Tax & legal help

The guide's tax headline for China is a national income tax range of 3–45% with no regional income tax, no recurring property tax on homes, and a named Hainan free-trade-port cap of 15%. Land, it notes, is all state-owned, with residential leases of 70 years. Beyond those lines it is advice-heavy and detail-light: it budgets for professional tax and estate advice at several points, and points readers to China's national laws database for the law itself.

The Hainan free-trade-port 15% income tax cap

Among the guide's “schemes that attract expats” sits the Hainan free-trade-port 15% income tax cap. The site data carries the identical line. That is all either source says about it: no eligibility rules, qualifying places or sectors, or application process are given, so none is stated here — it is flagged as a lead to research, starting from the official legislation source below, rather than described in detail this page cannot source.

The general income-tax line the guide does give is national 3–45%, with no regional income tax (see the next section). Neither figure is presented as a pensioner or Hainan-specific rate beyond the cap line itself.

Property, land and regional taxes the guide does state

Property tax: the guide's line, matched exactly in the site data, is “No recurring property tax on homes (pilots only); transaction taxes 1–3%.” So the recurring charge most movers expect does not exist in the guide's presentation — what it budgets for instead is a transaction tax in that 1–3% range, with no breakdown by transaction type.

Regional income tax: none. The guide's line is “None regional; national 3–45%.” It gives no band-by-band national table, so this page publishes none beyond the range.

Land: the guide's numbers page states “All land state-owned; residential leases 70 years” — a basic that shapes what “buying” a home means in China, and the only land-tenure statement in either source.

At the guide's rate of $1 ≈ ¥6.71, yuan-denominated figures convert at roughly that rate for planning.

The other schemes and allowances the guide names

Alongside the Hainan cap, the guide's schemes list is specific: the Talent (R) visa for high-level professionals, 30-day visa-free entry for many nationalities, and tax-free allowances for foreign employees (housing, schooling) extended. The allowances are named with the word “extended” and nothing more — no amounts, caps or end date in either source — so they are flagged here as a lead to research with an employer or adviser rather than described in detail this page cannot source.

U.S. expats: the obligations the guide actually covers

Be clear about what this guide does not do: it contains no U.S. filing rules — no mention of U.S. returns, foreign-account reporting, exclusions or credits — and the site data adds none. What the guide does, consistently, is budget and prompt for advice at the points where U.S. obligations bite:

• Before you become resident — the Luxury timeline takes “tax structuring advice before you become resident,” and the Mid-range checklist includes “tax advice taken on residency timing.”
• For retirees — a $1,250 line for tax and estate advice covering double-taxation, pension treatment and wills, plus checklist advice on your tax residency date and the pension treaty.
• Official U.S. channel — the guide lists the U.S. Embassy in China among its official sources, and the Retirement checklist includes registering with the embassy or consulate.

That is the sourced position: take advice before residency, especially on double-taxation and pension treatment. Anything more specific about U.S. obligations would be unsourced here.

Legal and residency basics, with the official sources

The guide's official-law entry point is the National Database of Laws and Regulations (NPC), listed with its URL in the guide and the site data; the site data also links a Wikipedia law overview from the country page. Everyday legal basics the guide does state: China drives on the right, it uses a single nationwide time zone, CST (UTC+8), with no daylight-saving time, and after a move the settle stage includes registering your address and opening a bank account. For retirees, the checklist adds preparing a local will and power of attorney. The guide's own closing disclaimer applies to this whole page: figures were current at publication in 2026, tax rules and visa schemes change, and the guide is not legal, immigration or financial advice — verify against the official sources before you rely on them.

Frequently asked questions

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