As of last September, China has begun sharing taxpayer financial
information of residents and nonresidents with over 100 countries
under the Common Reporting System ("C.R.S."). In
addition, on August 31, 2018, China revised its Individual Tax Law
("I.T.L.") and introduced anti-tax avoidance provisions.
These provisions are designed to enable tax authorities to tax
people who transfer assets in order to evade tax or take advantage
of tax havens.
The I.T.L. will affect many foreign nationals living in mainland
China (including those that commute to Hong Kong). Currently, China
taxes a foreign non-domiciled individual on worldwide income if the
individual has resided in mainland China for one year. However,
starting on January 1, 2019, individuals who do not have a domicile
but reside in China for 183 days or more in a tax year will be
considered tax residents.
