With China\u2019s personal income tax revenue jumping more than 13 per cent in the first half of the year \u2013 outpacing income growth by nearly eight percentage points \u2013 analysts said the gains were largely driven by local tax compliance campaigns targeting higher-income earners.<\/p>\n
Data released by the Ministry of Finance<\/a> on Wednesday showed that personal income tax collections reached 898.2 billion yuan (US$132.7 billion) in the first six months of the year, up 13.1 per cent year on year. Estimates by Shenwan Hongyuan Securities, a Shanghai-based brokerage and investment firm, also pointed to personal income tax revenue rising by about 17 per cent in June, marking a 4.7 percentage point acceleration from a month earlier.<\/p>\n \u201cThe drivers behind June\u2019s brisk growth remained unchanged from May,\u201d said Ge Yuyu, a professor at the Shanghai National Accounting Institute.<\/p>\n In June, the Tax Science Research Institute \u2013 a research body affiliated with the State Taxation Administration \u2013 attributed this year\u2019s uptick to three main factors: active capital markets, robust growth in sectors such as finance and technology and stricter enforcement by tax authorities.<\/p>\n \u201cThe three drivers all point to one reality: the surge in personal income tax<\/a> receipts is mainly being driven by high-net-worth individuals. Wage growth among average earners contributed little to the expansion,\u201d Ge said.<\/p>\n Domestic lenders typically classify individuals as high-net-worth when they hold at least 10 million yuan (US$1.48 million) in liquid assets, including cash, equities and bonds.<\/p>\n