The journalist learned from the State Taxation Administration that the Secretariat of the Belt and Road Initiative Tax Administration Cooperation Mechanism has recently released the "Research Report on the Reform and Development of China's Tax Business Environment (2016-2020)" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report"). Centering around China's reform and development of tax business environment, the Report comprehensively and systematically introduces China's practice and achievements of optimizing tax business environment from five aspects; administering tax in accordance with the law, streamlining administration for the convenience of the people, cutting taxes and administrative fees, optimizing services, and opening and sharing.

In recent years, China's taxation departments have been comprehensively implementing the decisions of the Chinese government on optimizing the business environment. From 2016 to 2020, China scaled back over 7.6 trillion yuan of extra taxes and administrative fees, unleashing the benefits of policies on a continuous basis. 

It is pointed out in the Report that China has been facilitating the development of a law-based country, government, and society. The taxation legislation has entered the fast lane. From 2016 and 2020, 8 tax regulations were revised and elevated to law. Upholding the statutory taxation principle, China's taxation departments have been improving the law-based taxation system and consolidating the law-based foundation. The law enforcement of taxation has become more standardized, providing a solid guarantee for building a law-based taxation business environment. 

The Report shows that China's taxation departments have implemented a series of measures for streamlining the administration for the convenience of people, such as canceling examination and approval items for taxation, simplifying the submission of materials involving taxation, and enhancing efficient collaboration between departments. Those measures serve to spur market vitality to the maximum extent. From 2016 to 2020, the administrative examination and approval items related to taxation dropped down by 93%, the materials submitted by taxpayers filing tax returns down by 50%, the annual tax filing time down by 57.5%, and the time required for export tax rebate shortened within 8 workdays. The sense of accomplishment and satisfaction of market entities have been enhanced on a constant basis. 

    According to the Report, China's taxation departments are making efforts to carry out in-depth participation in global taxation governance, improve international taxation cooperation, and facilitate the building of the Belt and Road Initiative tax administration cooperation mechanism and the BRICS taxation cooperation mechanism. China's taxation departments are taking an active part in the international taxation information exchange mechanism and advancing the construction of the international taxation business environment. From 2016 to 2020, China's taxation departments carried out bilateral consultations with the taxation supervising authorities of relevant countries (regions) 500 times, eliminating double taxation of 15.2 billion yuan for cross-border enterprises.

It is put forward in the Report that China's taxation departments will follow the "Opinion on Further Deepening the Reform of Tax Collection Administration" printed and issued by the Chinese government in March this year. China's taxation departments will further optimize ways of law enforcement, empower taxation governance through digital means, improve taxation service through intelligence technology, and form development patterns through collaboration mechanisms to provide more China experience for optimization of taxation business environment. 

According to the head of the Secretariat of the Belt and Road Initiative Tax Administration Cooperation Mechanism, the Belt and Road Initiative Tax Administration Cooperation Mechanism will continue recommending and displaying the opinions and experience of the members, observers, and other relevant people of the Council to provide references for other countries (regions) in improving taxation environment.