China's 13th National People's Congress (NPC) – China's new Parliament – and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) – equivalent to a Senate – held meetings in the period March 3-20 2018. A number of regulatory and tax reforms have been announced in the course of the week, in particular in Premier Li Keqiang's government work report address to the NPC.

On February 28 2018, Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul M P Chan delivered his speech to the Legislative Council which confirmed a record surplus of HK$138 billion ($17.6 billion). Forty percent of the surplus would be spent on relief measures while the remaining would be spent on improving public services and the future.

The Chinese State Administration of Taxation (SAT) has introduced two important new circulars to clarify the application of relief under China's double tax agreements (DTAs).

In January 2018, a tax bulletin was published on the annual meeting held between the Hong Kong Inland Revenue Department (IRD) and the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants (HKICPA). The annual meeting covers a wide range of topics and is a discussion on practical matters raised by practitioners on which the IRD provides clarification. Some of the key Hong Kong tax issues discussed included the following.

In the final days of 2017, the Chinese authorities set out a series of new incentives and improved tax treatments with a view to fostering both greater inbound and outbound investment in 2018. The Chinese Finance Minister, Mr Xiao Jie, also set out his plan of broader reforms for the medium term.

In line with its pledge to boost Hong Kong's competitiveness and comply with its international obligations, the Hong Kong government has recently introduced two tax reforms.