Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1 With a view to building the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (the GBA) and standardizing the administration of financial subsidies for the preferential individual income tax (IIT) policies in the GBA, the Measures are formulated in light of Guangzhou’s current situations and in accordance with the Notice of the State Administration of Taxation and the Ministry of Finance on Preferential Individual Income Tax Policies in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Cai Shui [2019] No. 31) and the Notice on Implementation of Preferential Individual Income Tax Policies in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Yue Cai Shui, [2019] No. 2) by Guangdong Department of Finance and the Guangdong Taxation Bureau.

Article 2 The Measures shall apply to the implementation of the financial subsidies in the preferential IIT policies in the GBA concerning the applicable scope, procedures, and supervision and inspection.

Article 3 Overseas high-end talents and critically lacking talents who work within the administrative area of Guangzhou shall be given financial subsidies if their IIT paid in Guangzhou exceeds the tax amount computed at 15% of their taxable income. The subsidy is exempt from IIT.

Article 4 The computation of the balance of IIT shall be based on one tax year, which begins on January 1st and ends on December 31st of the Gregorian calendar.

Article 5 The financial subsidies under the Measures shall be incorporated into the current yearly fiscal budget in accordance with the current financial system.

Chapter II Applicable Scope

Article 6 The overseas high-end talents referred to in Article 3 of the Measures shall conform to the standards of the Catalogue of Overseas High-end Talents in Guangzhou (see Annex 1 for the 2019 version).

Article 7 The overseas critically-lacking talents referred to in Article 3 of the Measures shall conform to the Catalogue of Critically-lacking Talents in Guangzhou (see Annex 2 for the 2019 version), and the taxable income of IIT in the tax year shall exceed RMB 300,000.

Article 8 Overseas high-end talents and critically-lacking talents (hereinafter referred to as “applicants”) who meet the requirements of Articles 6 and 7 of the Measures shall also concurrently meet the following requirements:

(1) The applicant shall be a permanent resident of Hong Kong or Macao, a Hong Kong resident under the Hong Kong’s Admission Schemes for Talents, Professionals and Entrepreneurs, a Taiwanese resident, a foreigner, or a returned overseas Chinese or a returned overseas Chinese student who has obtained the right of long-term residence abroad;

(2) The applicant shall work or be employed by enterprises and other institutions registered in Guangzhou during the tax year, or alternatively provide independent personal services in Guangzhou, work in Guangzhou for a minimum of 90 days during the tax year, and pay IIT in Guangzhou according to law;

(3) Within three years before applying for financial subsidies, the applicant shall have no information records of major tax violations, no records of dishonest acts such as false reporting, false collection, fraud, misappropriation of financial funds, violation of scientific research ethics and integrity, and no records of serious violation of laws or regulations, such as being included into the blacklist of debtors for law enforcement, being subject to criminal punishment or ordered to suspend production or business, being revoked of the business license or permit, or receiving administrative punishment involving large sum of fine. The applicant is not directly or primarily responsible for the above acts or records of the withholding agent, nor is he the legal representative or responsible person of the withholding agent.

The above records can be inquired through www.creditchina.gov.cn, www.credit.gz.gov or shared government information.

Article 9 The Catalogue of Overseas High-end Talents in Guangzhou and the Catalogue of Critically-lacking Talents in Guangzhou shall be managed and updated by the Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Science and Technology and the Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Human Resources and Social Security in line with the economic and social development needs in Guangzhou.

Article 10 The amount of tax paid referred to in Article 3 of the Measures shall be the IIT paid for the following incomes in accordance with the provisions of the Individual Income Tax Law of the People’s Republic of China:

(1) Wages and salaries;

(2) Income from provision of independent personal services;

(3) Income from author’s remuneration;

(4) Income from royalties;

(5) Income from business operations;

(6) Income from subsidies obtained by being enlisted in talents projects of the government or government departments at or above the district level as well as their directly affiliated institutions.

Article 11 Financial subsidies shall be granted in a lump sum based on categorized IIT computation (comprehensive incomes shall be computed with comprehensive method).

Where the categories of individual incomes belong to comprehensive income or income from business operation, the paid amount of IIT shall be based on the actual amount of tax paid in the whole year after the settlement and payment of tax refund in the following year.

Article 12 Where an applicant earns incomes under Article 10, the applicable annual financial subsidy shall be computed with the following formula:

Financial subsidy=∑ (IIT balance by category each year × the proportion of IIT paid by category);

The proportion of IIT paid by category = the amount of IIT paid by category in Guangzhou each year ÷ the amount IIT paid by category in China each year.

IIT balance by category in each year:

1.(1) Resident comprehensive income categories (including four categories i.e. wages and salaries, incomes from provision of independent personal services, author’s remuneration and royalties): the annual IIT balance = the amount of IIT paid on comprehensive income - the amount of taxable comprehensive income × 15%;

(2) The category of wages and salaries of non-residents: the annual IIT balance = the amount of IIT paid on wages and salaries - the amount of taxable income from wages and salaries × 15%;

The category of income from provision of independent personal services of non-residents: the annual IIT balance = the amount of IIT paid on independent personal services - the amount of taxable income from independent personal services × 15%;

The category of author’s remuneration of non-residents: the annual IIT balance = the amount of IIT paid on author’s remuneration - the amount of taxable income from author’s remuneration × 15%;

The category of royalties of non-residents: the annual IIT balance = the amount of IIT paid on royalties - the amount of taxable income from royalties × 15%;

2. The category of income from business operation: the annual IIT balance = the amount of IIT paid on income from business operation - the amount of taxable income from business operation × 15%;

3. The category of subsidies obtained by being enlisted in talents projects of the government or government departments at or above the district level as well as their directly affiliated institutions:

the annual IIT balance = the amount of IIT paid on subsidies obtained by being enlisted in talents projects of the government or government departments at or above the district level as well as their directly affiliated institutions - the amount of taxable income from subsidies obtained by being enlisted in talents projects of the government or government departments at or above the district level as well as their directly affiliated institutions × 15%;

Chapter III Subsidy Procedures

Article 13 Financial subsidies are processed once a year, and applications for financial subsidies in the current year are accepted from July 1st to August 15th of the following year.

Where an eligible applicant fails to submit an application within the prescribed time limit, a supplementary application can be made during the subsidy application period in the next year. If it is overdue again, it shall not be accepted or subsidized.

Article 14 Where the IIT of the applicant is withheld by a withholding agent, the withholding agent shall generally handle the application procedures for financial subsidies on behalf of the applicant. Where an applicant declares and pays IIT on his own, he or she shall apply for it.

Article 15 The following materials shall be submitted for application of financial subsidies,

(I) Application Form for IIT Financial Subsidy from the applicant;

(II) A Letter of Commitment where the withholding agent and the applicant undertake to cooperate with the supervision and inspection, and to promise that the applicant meets the requirements of Item 3, Article 8 of the Measures;

(III) Copies of the applicant’s valid identity certificate:

1. Foreign nationals shall submit their passports.

2. Permanent residents of Hong Kong and Macao and mainland residents residing in Hong Kong and Macao shall submit Hong Kong and Macao Resident Identity Cards or Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents.

3. Permanent residents of Taiwan shall submit their identity cards and Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents.

4. Hong Kong residents under Hong Kong’s Admission Schemes for Talents, Professionals and Entrepreneurs shall submit their Hong Kong Resident Identity Cards and visas issued by the Hong Kong Immigration Department.

5. Overseas Chinese and returned overseas Chinese students who have obtained the right of long-term residence abroad shall submit their Chinese passports, Chinese identity cards and long-term (or permanent) foreign residence certificates. Among them, returned overseas students should also submit the Certificate of Academic Degree Abroad issued by the Service Center for Overseas Studies of the Ministry of Education. When necessary, the handling department may request overseas Chinese and returned overseas students who have obtained the right of long-term residence abroad to provide notary certificates or certificates of the long-term (or permanent) residence issued by the China Embassies in their residing countries, or the notary certificate and residence record issued by the consulates of the residing country in China.

If the applicant registers for tax payment with multiple different identity certificates, all the corresponding identity certificates shall be submitted together.

(IV) The copies of relevant honorary certificates, letters of engagement, confirmation letters, certificates, confirmation documents proving the applicant an overseas high-end talent and critically-lacking talent recognized by the state, Guangdong or Guangzhou governments, or certificates of professional qualification, title, skill certificates, and work permits (or permit notices) of foreigners working in China.

(V) Materials to prove that the applicant’s annual working days in Guangzhou reach a minimum of 90 days;

1. If the applicant is working at or being employed by an enterprise or other institution registered in Guangzhou in relation to his/her job, he or she shall provide:

(1) The labor contract signed between the applicant and the withholding agent (the place of work stipulated in the labor contract is in Guangzhou); or, if the applicant is dispatched by an overseas employer, the dispatch contract signed between the applicant’s employer outside China and the receiving enterprise of Guangzhou if the applicant is dispatched by an overseas employer;

(2) A commitment letter from the applicant to promise to have worked in Guangzhou for at least 90 days in one year.

2. Applicants who provide independent personal services in Guangzhou in relation to his/her job must provide:

(1) The labor contract signed by the applicant with the enterprises and institutions established in Guangzhou;

(2) A commitment letter from the applicant promising to have worked in Guangzhou for at least 90 working days in a year.

(6) The applicant’s annual IIT record and IIT Withholding Declaration Form, Annual IIT Declaration Form and IIT Declaration Form for incomes from business operation.

(VII) Information of bank account the applicant holds with a bank in the Mainland of China, and a copy of the deposit book or bank card of the applicant showing the account number.

Aforesaid application form under Item 1 shall be made into quadruplicate, and others in one copy. The application materials should be stamped with the official seal of the withholding agent and the cross-page seal.

Article 16 Where the applicant or withholding agent apply for financial subsidy to the online management system jointly used by the Guangzhou Municipal Human Resources Social Security Bureau and the Guangzhou Municipal Science and Technology Bureau, applications from overseas high-end talents in Guangzhou shall be handled by Guangzhou Municipal Science and Technology Bureau, and those from overseas critically-lacking talents in Guangzhou by Guangzhou Municipal Human Resources Social Security Bureau.

The handling department shall check whether the application materials submitted for IIT financial subsidies are complete. Applications submitted by eligible applicants and supported with full set of materials will be accepted with a receipt of acceptance properly issued.

Article 17 After the handling department completes the preliminary review of the application materials for IIT financial subsidy, the relevant talent identification or management departments, and the Guangzhou Taxation Bureau of the State Administration of Taxation, etc. shall assist with the examination and verification. After that, the handling department shall publicize the list of talents to be granted IIT financial subsidies on its website for 7 working days.

Article 18 Where there is no objection against the talents who have gone through examination and publicity, the handling department shall form a final list of applicants granted with the financial subsidies and directly allocate the financial subsidies to the personal accounts of the applicant through the centralized payment system of the municipal treasury.

Chapter IV Supervision and Management

Article 19 The applicant and withholding agent shall provide true and authentic application materials, and shall be held responsible for the completeness, authenticity and accuracy of the application materials. Once the acts of false reporting, falsely collecting or defrauding financial subsidies are found, the distributed financial subsidy shall be recovered, the applicant’s eligibility to apply for financial subsidy shall be canceled within three years’ time, and the case shall be handled in accordance with the Regulations on Punishment of Financial Illegal Acts (Decree No. 427 of the State Council) and relevant laws and regulations. If a suspected crime is committed, the case shall be transferred to judiciary authorities to investigate criminal responsibility according to law.

Article 20 The applicant and withholding agent shall consciously accept the inspection and supervision of the IIT financial subsidy by the financial and auditing departments.

Chapter V Supplementary Provisions

Article 21 The Measures shall come into force on January 1st, 2019 and shall be implemented on a trial basis for one year. The Measures shall apply where the tax years for which the applicant applies for financial subsidies are within the validity period of the Measures.