I have been emailing a former employer about my tax document from last year and they have not replied in regards to this. As far as I know, they are legally required to provide me with a tax document for the purpose of my having my own record, however, it doesn’t affect that fact that they have to submit the tax info to the Taxation Bureau. I am guessing that the info will still be on file when I go file my taxes after May 1, but I also wonder if there is any sort of legal consequence for them not providing me with a tax document before May 1.
So any way, my question then boils down these points: can I still file for my taxes even if they have not provided me with the document? my understanding is that in order for me to be able to file, they just have to file with the tax bureau.
Are there any legal consequences for them not providing me personally with a tax document before May 1?
The Income Tax Act requires them to take care of this by a certain date that varies depending on CNY, not by May. But yes, if they’ve filed with the govt then you can file anyway.
I’m not an expert on any of the laws of this country, but it seems to me that Articles 92 and 114 of the Income Tax Act contain relevant information about withholding forms (or certificates, or receipts, as the translations below seem to call them). I should add that I am not one hundred percent confident in my understanding of everything contained in the language quoted below.
This appears to be an English translation of part of Article 92 of the Income Tax Act, found on the Ministry of Justice website:
I think in a thread where @ironlady successfully got the tax document from a business, we talked similar things. That time I looked for a possible punishment in a case a company doesnt issue the document to an employer, but couldnt find it.
For income data, forget your employer. What you can do instead is this: head down to your local tax office in the city in which you are a resident. Show them your A§RC and ask them if they can provide you with your income data. These will be the official numbers anyways that you’ll need to use when you file. I heard from the Taipei City tax office that this data will be available starting tomorrow (Friday April 27).
In addition to this, try to get a hold of the data pertaining to your laobao and jianbao deductions (if applicable) as these numbers can help you to reduce your payments, if only slightly, if you are a resident.
I stopped in at the tax office before visiting the school in question (in the case of the school that refused to provide tax docs to teachers who had left their employ). The tax office was spectacularly disinterested, to say the least. After much coaxing by me, they finally said there was a form the teachers could fill out to officially complain that they hadn’t received the forms, but otherwise, no one seemed inclined to do anything. So I would not hope for much from that angle. Then again, it probably depends on who happens to be at work that day. By and large most bureaucrats aren’t going to do anything that requires initiative or going beyond the specifics of their own job, but every now and then you get a surprise.
May I ask @ironlady which year / era you experienced this? And in which municipality? I will readily acknowledge that your experience (with “spectacularly disinterested” bureaucrats) is fully plausible–about 12 years ago. I have not seen any such problem during the past decade, in Hsinchu City or Taipei City, where these folks jump to attention and provide help with smile. Outside these municipalities, YMMV.
So if I am not provided with a tax document from my employer by May 1, will they face any legal consequences, even if they have reported the info to the national tax bureau?
