The General Office of the State Taxation Administration ("STA") has recently issued the Specifications for Handling the Applications for Disclosure of Government Information of Tax Authorities (the "Specifications").
The Specifications mainly stipulate the submission, registration, examination and handling of, and the reply to, government information disclosure applications as well as the sorting and safekeeping of relevant materials. Among others, the Specifications propose that citizens, legal persons or other organizations may submit government information disclosure applications in person or by mailing or through the Internet online platform. If an applicant is required to provide supplement or make correction, the information disclosure institution shall notify the applicant of the matters to be supplemented or corrected, the reasonable time limit for such supplement or correction, and the consequences of failure to make supplement or correction within seven working days from the date of receipt of the application. No supplement or correction may be made more than once in principle. The time limit for such supplement or correction generally shall not exceed 15 working days. The Specifications also clarify that, if the government information that is requested for disclosure involves any business secret or personal privacy, and the interests of any third party may be harmed when the information is disclosed, then the undertaking department shall request the information disclosure institution to solicit opinions from the third party in writing. And such third party shall give its opinions within 15 working days from the date of receipt of the document for solicitation of opinions.