:
1. the hull length not more than 10 meters, 600 yuan per meter;
2. the hull length more than 10 meters but not exceeding 18 meters, 900 yuan per meter;
3. the hull length more than 18 meters but not exceeding 30 meters, 1,300 yuan per meter;
4. the hull length more than 30 meters, 2,000 yuan per meter;
5. sailing boats with supporting power, 600 yuan per meter.

Article 6 The displacement, curb weight, the approved number of passengers, the net tonnage, kilowatt and the hull length prescribed in the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law and these Regulations shall subject to the data contained in the vehicle and vessel registration certificates or driving licenses issued by the administrative departments of vehicle and vessel registration.
Vehicles and vessels that do not require to make registration according to the laws, and vehicles and vessels that shall make registration according to the laws but failed to do so or can not provide vehicle and vessel certificates and driving licenses, shall subject to the technical parameters and data stated in the product qualification certificates or import certificates of such vehicles and vessels; vehicles and vessels that can not provide product qualification certificates or import certificates, shall be determined by the competent taxation authorities with reference to national standards, if there is no relevant national standards, such vehicles and vessels shall be determined with reference to similar vehicles and vessels.

Article 7 The fishing vessels for fishing and cultivation as prescribed in Item 1 Article 3 of the Vehicle and Vessel Law refer to the vessels registered as fishing vessels or cultivating vessels with the administrative departments of fishing vessels.

Article 8 The special vehicles and vessels for army and armed police forces prescribed in Item 2 Article 3 of the Vehicle and Vessel Law refer to vehicles and vessels that registered with the administrative departments of vehicle and vessel registration of the army, armed police forces in accordance with the provisions, and also obtained the army, armed police licenses.

Article 9 The vehicles and vessels used by police prescribed in Item 3 Article 3 of the Vehicle and Vessel Law refer to vehicles that obtained police licenses and special vessels for policing of the public security departments, national security departments, prisons, reeducation through labor administrative departments and the people's courts and the people's procuratorates.

Article 10 Vehicles and vessels that conserve energy or use new energy may be exempted from or halved the vehicle and vessel tax; the rang of vehicles and vessels that exempted from or halved the vehicle and vessel tax shall be stipulated by the finance and taxation departments of the State Council under discussion with relevant departments of the State Council, and shall be reported to the State Council for approval.
Vehicles and vessels that suffered from earthquakes, floods and other severe natural disasters that caused to tax payment difficulties, and those really needed to be reduced or exempted from the vehicle and vessel tax for other special reasons, may be reduced or exempted from the vehicles and vessels tax within a certain period. The specific times and amounts for reduction and exemption shall be determined by the people's government of each province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government and reported to the State Council for record.


Article 11 The vehicle and vessel tax shall be levied by local taxation authorities.

Article 12 When withholding the vehicle and vessel tax for motor vehicles, the withholding agents of vehicle and vessel tax for motor vehicles shall indicate the information of withheld taxes on the compulsory traffic accident liability insurance policies and the insurance premium invoices, as the vouchers for the withheld taxes.

Article 13 For vehicles paid the vehicle and vessel tax or reduced or exempted from the vehicle and vessel tax according to the laws, the taxpayers shall provide the withholding agents the tax payment certificates or reduction or exemption certificates issued by the taxation authorities at the places where the vehicles registered.

Article 14 If taxpayers do not pay the vehicle and vessel tax in accordance with the prescribed time limit, the withholding agents may also withhold the overdue fines for overdue tax payments when withholding the tax payments.

Article 15 If the withholding agents have withheld the vehicle and vessel tax, the taxpayers shall no longer declare and pay the vehicle and vessel tax to the competent taxation authorities at the places where the vehicles registered.
If there are no withholding agents, the taxpayers shall declare and pay the vehicle and vessel tax to the competent taxation authorities by themselves.

Article 16 When paying the vehicle and vessel tax, the taxpayers shall provide the appropriate credentials that show the displacement, curb weight, the approved number of passengers, the net tonnage, kilowatt, the hull length, etc. tax-related information, as well as other information required by the taxation authorities according to the actual needs.
If taxpayers have provided the materials and information mentioned in the preceding paragraph in previous years, they may no longer provide anymore.

Article 17 The taxpayers of the vehicle and vessel tax for vehicles shall pay the vehicle and vessel tax according to the specific applicable tax amounts determined by the people's government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government that located at the place where the vehicle and vessel tax to be paid.

Article 18 The withholding agents shall promptly remit the withheld tax payments and overdue fines, and declare to the competent taxation authorities. When remitting the tax payments and overdue fines to the taxation authorities, the withholding agents shall also submit detailed withholding reports of tax payments and overdue fines. The specific time limit for withholding agents to remit tax payments and overdue fines shall be determined by the local taxation authorities of each province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government in accordance with the laws and administrative regulations

Article 19 For a purchased new vehicle, the taxable amount for the year vehicle purchased shall be computed from the month that tax liability occurred on a monthly basis. The taxable amount shall be the annual taxable amount divided by 12, then multiplied by the number of taxable months.
In a tax year, if tax paid vehicles and vessels are stolen or robbed, scrapped, or lost, the taxpayer may apply to the taxation authorities locate at places where tax paid to refund the taxes from the month being stolen or robbed, scrapped, or lost until the end of the tax year with proofs issued by the relevant competent authorities and the tax payment certificates.
If stolen or robbed vehicles and vessels that have been refunded taxes are regained, the taxpayers shall compute and pay the vehicle and vessel tax from the month that the public security organs issued relevant proofs.

Article 20 If vehicles and vessels that have paid vehicle and vessel tax are transacted transfer procedures within the same tax year, no additional tax will be paid, and no tax will be refunded.

Article 21 The month obtained ownership or management right of vehicles and vessels prescribed in Article 8 of the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law shall subject to the date of the month that stated on the invoices or other proofs for purchasing of the vehicles and vessels.

Article 22 The taxation authorities may centralize and conduct vehicle and vessel tax collection matters at the working places of the administrative departments of vehicle and vessel registration and vehicle and vessel inspection institutions.
When conducting relevant procedures of vehicle registration and periodic inspection, the public security traffic administrative departments shall not handle relevant procedures for vehicles and vessels that do not provide the tax payment certificates or tax exemption certificates after verification.

Article 23 The vehicle and vessel tax shall be declared yearly, computed on a monthly basis, paid in one-time. A tax year starts from January 1 to December 31 of a calendar year.

Article 24 No vehicle and vessel tax shall be imposed on vehicles and vessels of foreign countries and of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macao Special Administrative Region and Taiwan that making a temporary entry.

Article 25 Motor vessels that paying vessel tonnage tax according to the provisions shall be exempted from the vehicle and vessel tax for 5 years from the date of implementation of the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law.
Vehicles and vessels that do not require to make registration with the administrative departments of vehicle and vessel registration and are driven or operated within the premises of airports, ports, railway stations, shall be exempted from the vehicle and vessel tax for 5 years from the date of implementation of the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law.

Article 26 Vehicles and vessels in the Schedule of Vehicle and Vessel Tax Items and Amounts as attached to the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law, shall have the following meanings:
Passenger vehicles, mean vehicles that are mainly used for carrying passengers and baggage in their design and technical features, the approved number of passengers including the driver, not more than 9 persons.
Commercial vehicles, mean vehicles, excluding passenger vehicles, that are used for carrying passengers and cargo in their design and technical features, classified as passenger cars and trucks.
Semi trailer towing vehicles, mean commercial vehicles equipped with special devices for towing semi-trailers.
Three-wheeled vehicles, mean trucks, the maximum design speed not exceeding 50 kilometers per hour, with three wheels.
Low-speed trucks, mean vehicles, diesel-powered, the maximum design speed not exceeding 70 kilometers per hour, with four wheels.
Trailers, mean a kind of non-powered road vehicles, their design and technical features required to be towed by a car or tractor for normal use.
Special operational vehicles, mean vehicles, their design and technical features are used for special work.
Special wheeled mechanical vehicles, mean wheeled engineering machinery vehicles with special structures and specialized functions, equipped with rubber wheels, may self running, the maximum design speed greater than 20 kilometers per hour.
Motorcycles, mean two or three wheels vehicles, no matter what kind of drive-powered, the maximum design speed greater than 50 km per hour, or use the internal combustion engine, displacement greater than 50 ml.
Vessels, mean the various motorized and non-motorized water vessels and other mobile devices, except survival crafts and equipment, and the boat rafts less than 5 meters in length that equipped with the vessels. Among them, the motor vessels mean vessels propelled by machines; the tugboats mean the professional operational vessels designed for dragging (pushing) transport vessels; non-motorized barges mean non-motorized vessels registered as barges with administrative departments of vessel registration; yachts mean vessels with built-in mechanical propulsion device, length less than 90 meters, mainly for sightseeing, entertainment, water sports and other activities, and with vessel inspection certificates and seaworthiness certificates.

Article 27 These Regulations shall come into effect on January 1, 2012.