Compliance · 🇨🇳 China Live mandate

China — Fully Digitalized e-fapiao · Golden Tax IV

Fully digital e-fapiao · Golden Tax IV nationwide · new VAT Law 2026 — regulator: State Taxation Administration (STA). Facts last refreshed: 2026-05-05.

Coverage model

Flowie operates a registered Peppol Access Point in this jurisdiction directly where we hold national accreditation, or via a vetted local partner registered with the in-country regulator where on-the-ground presence is required (KSeF, SDI intermediario, ZATCA service-provider, etc.). Either way, you call the same POST /v1/documents/send.

TL;DR

China replaced paper and legacy e-fapiao with the Fully Digitalized Electronic Fapiao through 2021–2024 pilots, reaching nationwide rollout by 2024–2025.
Underpinning system: Golden Tax Phase IV — AI/big-data-driven tax monitoring connected to the People's Bank, SAMR, and other ministries.
From 1 January 2026, supporting regulations for the new VAT Law take effect — codifying e-fapiao as the standard invoice format.
No QR-code clearance per se: every fapiao is issued through the STA platform — there is no off-platform legal invoice.
Format: STA-mandated XML/JSON; tightly coupled to seller registration on the STA platform.

Deadlines

Date	Who	What
2021-12-01	Pilot — 5 provinces	Fully digital e-fapiao introduced.
2022-2024	Geographical rollout	Pilot extends across all provinces.
2024-12-01	All taxpayers (general + small-scale)	Permitted nationwide; paper and earlier electronic formats progressively phased out.
2026-01-01	All VAT-registered	New VAT Law supporting regulations in force; e-fapiao codified.

Background

China's tax administration has digitalised in waves. The legacy VAT special invoice required dedicated tax-control hardware (UKey or USB token) and printed paper output. Fully Digitalized e-fapiao, piloted from December 2021 in Shanghai, Guangdong, and Inner Mongolia, replaces both. From December 2024 the STA permits every taxpayer — general and small-scale — to issue fully digital e-fapiao, and through 2025 paper and legacy electronic formats are progressively phased out.

Underneath sits Golden Tax Phase IV — the STA's AI/big-data infrastructure that cross-references invoice data with bank flows, business registry data (SAMR), customs data, and more, in near real time.

On 1 January 2026, supporting regulations for the new People's Republic of China VAT Law take effect, codifying e-fapiao as the standard invoice. Practically, since every fapiao is issued through the STA platform, there is no concept of an off-platform legal invoice — the platform itself is the issuance system, not just a clearing layer.

Format profile

STA-mandated XML or JSON (depending on issuance channel — STA portal vs API).
Two flavours: VAT special invoice (B2B with input-tax credit) and VAT ordinary invoice (B2C and exempt).
Seller's USCC (Unified Social Credit Code, 18 characters) mandatory.
No more UKey/Tax UKey for fully digital path; signing handled server-side by the STA platform.

Required fields

seller.usccstring (18 chars)required

Unified Social Credit Code.
buyer.usccstring (18 chars)required for B2B

Buyer USCC; required to issue a VAT special invoice.
invoice.fapiaoTypestringrequired

VAT_SPECIAL (B2B with credit) or VAT_ORDINARY (B2C / exempt).

Public sector (B2G)

Combined private + public flow — no dedicated B2G hub for this country.

B2B reporting / clearance

STA Golden Tax IV — Issuance + immediate reporting; Golden Tax IV cross-references with Big Data sources in near-real-time.

Lifecycle status	Reported as
`issued`	Fapiao issued through the STA platform; immediately legally valid.
`voided`	Voided within the platform's allowed window.
`red`	Red-letter fapiao (offsetting / correction) issued.

Error codes

Generic Peppol BIS schematron error codes apply (BR-*, EN16931-*); no country-specific overlays.

Testing in sandbox

What you want to test	How
China happy path	Sender USCC `91110000XXXXXXXXXX`, recipient USCC in Flowie sandbox; fapiao number echoed back.

FAQ

Is Peppol used in China?

No. China operates a fully national stack and is unlikely to adopt Peppol. Cross-border to/from China typically combines a fapiao for the China leg and a separate commercial invoice for the foreign leg.

References

Primary sources (government / regulator / standards body):

State Taxation Administration (English) — STA — operates Golden Tax IV.

Industry analyses (vendor trackers — useful for cross-referencing):

EDICOM · China e-fapiao — Industry analysis — fully digital e-fapiao.
Sovos · China Golden Tax IV — Industry tracker.
China Briefing · Golden Tax IV explainer — Industry analysis — AI/big-data tax monitoring.