Does China have a nationwide property tax on homes in 2026?

No. China has no enacted nationwide annual tax on residential property as of June 2026. The 2025 NPC legislative work plan includes no real estate tax bill. Only Shanghai and Chongqing operate limited pilot schemes launched in 2011, covering newly purchased second homes and luxury properties in those cities. All other Chinese jurisdictions impose no annual residential holding tax.

How much Deed Tax will I pay when buying a home in China?

From 1 December 2024, buyers of an only home pay 1% (up to 140 sq m) or 1.5% (over 140 sq m). Buyers of a second home pay 1% (up to 140 sq m) or 2% (over 140 sq m). The statutory band is 3%-5%, and localities set rates within that range for non-residential or commercial transactions. Deed Tax Law took effect 1 September 2021.

Is the sale of my only home in China exempt from Individual Income Tax?

Yes, if you meet both conditions: the property is your only residential property, and you have held it for more than five years. That transaction is temporarily exempt from the 20% IIT on gain. Where neither condition is met, IIT applies to the net gain (sale proceeds minus original cost and allowable expenses) at a flat 20% rate.

What is Land Appreciation Tax and does it affect ordinary homeowners selling a home?

Land Appreciation Tax applies a progressive rate of 30%-60% to gains from selling land use rights and buildings, based on the ratio of appreciation to deductible costs. However, individuals selling ordinary residential property are generally exempt from LAT. The tax falls primarily on property developers and sellers of commercial or high-value non-residential real estate.

What taxes apply to commercial real estate held in China?

Commercial buildings and leased property attract the annual Real Estate Tax at 1.2% of original building value (with local reductions of 10-30% commonly granted) or 12% of gross rental income, whichever method applies. Urban Land Use Tax also applies annually based on the area of land occupied, at rates set locally from approximately CNY 0.6 to CNY 30 per square metre depending on city size.

Property Tax Overview in China — Rates, Rules & Filing

China is unusual among major economies in having no nationwide annual tax on residential property ownership. Despite two decades of academic debate, pilot programmes, and legislative drafts, a general property tax on residential real estate has not been enacted. The taxes that do exist -- on purchase, on commercial holdings, on development profit, and on sale gains -- are real obligations that affect buyers, sellers, investors, and developers alike.

This page sets out the current framework as of June 2026. For the China country overview and general tax context, see the linked hub. Cross-border investors and high-value transactions warrant review by a qualified tax professional.

Does China have a nationwide annual residential property tax?

No. As of June 2026, the People's Republic of China levies no recurring annual tax on owner-occupied or investment residential property at the national level. The State Administration of Taxation (STA) publishes an official inventory of active tax types -- including Real Estate Tax, Urban Land Use Tax, Deed Tax, and Land Appreciation Tax -- but no national annual residential property tax appears because none has been enacted [STA, Tax Type Overview, chinatax.gov.cn].

The legislative path has stalled repeatedly. The 18th CPC Central Committee (2013) called for accelerating property tax legislation. The 19th CPC Central Committee's Fifth Plenary Session (2020) reiterated the goal. A 2021 State Council authorisation permitted a pilot of real estate tax reform in "certain areas," raising expectations. Yet when the NPC published its 2025 legislative work plan -- listing 37 priority bills and 23 backup bills across business regulation, environmental law, social welfare, and other domains -- no real estate or residential property tax legislation appeared anywhere on the agenda [NPC Observer, 2025 NPC Legislative Plan, npcobserver.com]. Analysts and academics treat full nationwide implementation as a medium-to-long-term prospect whose timetable remains genuinely uncertain.

The taxes described in the sections below are the taxes that do currently apply to property transactions and holdings in China.

What are the Shanghai and Chongqing residential property tax pilots?

On 28 January 2011, the State Council authorised Shanghai and Chongqing to begin pilot annual residential property tax schemes. These remain the only operative annual taxes on residential real property in any Chinese jurisdiction and apply only to newly purchased qualifying properties within those cities -- not to the broader national housing stock [China Briefing, Chongqing and Shanghai Introduce New Property Tax, 2011].

Shanghai pilot: An annual rate of 0.6% applies to newly purchased second homes whose per-square-metre price exceeds twice the city average. Where the price is below that threshold, the rate is 0.4%. Existing primary residences held before 2011 are outside the pilot's scope.

Chongqing pilot: A tiered annual rate applies based on the property's value relative to average market prices. Properties priced at 2-3 times the average attract a 0.5% rate; 3-4 times attracts 1%; and above 4 times attracts the maximum rate of 1.2%. Chongqing separately applies the scheme to all villas and townhouses regardless of price multiple. Existing residential stock owned before the pilot launch is generally excluded.

Both pilots cover a narrow slice of the housing market and have generated limited revenue relative to the scale of each city's property sector. Neither has been expanded to cover ordinary first homes or the broader stock of existing properties. The Chinese government has described these pilots as data-gathering exercises to inform eventual national legislation.

What is the Deed Tax on a property purchase?

Deed Tax (qi shui, CNY) is a transfer tax paid by the buyer whenever land use rights or house ownership change hands through sale, gift, or exchange. The Deed Tax Law of the People's Republic of China was adopted on 11 August 2020 and came into force on 1 September 2021, replacing the 1997 Provisional Regulations [STA, Deed Tax overview, fgk.chinatax.gov.cn].

The statutory band is 3% to 5%, with each province, autonomous region, or municipality setting its actual rate within that band. In practice most localities apply rates within this range. From 1 December 2024, the Ministry of Finance and STA announced simplified preferential rates for residential purchases [China gov.cn, November 2024]:

Individuals buying their only home of 140 sq m or less: 1%
Individuals buying their only home of more than 140 sq m: 1.5%
Individuals buying a second home of 140 sq m or less: 1%
Individuals buying a second home of more than 140 sq m: 2%

Inheritance from a statutory heir, spousal transfers during marriage, and transfers to government agencies for official use are among the transactions exempted from Deed Tax. Stamp duty of 0.05% of contract value applies separately to both buyer and seller but has minimal practical impact for most transactions.

What is the Real Estate Tax on commercial and leased property?

Real Estate Tax (fangchan shui) is an annual holding tax levied on urban land and buildings used for business purposes or leased out. Purely owner-occupied residential property held by individuals (not rented and not used commercially) is generally exempt [PwC, China Tax Facts and Figures 2025].

The tax is assessed under one of two methods:

Value basis: 1.2% of the original book value of the building. Local governments commonly allow a reduction of 10-30%, so the effective rate typically falls between 0.84% and 1.08%.
Rental income basis: 12% of gross annual rental income received.

Ultra-Large Land-Use Tax (urban land use tax) is a separate annual levy on taxpayers occupying land in cities, counties, townships, and mining districts, calculated by multiplying the occupied land area by a fixed per-square-metre rate set by local government. Rates range from approximately CNY 0.6 per sq m in smaller towns to CNY 30 per sq m in major cities. Residential property owners in many provinces are exempt from this tax; the primary burden falls on commercial operators and enterprises.

What is the Land Appreciation Tax on developers and major sellers?

Land Appreciation Tax (LAT, tudi zengjizhi shui) is levied on gains realised from selling or transferring land use rights and real estate buildings. It uses a progressive structure applied to the ratio of appreciation (gain) over deductible costs. LAT is a major cost for property developers and anyone selling commercial real estate or high-value property [china-tax.net, Land Appreciation Tax].

Deductible items include the price paid to acquire the land use right, construction and development costs, and taxes connected with the transfer. The four progressive brackets are:

Appreciation as % of deductible costs	LAT rate
Up to 50%	30%
50% to 100%	40%
100% to 200%	50%
Over 200%	60%

Individuals selling ordinary residential property (as opposed to developers selling commercial or luxury stock) are generally exempt from LAT, which is why this tax falls most heavily on corporate developers and large-scale investors in commercial real estate.

What Individual Income Tax applies when an individual sells a home?

Gains on the sale of real property constitute "income from transfer of assets" under the Individual Income Tax Law of the People's Republic of China and are taxed at a flat rate of 20% on net gain. The net gain equals the sale price minus the original documented purchase cost plus allowable expenses [PwC China Tax Facts, individual taxes; IIT Law, chinatax.gov.cn].

Two relief provisions reduce or eliminate the IIT liability for many ordinary homeowners:

Sole-home exemption with five-year hold: Where an individual sells their only residential property and has held it for more than five years, that transaction is temporarily exempt from IIT. This exemption is the primary reason most long-term owner-occupiers in China face no IIT on the sale of a family home.
Buy-new-replace relief (2024-2025): A temporary policy in force from 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2025 allows a taxpayer who purchases a replacement home in the same city within one year of selling a previous home to apply for a refund of the IIT paid on that sale.

Value-Added Tax (VAT) also applies to residential property sales. From December 2024, sales of residential properties held for two or more years are exempt from VAT on a nationwide basis. For Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, properties held two-plus years that are classified as non-ordinary residential attract VAT at 5% on the price differential (sale price minus original purchase price) rather than on the full sale price.

For a general orientation to China's tax environment, see the China country overview. Given the complexity of these rules and the frequency of policy changes -- particularly the 2024 November package and the ongoing pilot expansion discussions -- individuals with significant property transactions in China should consult a qualified tax professional.

Property Tax Overview in China

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