China has taken a further step to issue special value-added tax (VAT) e-invoices to new taxpayers in a bid to improve services, according to a notice issued by the country’s State Taxation Administration (STA). 

New taxpayers for the VAT e-invoices would be defined by the tax authorities of all provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities, and designated cities. 

After new taxpayers receive the tax Ukey for free from tax authorities, they can issue general VAT paper and electronic invoices, special VAT paper and electronic invoices, uniform invoices for motor vehicle sales and uniform invoices for second-hand vehicle sales. Based on the public service platform for VAT e-invoice, the tax authorities also provide free services such as issuance of special e-invoices, invoice inquiries and information downloads. 

The electronic signature of a special VAT e-invoice can replace the special seal for a paper version, and businesses and individuals can verify the information of the special VAT e-invoice via a nationwide platform, the notice, stressing that it’s up to the new taxpayers whether to issue special VAT electronic or paper invoices. 

The STA will roll out more convenient measures to improve services and modernize its tax administration system and capacity, according to an official of the STA. 

The STA began to issue “general” VAT e-invoices in 2015 and launched a pilot program to issue special VAT e-invoices to new taxpayers in Hangzhou and Ningbo in east China’s Zhejiang province and Shijiazhuang in north China’s Hebei province on Sept. 1, 2020. As the special VAT e-invoices are easier to acquire, deliver and manage, they have helped better serve businesses, bring down government-imposed transaction costs, and improve the business environment. 

According to the notice, the pilot program was extended to 11 provinces and cities since Dec. 21, 2020, and the special VAT e-invoices issued in these places could be used across China.