The State Administration of Taxation ("SAT") has recently distributed the Circular on Establishing a Swift Response Mechanism for Tax-related Appeals and Opinions Raised by Small and Micro Firms (the "Circular").
The Circular states that, a swift response mechanism for tax-related appeals and opinions will be established among the nationwide tax authorities to mainly serve small and micro businesses, a move to direct tax authorities to conduct swift research into targeted measures for tax-related appeals and opinions filed by small and micro firms and thus provide effective aid and convenience for them to handle tax affairs and practically safeguard their legal rights and interests. With regard to the category of appeals and opinions to be accepted, the Circular reads that, appeals and opinions raised by small and micro firms are categorized into six groups concerning "policy implementation", "compliance of law enforcement", "taxpayer services", "information application", "legal remedy" and "others". Channels established to collect appeals and opinions raised by small and micro firms include: 1. 12366 taxpayer service hotline; 2. 12366 taxpayer service platform; 3. websites of tax authorities; and 4. other approaches. Moreover, the Circular clearly states that, the work process is primarily comprised of "acceptance registration", "swift processing", "timely responses", "regular follow-up visits" and "statistical analysis".