Beijing issued its first blockchain tax invoice in a pilot for the parking lot of Hanwei International Plaza, reported People’s Daily, the Communist Party newspaper. On March 4th, the Beijing Municipal Taxation Bureau announced that the city’s parking lots could integrate with blockchain for invoicing.
Parking lots are the first step of introducing blockchain invoicing in the city, and other tax-paying enterprises and businesses will soon be integrated into the system. The taxation bureau said taxpayers no longer need to apply for tax receipts in person.
Beijing wants to create a ‘Trinity,’ i.e. connect the tax bureau, issuers, and payers on a single platform.
For the tax collector, there are two key benefits. Firstly, to claim a parking ticket as a business expense requires a tax invoice, which is not only inconvenient for the customer but time-consuming for the tax bureau as well as wasting paper. And secondly, the tax collector has a record of the revenues of the parking lot.
Moreover, as the blockchain will record all these transactions, it becomes easier to apply for tax reimbursement.
Blockchain invoicing isn’t exactly new in China, and the Shenzhen Tax Bureau had issued over 10 million blockchain invoices as of late last year. Shenzhen first issued a blockchain invoice with help from Tencent.
Two months ago, the Shenzhen Tax Bureau announced it is working with Ping An to develop a smart tax model using AI, blockchain and other technologies.
Among similar initiatives, Thailand is testing blockchain for tracking Value Added Tax (VAT) payments and prevent tax fraud.
