Expand property tax nationwide: minister

Property tax should be expanded nationwide, said Finance Minister Xie Xuren in an article published in Tuesday's Economic Daily.

"We should seriously conclude the experiment of the current property tax pilot projects and study how to expand the reform nationwide step by step," he said.

So far, the pilot property tax policy has been limited to Shanghai and Chongqing.

The recent housing price rebound has fueled calls for expansion of the property tax policy, which is expected to curb the number of homes investors buy.

Xie also called for a change in the current system in which taxes and fees on property development, transfer and tenure are collected individually. He said the various taxes and fees collected during the transaction of the houses should be simplified.

zhengyangpeng@chinadaily.com.cn