Comprehensive income and taxable income
Residents of China (people domiciled in China or staying 183 days or more in a year) combine the four types of income below into annual “comprehensive income”.
Taxable income = annual comprehensive income − 60,000 yuan (basic deduction) − special deductions (employee social insurance and housing fund) − special additional deductions − other deductions (private pension, etc.) Tax = taxable income × rate − quick deduction
- Wages and salaries: Monthly pay, bonuses and allowances from your employer
- Labour remuneration: One-off service fees such as lecturing, consulting or design. 80% of receipts counts as income.
- Author’s remuneration: Publishing fees. 80% of receipts, then 70% of that, counts as income.
- Royalties: Fees for patents, copyrights and similar rights. 80% of receipts counts as income.
Annual rate table for comprehensive income
| Annual taxable income | Rate | Quick deduction |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 36,000 yuan | 3% | 0 |
| 36,000 – 144,000 yuan | 10% | 2,520 |
| 144,000 – 300,000 yuan | 20% | 16,920 |
| 300,000 – 420,000 yuan | 25% | 31,920 |
| 420,000 – 660,000 yuan | 30% | 52,920 |
| 660,000 – 960,000 yuan | 35% | 85,920 |
| Over 960,000 yuan | 45% | 181,920 |
The rate table of the Individual Income Tax Law as revised in 2018 (in force since January 2019), unchanged in 2026.
The seven special additional deductions
Register deductions in the “Individual Income Tax” app and your employer applies them to monthly withholding. Each December you must confirm them for the following year to keep them running.
| Item | Amount | Main conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Care of children under 3 | 2,000 yuan a month per child | One parent takes all, or each takes half |
| Children’s education | 2,000 yuan a month per child | From age 3 to doctoral study; split as above |
| Continuing education | 400 yuan a month for degree study (max 48 months); 3,600 yuan in the year a qualification is obtained | Domestic degrees and professional qualifications |
| Serious illness | Out-of-pocket costs above 15,000 yuan a year, up to 80,000 yuan | Claimed at the annual reconciliation |
| Mortgage interest | 1,000 yuan a month (max 240 months) | First-home loan of you or your spouse |
| Housing rent | 1,500 / 1,100 / 800 yuan a month | No home of your own in the work city; not with mortgage interest |
| Supporting elderly parents | Only child: 3,000 yuan a month; siblings share it, max 1,500 each | Parents aged 60 or over, etc. |
The infant care, children’s education and elderly support amounts were raised from January 2023 (Guofa [2023] No. 13); the others follow Guofa [2018] No. 41. All are unchanged in 2026. Rent: 1,500 yuan in municipalities, provincial capitals and similar cities; 1,100 in cities whose urban districts have over 1 million registered residents; 800 elsewhere.
Cumulative withholding: why tax rises later in the year
Each month your employer applies the annual rate table to your cumulative income from January to the current month, then subtracts tax already withheld. When the cumulative total crosses into a higher bracket, monthly tax jumps.
Tax withheld this month = (cumulative taxable income × rate − quick deduction) − tax already withheld Cumulative taxable income = cumulative income − 5,000 × months − cumulative special deductions − cumulative special additional deductions
| Month | Cumulative taxable income | Cumulative tax | Tax that month |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 9,000 | 270 | 270 |
| April | 36,000 | 1,080 | 270 |
| May | 45,000 | 1,980 | 900 |
| December | 108,000 | 8,280 | 900 |
Example: salary 20,000 yuan, employee social insurance and housing fund 4,000 yuan, one child deduction 2,000 yuan gives 9,000 yuan of taxable income a month. From May, when the cumulative total passes 36,000 yuan, the rate rises from 3% to 10% and monthly tax goes from 270 to 900 yuan. The annual total of 8,280 yuan equals the result from the annual table.
Annual reconciliation: 1 March to 30 June
If you are paid by two employers at once or change jobs in the year, each employer may apply the 5,000-yuan monthly basic deduction, so you often owe extra at reconciliation.
- When: Last year’s income is settled from 1 March to 30 June. 2025 income was reconciled from 1 March to 30 June 2026; filing between 1 and 20 March required booking in the app.
- How: In the “Individual Income Tax” app or the online natural-person e-tax bureau, check the pre-filled return based on employer reports and submit it. You can also authorise your employer or file at a tax office.
- Who must file: Anyone claiming a refund, and anyone with comprehensive income above 120,000 yuan who owes more than 400 yuan.
- Who need not file: Those with comprehensive income of 120,000 yuan or less who owe tax and those owing 400 yuan or less (for income from 2024 to 2027, MOF and STA Announcement No. 32 of 2023, unless the employer failed to withhold as required), plus those whose prepaid tax equals the final tax and those giving up a refund.
- Common reasons for refunds: Months without income after leaving or changing jobs, deductions only claimed at reconciliation such as serious illness, labour remuneration withheld at high rates, or deductions you forgot to register.
Separate tax on annual bonuses and expat rules
An annual one-off bonus can be taxed separately from comprehensive income until 31 December 2027 (MOF and STA Announcement No. 30 of 2023). Divide the bonus by 12 to find the bracket in the monthly table below, then apply that rate to the whole bonus and subtract the quick deduction. You may choose separate or combined taxation, and separate taxation can be used once a year.
- Tax-free allowances for foreigners: Resident foreigners can choose tax exemption for allowances such as housing, language training and children’s education paid on an actual-cost basis (until 31 December 2027, Announcement No. 29 of 2023). They cannot be combined with special additional deductions such as children’s education or rent, and the choice cannot be changed within a year.
- Private pension deduction: Contributions to a private pension account are deductible up to 12,000 yuan a year. Investment returns inside the account are not taxed, and withdrawals are taxed separately at 3%.
| Bonus ÷ 12 | Rate | Quick deduction |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 3,000 yuan | 3% | 0 |
| 3,000 – 12,000 | 10% | 210 |
| 12,000 – 25,000 | 20% | 1,410 |
| 25,000 – 35,000 | 25% | 2,660 |
| 35,000 – 55,000 | 30% | 4,410 |
| 55,000 – 80,000 | 35% | 7,160 |
| Over 80,000 yuan | 45% | 15,160 |
Example: a 36,000-yuan bonus is taxed 36,000 × 3% = 1,080 yuan. At 36,001 yuan it falls in the 10% bracket: 3,600.1 − 210 = 3,390.1 yuan. One extra yuan of bonus adds 2,310 yuan of tax at this bracket edge.
FAQ
If I earn 60,000 yuan or less a year, is my tax zero?
If nothing is left after the 60,000-yuan basic deduction and social insurance, your tax is zero. Labour remuneration is withheld when paid, though, so you can get it back at reconciliation.
Is separate or combined bonus taxation cheaper?
It depends. Combined is often lower when your salary’s taxable income is low, separate when it is high. During reconciliation the app lets you switch and compare.
What if I don’t reconcile?
If you owe tax and miss the deadline, a late charge of 0.05% a day and penalties may apply, and it affects your tax credit record. A refund is only paid if you claim it.
Do foreigners reconcile the same way?
Tax residents reconcile in the same way. Non-residents are taxed separately on each payment and do not reconcile.
Basis and sources
- 中国政府网 — 国务院关于提高个人所得税有关专项附加扣除标准的通知（国发〔2023〕13号）
- 中国政府网 — 国务院关于印发个人所得税专项附加扣除暂行办法的通知（国发〔2018〕41号）
- 中国政府网 — 财政部 税务总局关于延续实施全年一次性奖金个人所得税政策的公告（2023年第30号）
- 中国政府网 — 财政部 税务总局关于延续实施个人所得税综合所得汇算清缴有关政策的公告（2023年第32号）
- 中国政府网 — 财政部 税务总局关于延续实施外籍个人有关津补贴个人所得税政策的公告（2023年第29号）
- 国家税务总局 — 财政部 税务总局关于在全国范围实施个人养老金个人所得税优惠政策的公告（2024年第21号）
- 国家税务总局