Original Title: Notice on Issuing the "Several Policies on Accelerating the High-Quality Development of the Tacheng Key Development and Opening-up Pilot Zone in Xinjiang"
To accelerate the development of the Xinjiang Tacheng Key Development and Opening-up Pilot Zone (hereinafter referred to as the “Pilot Zone”), promote high-level planning, high-standard construction, and high-quality development of the Pilot Zone, and strive to build the Pilot Zone into a key hub of the Silk Road Economic Belt, an important platform for deepening cooperation with Central Asian countries, a new growth pole for the economic development of border regions, and a vital barrier for safeguarding border and national security, the following policies are hereby formulated.
Chapter I: Fiscal and Tax Policies
Article 1 From January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2030, enterprises engaged in encouraged industries in the western region shall be subject to a reduced corporate income tax rate of 15%. For the purposes of this Article, “enterprises engaged in encouraged industries” refers to enterprises whose principal business consists of industrial projects specified in the “Catalog of Encouraged Industries in the Western Region,” and whose revenue from such principal business accounts for more than 60% of the enterprise’s total revenue.
Article 2: Qualified high-tech enterprises shall be subject to a reduced corporate income tax rate of 15%.
Article 3: For small-scale taxpayers subject to value-added tax, the following taxes shall be reduced by 50% of the tax amount: resource tax, urban maintenance and construction tax, property tax, urban land use tax, stamp tax (excluding securities transaction stamp tax), tax on the occupation of cultivated land, and the education surcharge and local education surcharge.Where VAT small-scale taxpayers have already lawfully enjoyed other preferential policies regarding resource tax, urban maintenance and construction tax, property tax, urban land use tax, stamp tax, arable land occupation tax, education surcharge, and local education surcharge, they may cumulatively enjoy the preferential policies stipulated in this Article.VAT small-scale taxpayers eligible for VAT exemption, small and micro-profit enterprises eligible for corporate income tax incentives, and venture capital enterprises and angel investors eligible for relevant tax policies—which fall under the “Notice of the Ministry of Finance and the State Taxation Administration on Implementing Inclusive Tax Reduction and Exemption Policies for Small and Micro Enterprises” (Cai Shui [2019] No. 13)—shall strictly comply with the provisions set forth in the documents issued by the Ministry of Finance and the State Taxation Administration.
Article 4 For individual industrial and commercial households that are VAT small-scale taxpayers, taxable sales revenue subject to a 3% collection rate shall be levied at a reduced rate of 1%; for VAT prepayment items subject to a 3% prepayment rate, VAT shall be prepayed at a reduced rate of 1%.
Article 5: Enterprises that hire self-employed demobilized soldiers, sign labor contracts with them for a term of one year or longer, and pay social insurance premiums in accordance with the law shall, starting from the month in which the labor contract is signed and social insurance premiums are paid, be entitled to a fixed-amount deduction against VAT, urban maintenance and construction tax, education surcharge, local education surcharge, and corporate income tax for a period of three years, based on the actual number of employees hired. The fixed-amount deduction standard is 9,000 yuan per person per year.
Article 6: Enterprises that hire registered impoverished individuals, as well as persons who have been registered as unemployed for more than six months with public employment service agencies under the human resources and social security departments and hold an "Employment and Entrepreneurship Certificate" or an "Employment and Unemployment Registration Certificate" (indicating "enterprise tax incentive policy"), and enter into labor contracts with them for a term of one year or more while paying social insurance premiums in accordance with the law,shall be eligible, starting from the month in which the labor contract is signed and social insurance contributions are made, for a fixed-amount tax deduction over a three-year period based on the actual number of individuals hired. The deductions shall be applied in the following order: Value-Added Tax (VAT), Urban Maintenance and Construction Tax, Education Surcharge, Local Education Surcharge, and Corporate Income Tax. The fixed-amount standard is 7,800 yuan per person per year.
Chapter II Financial Policies
Article 7: Vigorously implement the “Bank-Tax Interaction” initiative, whereby tax authorities provide commercial banks with taxpayer credit information categorized into A, B, and M credit grades to serve as the basis for financial institutions to provide financial services, thereby enhancing the financing capacity of the real economy.
Article 8: Increase support for rediscounting to small and micro enterprises, with a focus on supporting the discounting of small-denomination bills of 5 million yuan or less. The scope of loan support policies for small and micro enterprises shall be expanded to include eligible small and medium-sized banks (including new internet banks).
Article 9: For inclusive SME loans extended by local legal-person banking financial institutions with a deferral period of no less than six months, an incentive of 1% of the deferred principal amount shall be provided. For new inclusive SME unsecured loans issued by eligible local legal-person banking financial institutions between April 1 and December 31, 2021, with a term of no less than six months, preferential funding support shall be provided at a rate of 40% of the loan principal.
Article 10: For county-level branches under the Agricultural Bank of China and the Postal Savings Bank of China, eligible interest income generated from loans to farmers, rural enterprises, and various rural organizations;Rural credit cooperatives (rural commercial banks), village banks, rural mutual aid societies, loan companies wholly established by banking institutions, and legal entities operating rural cooperative banks and rural commercial banks in counties (county-level cities) and below may opt to apply the simplified tax calculation method and pay value-added tax at a rate of 3%.
Article 11: Eligible guarantee institutions engaged in credit guarantee or re-guarantee services for small and medium-sized enterprises (excluding income from credit rating, consulting, training, and similar activities) shall be exempt from VAT for a period of three years.
Article 12: Eligible enterprises applying for an initial public offering (IPO) shall be granted a "submit-and-review, approve-and-issue" green channel policy.Enterprises must meet the following conditions: First, both their registered office and primary production and operation sites must be located in Xinjiang, and they must have been engaged in production and operation for at least three years and have paid income tax for at least three years; second, in the most recent year, they must have paid income tax in Xinjiang of no less than 20 million yuan, or have newly hired no fewer than 200 employees with local Xinjiang household registration, or have donated cash of no less than 20 million yuan to impoverished counties (townships) in Xinjiang for poverty alleviation efforts.
Chapter III Industrial Development Policies
Article 13: By the end of 2022, for small and micro enterprises with a power consumption of 160 kVA or less, low-voltage connection shall be adopted, and the power supply company shall bear the investment costs for power facilities upstream of the meter.
Article 14: Enterprises legally registered and tax-compliant that produce chemical fibers, cotton textiles (including viscose),wool textiles, hemp textiles, silk textiles, apparel, home textiles, knitted goods, and industrial textiles, and which have filed with the Office of the Autonomous Region’s Textile and Apparel Employment Leading Group, maintain independent accounting, have at least 20 (including 20) formally registered employees who pay social insurance, and employ a proportion of Xinjiang residents of no less than 50%.
(1) Pre-employment Training Subsidies. A one-time subsidy of 1,800 yuan per person shall be provided for pre-employment training of newly hired employees at textile and apparel enterprises. Effective January 1, 2020, for textile and apparel enterprises that hire workers from the four prefectures in Southern Xinjiang, the pre-employment training subsidy shall be 2,400 yuan per person.
(2) One-time New Employment Subsidy. For all types of textile and apparel enterprises that hire Xinjiang residents, a new employment subsidy of 5,000 yuan per person will be provided over three years (2,000 yuan in the first year, 1,000 yuan in the second year, and 2,000 yuan in the third year).
(3) Social Insurance Subsidies for New Employment. For production-oriented enterprises in the textile and chemical fiber sectors that recruit new employees from Xinjiang, a subsidy equal to 50% of the total social insurance premiums actually paid by the enterprise will be provided. For enterprises producing end-use products—such as apparel, home textiles, knitted goods, carpets, and industrial textiles—that recruit new employees from Xinjiang, a full subsidy equal to the total social insurance premiums actually paid by the enterprise will be provided.
(4) Freight Subsidy for Shipments Out of Xinjiang. For woven products produced and sold outside Xinjiang (including unbleached woven greige fabric, dyed woven fabric, and printed and dyed fabric, as well as unbleached and dyed knitted greige fabric), a freight subsidy of 1,000 yuan per ton will be provided;For woolen and woollen fabrics and hemp fabrics, a freight subsidy of 1,000 yuan per ton will be provided; for woolen (including yarn) and hemp yarn products, a freight subsidy of 800 yuan per ton will be provided; enterprises producing apparel, home textiles, and industrial textiles will receive a freight subsidy equivalent to 3% of their product sales revenue generated from shipments outside the region during the same period.
(5) Subsidies for Production Electricity. Based on the comprehensive electricity rate of 0.38 yuan/kWh for textile and apparel manufacturers as determined by the autonomous region, and using the actual user electricity rate of 0.35 yuan/kWh as the starting point, the government will subsidize the difference of 0.03 yuan/kWh.
Article 15: Newly established manufacturing enterprises shall, under equal conditions, be given priority in recommendations for applications as “Specialized, Refined, Unique, and Innovative” (SRUI) “Little Giants” and green factories; they shall be given priority in receiving financial support from the SME public service system construction fund; and their products shall be given priority in recommendations for procurement and use by enterprises and public institutions.
Article 16: Support will be provided to establish green agricultural and sideline product production and processing centers. Vigorous efforts will be made to develop the deep processing of agricultural and sideline products, with a focus on flour, oilseeds, tomatoes, beer, and livestock products. Enterprises’ independent R&D capabilities will be strengthened to further diversify product varieties, improve quality, build brands, and increase the added value of agricultural products.
Article 17: Support the development of the commerce and logistics industry, focusing on e-commerce models that integrate online platforms with offline exhibitions and transactions of specialty goods, and encourage enterprises to establish cross-border e-commerce “overseas warehouses” and overseas operation centers.
Chapter IV: Land Use Policies
Article 18: The supply of industrial land may flexibly adopt four methods: lease-to-own, combined lease and ownership, long-term lease, and flexible lease terms.
Article 19: Within industrial parks, enterprises are encouraged to contribute the value of state-owned land use rights as equity to fund investment projects, and to complete land use procedures in accordance with the law. A “green channel” shall be established for major industrial projects to expedite the processing of land use approval procedures.
Article 20. The use of state-owned unused land within the scope of urban construction land as defined in the master land use plan may be implemented at a rate of no less than 50% of the corresponding standard for the local land grade. For the purposes of this Article, state-owned unused land includes saline-alkali land, marshland, sandy land, and bare land that are not classified as reserve arable land resources in the "Classification of Land Use Status" (GB/T 21010—2007).
Chapter V: Policies on Opening Up
Article 21: Citizens of Kazakhstan are entitled to a “three-day visa-free” policy for entry into the Bakhtu China-Kazakhstan Border Residents’ Mutual Market Trade Zone. There are no value limits on goods entering the trade zone; inspections are conducted within the mutual market trade zone. Upon exiting the mutual market trade zone, Chinese border residents are entitled to a tax-free allowance of 8,000 RMB per person per day; goods purchased by Chinese border residents within the mutual market trade zone shall be treated as self-produced and self-sold goods.When border trade goods enter the secondary market, relevant taxes shall be paid in accordance with regulations, and such goods shall enjoy relevant tax preferential policies for sales in the distribution sector. Enterprises are encouraged to engage in on-site processing of imported border trade goods in the tertiary market and shall benefit from the policies applicable to the first batch of pilot counties (cities) for on-site processing of imported border trade goods.
Article 22: Efforts to transform and develop border residents’ mutual market trade shall be intensified. A “direct-through” green customs clearance process for on-site processing of mutual market trade goods shall be implemented. Support shall be provided for the application of centralized declaration for border residents’ mutual market trade and the “direct entry and exit through processing zones” supervision model, while measures to facilitate customs clearance, such as inspection and quarantine, shall be optimized.
Article 23: Dedicated declaration windows shall be established for border residents’ mutual assistance groups, and such groups shall be permitted to apply for scheduled customs clearance. The size of border residents’ mutual assistance groups may be appropriately increased based on enterprise needs.
Chapter VI: Talent Attraction Policies
Article 24: A "green channel" for talent recruitment shall be established. For the recruitment of full-time master’s and doctoral degree holders, selection and recruitment shall be conducted through direct interviews and on-site evaluations.
Article 25: For urgently needed and scarce talent recruited to the Tacheng Prefecture, upon purchasing their first home within the prefecture and completing a one-year probationary period under a formal employment contract, a one-time housing subsidy of 100,000 yuan will be provided to master’s degree holders and 200,000 yuan to doctoral degree holders. Additionally, they shall be entitled to preferential policies including temporary housing, professional title and rank promotions, spousal relocation assistance, family visitation benefits, seniority recognition, and research support.
Article 26: For introduced talent who are experts with outstanding contributions at the national or provincial/ministerial level, as well as urgently needed talent for special positions, a certain amount of living allowance shall be provided; the required expenses shall be determined through a case-by-case review.
Chapter 7: Business Environment Policies
Article 27: The approval timeline for construction projects in the Pilot Zone’s Priority Development Area shall be reduced to within 50 working days. The preliminary approval timelines are tentatively set as follows:1 working day for project approval and filing; 1 working day for preliminary review of construction land use and site selection opinion; 1 working day for the construction land planning permit; 1 working day for technical review of the planning and design scheme; 2 working days for review by the Planning Committee; 1 working day for issuance of the construction project planning permit; 3 working days for review of construction drawings; 20 working days for project bidding; 3 working days for the winning bid announcement period; and 1 working day for issuance of the construction permit.Counties (cities) and sub-districts may implement these guidelines accordingly.
Article 28: Deepen reforms in streamlining administration, delegating power, and improving government services, as well as reforms such as “extremely simplified approval” for investment projects and the commitment system, and streamline the catalog of administrative approval items. Administrative approval matters shall be handled through simultaneous online and offline appointment scheduling, consultation, application, and processing at government service halls at all levels and on the Xinjiang Government Service Network, with the 12345 Government Service Hotline providing real-time tracking services.
Article 29: Promote the “One-Stop Service for a Single Matter” reform during the project’s preliminary phase, fully implement proxy and assistance services for project construction approvals, acceptance with missing documents, and the list-based commitment system, to achieve a single application by the project entity and a single processing by approval service personnel, thereby accelerating the approval process.
Chapter VIII Other Provisions
Article 30. Enterprises entering the Pilot Zone must comply with the Pilot Zone’s master plan, park planning, and environmental impact assessment requirements.
Article 31 This policy shall be implemented on a trial basis from the date of issuance and shall be interpreted by the Pilot Zone Construction Command Center.
