Before you start

Work permit and residence permit
Employment contract showing the salary and allowance structure
A contemporaneous record of days in and out of China
Details of foreign income and any applicable tax treaty

Step-by-step

1
Work out your residence status by counting days
An individual without a domicile in China who is present for 183 days or more in a calendar year is a tax resident for that year. Below that you are a non-resident taxed on China-sourced income only. Keep the count yourself from your passport stamps rather than reconstructing it later.
OnlineWho: You
2
Diarise the six-year rule from year one
Worldwide income becomes taxable only from the seventh consecutive year of 183-day residence, and the count resets if any year falls below 183 days or if you take a single trip abroad of more than 30 consecutive days. This is the highest-value piece of planning available to a long-stayer with assets outside China, and it has to be done in advance.
OnlineWho: You
3
Make the annual election between expatriate benefits and itemised deductions
Foreign nationals may take either the tax-exempt treatment of employer-provided housing, children's education, language training, meals, laundry, relocation, business travel and home leave, or the standard special additional deductions. Not both, and the choice is fixed for the tax year. With Beijing international school fees and central rents, the expatriate route is usually the larger number.
Via employerWho: YouAt the start of each tax year
4
Confirm the current expiry of the expatriate benefits policy
The concession has been given sunset dates and extended repeatedly; the most recent extension runs to 31 December 2027. Each extension has arrived close to the deadline. Confirm the position for the current year with your employer's tax adviser rather than relying on any written guide.
Via employerWho: You
5
File the annual reconciliation, 1 March to 30 June
Residents reconcile the previous calendar year's comprehensive income through the Individual Income Tax app or the tax bureau, claiming deductions and settling the difference. Employers often walk staff through it; the obligation is yours.
Mobile appWho: You1 March – 30 June
6
Settle before you leave China
A final settlement and clearance matters for exit formalities, for remitting savings abroad, and for any future Chinese work permit application. Do it before departure, not after.
In personWho: YouBefore departure

Documents you’ll need

Passport with all entry and exit stamps
Employment contract and monthly payslips
Employer withholding statements
Rental and school fee invoices (fāpiào) for any expatriate benefits claimed
Home-country tax residence certificate, where a treaty applies

Things most newcomers don’t know

One trip abroad of more than thirty consecutive days resets the six-year clock.

China taxes a non-domiciled resident on worldwide income only from the seventh consecutive year in which they were resident for 183 days or more, and the count resets if any year falls below 183 days or contains a single absence exceeding 30 consecutive days. For anyone with overseas investments, rental property or a foreign business interest, planning that absence in year five or six is worth real money. It is invisible until it bites, which is exactly why people discover it in year seven.

Source: State Taxation Administration

The expatriate benefits election is annual, locked, and usually the biggest single lever.

You choose once a year between the tax-exempt treatment of employer-provided housing, schooling, language training, meals, laundry, relocation, business travel and home leave — or the standard special additional deductions Chinese taxpayers use. In Beijing, where an international school place and a central flat are both substantial numbers, the expatriate route is normally worth considerably more. It cannot be changed mid-year, and it requires proper invoices collected as you go.

Source: State Taxation Administration

The concession's expiry date has moved four times and will need checking again.

The expatriate fringe-benefit treatment was due to end in 2021, was extended to the end of 2023, and MOF and STA Announcement [2023] No. 29 pushed it to 31 December 2027. Every extension has come close to the wire. Building a multi-year package around it without an annual check is how people end up with a compensation structure that suddenly becomes fully taxable. Ask each January.

Source: Ministry of Finance and State Taxation Administration Announcement [2023] No. 29

No invoice, no exemption — and Beijing landlords often will not issue one by default.

The housing exemption requires the official tax-registered fāpiào rather than a receipt or a bank record. Many private landlords do not issue one unless asked, because doing so exposes the rental income; obtaining it later means a trip to the tax office and a levy the landlord will resist paying. Negotiate the invoice into the lease at signing. Claiming the exemption and then being unable to produce invoices means losing it retroactively.

Source: State Taxation Administration

Common mistakes to avoid

Not tracking days in and out of China from your first year in the country.
Reaching year seven without ever taking a 30-day absence.
Defaulting to itemised deductions when the expatriate benefits are worth more.
Claiming the housing exemption without collecting rental fāpiào.
Leaving China without a final settlement, then trying to remit savings from abroad.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.