Taxation and Governance in Contemporary China

In contrast to the drastic shifts in China's political landscape and society since 2012, taxation may appear as a comparatively mundane topic receiving limited attention. However, the relative stability in China's taxation system underscores its delicate role in maintaining a balance in state-society relations. The Element embarks on an exploration of China's intricate taxation system in the contemporary era, illuminating its origins and the profound reverberations on state-society relations. It shows that China's reliance on indirect taxation stems from the legacies of transitioning from a planned economy to a market-driven one as well as elaborate fiscal bargaining between the central and local governments. This strategy inadvertently heightens Chinese citizens' sensitivity to direct taxation and engenders the tragedy of the commons, leading to rising government debts and collusion by local governments and businesses that results in land expropriation, labor disputes, and environmental degradation.

List of contents

1. Taxation and state¿society relations in China: why didn't the dogs bark?; 2. Lay of the land: mapping China's taxation system and fiscal capacity; 3. Political logic of taxation in China; 4. Taxation and state¿society relations: perspectives from citizens and business; 5. Unintended consequences of taxation in China; 6. Conclusion; References.

Product details

• Authors: Xiaobo Lü, Changdong Zhang
• Publisher: Cambridge Academic
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Release: 31.10.2025
• EAN: 9781009509725
• ISBN: 978-1-009-50972-5
• Illustrations: Worked examples or Exercises
• Series: Elements in Chinese Economy and Governance
• Subjects: Social sciences, law, business > Business > Economics; BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Economics / General, Political structure & processes, Political Economy, Economic systems & structures, Public finance, Political structure and processes, Public finance and taxation, Taxation & duties law, Mixed economic systems, Local taxation, charges, public sector pricing