The dialectics of China's tax burden

Some experts have claimed that the "per capita tax burden" in China is close to 10,000 yuan ($1,633). Although scholars with the Ministry of Finance have refuted the claim, the issue has sparked a heated public debate.

"Per capita tax burden" is the same as "per capita fiscal revenue". The official explanation, objective and accurate as it is, makes it clear that the two expressions are nothing but fiscal revenue and expenditure, and compared with advanced countries, China's macro tax burden is just about 10 percent higher.

But people still think that they are heavily burdened with tax. Another important issue that deserves attention is "tax pressure". The issues should be studied by taking into account the Chinese economy's specific developing stage as well as the benefit level. To arrive at a scientific conclusion we also need to thoroughly analyze the macro tax burden and the role of law enforcement in tax collection. If this is not done, any unidirectional deduction could lead to misreading of the tax burden. This is to say that we need to think dialectically to deal with the issues.