General

Recently, the Ministry of Finance, the State Administration of Taxation, and the General Administration of Customs jointly issued the "Notice on Tax Preferential Policies for Imported Exhibits Sold during the Exhibition Period of the 2023 China Import and Export Commodity Fair" (hereinafter referred to as the "Notice"), deciding to exempt imported exhibits sold during the exhibition period determined by the Ministry of Commerce from international trade import tariffs, import value-added tax, and consumption tax.

The Notice specifies that the categories, sales quantities, or upper limit of the accumulated tax benefits enjoyed by each exhibitor during the exhibition period of this year shall be implemented in accordance with regulations. Exhibits that enjoy tax incentives do not include goods prohibited by the state for import, endangered animals and plants and their products, cigarettes, alcohol, automobiles, and goods listed in the "Catalogue of Major Technical Equipment and Products Not Exempted from Import Duty".

At the same time, for exhibits sold by each exhibitor during the exhibition period that exceed the category or sales limit of the exhibition list that enjoys tax preferential policies, as well as exhibits that are not sold during the exhibition period and are not shipped out after the end of the exhibition period, taxes shall be levied in accordance with relevant national regulations. The list of exhibitors and the list of imported international trade exhibits sold during the exhibition period shall be uniformly submitted by the organizer China Foreign Trade Center or China Foreign Trade Center Group Co., Ltd. to Guangzhou Customs.

In addition, for the sales of imported exhibits during the policy extension period, customs will no longer conduct follow-up supervision on specific tax-free goods. Within 6 months after the end of each exhibition, the China Foreign Trade Center shall report the implementation of policies to the Ministry of Finance, the General Administration of Customs, and the State Administration of Taxation.

It is understood that the introduction of the above policies will be conducive to expanding the international influence of the Canton Fair, attracting more international excellent enterprises to participate, promoting the construction of China's comprehensive opening up to the outside world, connecting domestic and international dual circulation exhibition platforms, and promoting high-quality development of international trade.

Industry experts have stated that the introduction of this policy has long-term significance for continuously optimizing the business environment, promoting high-quality development of the Chinese economy, and supporting the China Import and Export Fair. The implementation of this policy will help reduce the costs and burdens of participating enterprises, and improve their international trade competitiveness. At the same time, it can also attract more high-quality overseas exhibits to participate in the China International Trade Import and Export Fair, promoting the opening of China's market and industrial upgrading.