介绍:
A tax rise on the wholesale tobacco industry has been championed by health experts that say the price increase could reduce smoking habits and the medical costs associated with cigarettes.
On May 8, the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation said a tobacco wholesale tax on total sales would see an increase from 5 percent to 11 percent.
The last time the government raised taxes in the industry was in 2009, but those levies were applied to producers and had little impact on consumption. This time around, experts say the increases could push retail prices up by 6 to 8 percent.
Anti-smoking campaigners have been calling on the government to discourage smoking through higher taxes, which may not only lower demand for cigarettes but will generate fiscal income. China had more than 300 million smokers at the end of last year and some 130 billion packs of cigarettes were sold in 2014 alone, health officials said.
The country is a member of the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, an international treaty that is intended to reduce tobacco-related diseases and deaths. In October, the WHO suggested that 70 percent of each pack of cigarettes should be taxes. Experts say the figure in China stands at 40 to 46 percent.
For Caixin Online, this is Diana Bates.
财政部与国税总局5月8日公布《关于调整卷烟消费税的通知》，将卷烟批发环节从价税税率由5%提高至11%，并按0.005元/支加征从量税，从烟草商业企业入手，通过提高卷烟批、零价格和征收从量计征税促使商业企业“利转税”。民间控烟机构人士对财新记者透露，经粗略估算，大约现价5元一包的卷烟，零售价可能上涨为5.3-5.4元。
有财税部门人士对财新记者指出，随着经济下行，财政压力加大，加税的时机已经成熟。新华社烟草经济分析师徐云波发布报告指出，本次烟草价税改革的目的有两方面：一是增加烟草对国家财政的贡献度，对冲国家财政减收压力；二是应对控烟舆论压力。
其实，2009年烟草行业已有一轮调税。当时在生产环节，在对卷烟保持征收从量定额税（0.003元/支）的基础上，将甲、乙两类卷烟的比例税率分别由45%和30%提高到56%和36%。同时，在批发环节加征一道5%的从价税。但因烟草行业在内部强压价格，奉行“调税而不调价”的策略，使得加税效果未能传导到消费端，从而饱受控烟界诟病，被指无助于抑制香烟消费。
控烟人士对此备受振奋，将此次调税视为重大利好消息。这是因为，从事烟草税收研究超过20年的专家，加州大学伯克利分校卫生经济学教授胡德伟曾告诉财新记者，在控制烟草的所有措施中，提高烟草税收和价格常被认为是最有效且行政成本最低的，烟草税收中最重要的一个税种就是消费税。
具体来说，此次调税是在原有生产环节征收的0.003元/支（即6分钱每包）基础上，又在批发环节加征0.005元/支（即1角钱每包）的从量税。
据胡德伟介绍，从量税的显著优点是征收管理最为便捷，并且能够压缩烟草企业通过调整价格进行税收筹划的空间，使其难以避税，还能防止消费者在不同品牌间进行消费替代。胡德伟亦曾建议将批发环节的从价税税率提至10%，此番得到财税部门响应，将从价税税率提升到了11%。
不过，在新探副主任吴宜群等控烟人士看来，从量税的调整幅度依然太小。胡德伟曾建议，先从当前的6分钱每包提高到0.5元每包，再提高到1元每包。山东省国税局局长刘景溪也曾建议，应大幅提高从量税，可由目前的150元每箱提高至1000元每箱，即从量税达到4角钱每包。然而，此轮加征一角钱每包的幅度与预期仍有差距。
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