China's Ministry of Finance has informed that from 8 April 2016, new rules on duties and taxes applicable to personal imports will come into effect. The current limit of CNY 1,000 for personal imports will be raised to CNY 2,000 per import, and the annual limit for an individual will be CNY 20,000. The duty and tax application will depend on the type of import.
Personal imports of cross-border e-commerce
Imports of
goods purchased from overseas e-tailers, with a customs value (i.e. the sum of product, shipping and insurance cost) up to CNY 2,000, and where the accumulated transaction value has not surpassed the personal annual limit of CNY 20,000 will be:
- Exempt from import duty
- Subject to 70% of the applicable VAT rate
- Subject to 70% of the applicable Consumption Tax rate
The current exemption of duty and tax if the sum of duty and tax is up to CNY 50 will no longer apply.
Imports which exceed a customs value of CNY 2,000 per transaction, or the annual limit of CNY 20,000 per individual, will be subject to all duties and taxes as general trade.
A list of products allowed to be imported via cross-border e-commerce is yet to be released by the Ministry of Finance.
Other personal imports
Goods sent to private individuals in China by private individuals abroad, and goods brought into China by travellers will be subject to different
duty and tax rules. The current limit of CNY 1,000 per import will increase to CNY 2,000. The current duty rates applied to personal imports will change.
