In the past 30 years since the reform and opening up in China, the national economy has developed continuously and rapidly, and the comprehensive national strength has also been greatly improved, showing a situation in which the country is rich and the people are strong. With the rapid increase of economic development and personal income, there are also some problems in China, such as the imbalance between urban and rural development, the imbalance between eastern and western economic development, and the polarization of personal income, and the gap continues to widen. In order to stabilize the society, avoid excessive polarization of personal income and increase the national fiscal revenue, the state has repeatedly demonstrated and studied, and adopted international common practices to regulate and control the collection of personal income tax. At the beginning of the introduction of personal income tax, it was more in line with the actual situation at that time, so the social response was relatively stable and the implementation was relatively smooth. However, with the passage of time and the sustained and rapid development of the national economy, especially the emergence of private economy like mushrooms after rain, the existence of a large number of high-income upstarts and the gradual formation of middle-income (white-collar) classes, the original methods obviously can not keep up with the rapid growth of prices and personal income, and the ensuing contradictions have made the masses complain. Therefore, the state has made two adjustments to personal income tax and other ways, but for the reasons of national fiscal revenue, it may only be fine-tuned. For the masses, it seems to be a "poll tax", but for a considerable number of high-income and nouveau riche, it still cannot play a fundamental role in regulation, which is obviously inconsistent with the original intention of the country to build a harmonious society. Judging from the standards of mature countries in the international community, the income of the masses who are not in line with the international stable society obviously violates the standards of the "olive type" model.

First, the implementation of the individual income tax law and the existing problems

(A) the formulation and implementation of the individual income tax law

The individual income tax law was first enacted in September of 1980 and 10, which is mainly applicable to foreigners and a very small number of Chinese nationals. At that time, because the income of the masses was generally low, most people were still far from the threshold. It will be a great honor if they can "go online" to reach the threshold. June 365438+1 October 3 1, 1993 With the sustained development of the national economy, the state revised and promulgated the individual income tax law, which came into effect on June 1994, with the threshold of 800 yuan/month, and the income from wages and salaries subject to nine tax rates (see table/kloc- At this time, the income of the masses is generally around 200 yuan/month, and it will take many years for most people to reach 800 yuan/month. Therefore, the formulation of this law is reasonable, the social response is quite stable, and the implementation is quite smooth, so there is no need to adjust the threshold frequently.

(B) the second adjustment of the personal income tax threshold and the existing problems

With the passage of time and the sustained and rapid development of the national economy, on the one hand, the monthly income of most people has exceeded the original threshold of 800 yuan/month; On the other hand, the rapid development of private economy, with the emergence of some extremely high-income people, has widened the income gap, while middle-income white-collar workers have gradually formed. The original method was introduced from 1993 10 and has remained unchanged for more than ten years. Obviously, it can't keep up with the rapid growth of per capita income and the widening income gap. For the masses, it seems to be a poll tax, and the state has lost its due role in the main purpose of regulation. The ensuing contradictions led to complaints from the broad masses and fierce social reactions. On June 29th, 2007, the State promulgated Decree No.66 of the President of the People's Republic of China, Decision of the NPC Standing Committee on Amending the Individual Income Tax Law of People's Republic of China (PRC), which came into force as of the date of promulgation. However, due to the national financial revenue and other reasons, the threshold is only adjusted to 1.600 yuan/month, and other provisions remain unchanged. On the surface, the range has been doubled, so the number of people in the threshold has decreased slightly, but according to the per capita income of employees in Zhejiang Province in 2007, it has reached 22,068 yuan (1.839 yuan/month). This adjustment method is a drop in the bucket. Therefore, on February 8, 2008, the Decision of the State Council on Amending the Regulations for the Implementation of the Individual Income Tax Law of the People's Republic of China was revised for the second time, and the threshold was adjusted to 2,000 yuan/month, which was implemented in March 2008. Other laws and regulations have not changed much, and the goal of protecting the income of low-and middle-income groups and fairness has not changed much, but for a considerable number of high-income and nouveau riche. The people have not benefited much from these two adjustments, and the benefits of collecting personal income tax as a part of the steady growth of fiscal revenue have been retained. Looking at foreign countries such as China's Xinjiapo and Macau, when the fiscal revenue increases to a certain extent, cash-filled red envelopes is used to give back to the people. Just like Dongguan in China, part of the fiscal revenue is also given back to some citizens with difficulties in life (according to Duff's article in 2 1 Century Business Herald on June 26, 2008), so as to alleviate the pressure on people's livelihood caused by rising prices. Although it only benefits a few people, the effect is good after all.

Second, the suggestion of adjusting personal income tax again.

Especially in recent years, international inflation has gradually formed and has an accelerating trend, especially in Southeast Asia, such as Vietnam and other countries. With the rapid price increase of crude oil, coal, iron ore raw materials and people's livelihood rice, inflation is in full swing, the national economy of some countries is in trouble, people's living standards are retrogressive, and the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States is far from over. China's domestic inflation is also gradually forming, and the prices of some livelihood products are greatly distorted. With the sharp rise in the price of raw materials, the prices of water and electricity need to be raised urgently. In order to ensure the gradual improvement of people's living standards and cultivate and strengthen the middle class, the government should adjust the personal income tax as an important means of giving back to the people. Therefore, in the current economic environment, personal income tax should be adjusted again as soon as possible.

(1) Adjust the threshold of personal income tax to increase personal real income.

The second adjustment did not lead to the reduction of national fiscal revenue because of the adjustment of the personal income tax threshold. On the contrary, personal income tax is still increasing year by year, and the increase rate is considerable. According to the needs of the sustained and rapid development of the national economy, personal income and family consumption, and family support for the elderly in recent years. In addition, although there is no unified standard for the middle class in China at present, most people think that the annual income of the middle class should be between 5-10.2 million yuan/year, so it is more appropriate to adjust the threshold of personal income tax to 6,000 yuan/month, so that residents below the middle income can have food and clothing and their families can have some savings. It can calmly cope with the major expenditures of households such as pension, medical care, education, housing and other recreational activities such as tourism, and at the same time take into account the personal income tax threshold for a certain period of time, unlike the previous two adjustments.

(2) Expand the scope of tax rates and cultivate the income of the broad masses with the "olive" model.

The "olive-type" model means that the middle class in a country accounts for the majority, that is, the middle part of the olive, and the high-income, nouveau riche and poor households account for a small part, the less the better, that is, the two ends of the olive. At present, the country is advocating the construction of a harmonious society, and the foundation of a harmonious society is that the people live and work in peace and contentment and the country is strong. The foundation of the country's prosperity is to minimize poverty, eliminate poverty and vigorously cultivate the middle class, that is, the income of the broad masses should create an "olive-shaped" model. To build a harmonious society, the state needs to cultivate the "olive-shaped" income model of the broad masses, that is to say, to cultivate and strengthen the middle class, so that this class can become the mainstream of society and the main force of national consumer groups, and also provide a good foundation for social stability. Although the personal income tax has been adjusted twice, the current tax rate series is not bad at all from the tax rate series more than ten years ago. For example, according to the per capita income of workers in Zhejiang Province in 2007, it has been nearly 10 times different from that of10 in 994, which is obviously out of touch with the current actual situation and does not meet the requirements of cultivating the income of the broad masses with the "olive" model. Therefore, it should be adjusted according to the current national economic development and people's income to meet the arrival of an "olive-type" society, and then consider whether to adjust according to the situation three years later. According to the "olive" model of cultivating people's income, the reasonable adjustment is shown in Table 3 (the five-grade tax rate adjustment of income from production and operation of individual industrial and commercial households and income from contracted operation and lease operation of enterprises and institutions is no longer explained).

(3) Establish a personal tax refund system and encourage the national consumption mechanism.

The personal tax refund system refers to that citizens should go through the corresponding tax refund procedures with valid documents (invoices, etc.) when they apply for personal income tax declaration and settlement within a specific time at the end of the year. ) such as cars and home appliances purchased during the year. The purpose of doing this is to encourage national consumption and promote the healthy development of the national economy, as well as to promote scientific progress and accelerate technological upgrading, which is also a common practice in western countries. China's personal income tax law is formulated with reference to the international common practice, but in fact it only draws on this part, and other policies such as tax refund and maintenance are hardly considered, and only a few people such as overpayment and disability meet the conditions for tax refund. At the beginning of the promulgation of the individual income tax law in China, the productivity of the national economy and the consumption power of residents were low, and the information was blocked, which was still in line with the national conditions, but it is obviously not the case now. At present, information circulation is advancing by leaps and bounds, and a mature and healthy national economy is developing. Promoting scientific progress and accelerating technological upgrading require national consumption, so it is time to consider establishing a comprehensive personal tax rebate system.

(4) Take the family as the taxpayer to conduct research to reduce the personal burden.

Taking the family as the taxpayer means that if the threshold of personal income tax is 6000 yuan, if the family is a single family, that is, a one-person family with a monthly income of 10000 yuan, then after deducting 6000 yuan this month, the family still has 4000 yuan (10000-6000) to pay income tax at the personal income tax rate; If this family is a family of three, that is, three people, and only one person has a source of income, and the monthly income is 10000 yuan, then the average monthly income of each person in this family is 3333 yuan (10000/3), and no personal income tax is required below the threshold of 6000 yuan. When the time is ripe, it is more reasonable and scientific to introduce the family as the tax paying unit in time than the individual as the tax paying unit. Family is the most basic part of a country, and its stability is directly related to social stability. Therefore, taking the family as the taxpayer can truly reflect the per capita income and burden level, better reflect humanistic care, better take care of other people in the family, and directly reduce the burden on individuals and families.

(five) the establishment of individual tax accounts, timely development of feedback mechanism.

The feedback mechanism means that the government sets a certain proportion according to the accumulation of individual tax accounts and gives it back to taxpayers under certain circumstances. With the withdrawal of state-owned enterprises from the field of competition, diversified economy has rapidly occupied all fields of the national economy, and market-oriented competition has become increasingly fierce. There are more and more phenomena such as unemployment and staff attrition caused by the closure of enterprises. At present, except for civil servants and employees of public institutions, China's social security is still in the primary stage. Therefore, when taxpayers become weak or difficult when they are unemployed or sick, it is very poor to live only on unemployment or welfare. However, it is very reasonable and scientific for the government to return part of the paid personal income tax account to taxpayers, which can not only help the needy people, but also eliminate social instability and promote a harmonious society. Recently, the tax department is trying to declare personal income tax for all employees and establish personal tax accounts. Judging from the current operation mechanism, the situation is good, and it also provides operability for the feedback mechanism. It should be fully promoted and applied as soon as possible to prepare for the traceability of individual tax amount.

Under the state's attention, through reasonable adjustment of the individual income tax law, the actual burden of the people will be reduced, the healthy consumption of the people will be promoted, and the sustained, healthy and rapid development of the national economy will be ensured. The people live and work in peace and contentment, and the country is strong, the construction of a harmonious society advocated by the state will be realized faster, and the Chinese nation will usher in a better tomorrow.

References:

1, NPC Standing Committee. Decision on Amending the Individual Income Tax Law of People's Republic of China (PRC) [Z].2007-06-29.

2. the State Council. Decision on Amending the Implementation Regulations of the Individual Income Tax Law of the People's Republic of China [Z].2008-02- 18.