2010-12-07 16:01

China will launch a residential property tax trial at the beginning of next year as the latest measure to further tighten the property market, the Securities Daily reported Monday.

The regulation is being revised by the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and the State Administration of Taxation, and the pilot cities are also improving trail plans, the report said.

A report by the Information Times said the pilot cities may include Shanghai and Chongqing, with Shanghai focusing on newly-added ordinary housing and Chongqing focusing on luxury homes and villas. The rate in Shanghai is set at 0.5 to 0.8 percent, the report added.

The MOF's tax division director Zhou Chuanhua said last week that China will gradually introduce a residential property tax during the next Five-Year Plan (2011-2015), without elaborating on the tax threshold.