Enterprises in Beijing are expected to enjoy 3.11 billion yuan (US$469.1 million) in tax reduction this year after the implementation of a series of tax reduction measures such as the State Council's six tax reduction policies, according to the Beijing Municipal Office of the State Administration of Taxation.
Since the policy of replacing business tax with value-added tax (VAT) was put into practice, enterprises of the four pilot industries -- construction, real estate, finance and service industries -- have had their taxes reduced by 35.93 billion yuan, or 16.3 percent. The service industry enjoyed the biggest tax reduction by 20.4 billion yuan, while the construction, real estate and finance industries each received tax reductions of 5.48 billion yuan, 2.37 billion yuan, and 7.62 billion yuan respectively. By the end of the tax collection period in October 2017, 1.07 million taxpaying companies in Beijing have completed the transition from business tax to VAT, receiving an overall tax reduction by 30.2 percent.
Small businesses in the city have praised the new tax measures to be pragmatic and profitable. Many enterprises that have benefited from the tax reduction policies have invested the money they saved into the development of new products and technological innovation, according to reports.