Research On The Protection Of Taxpayers' Rights

Starting from theoretical foundation of taxpayers'rights protection, this article discusses the theoretical basis of taxpayers'rights protection in China, and analyzes its status in China through the aspects of tax legislation, tax enforcement, tax judicature, etc. Then in the end, the author puts forward his own viewpoints on how to use the experiences of other countries for reference and build the Chinese system of taxpayers'rights protection. The article can be divided into three chapters in all. Chapter I: the theoretical basis of taxpayers'rights protection. The legal systems in the ancient societies were not on the basis of democracy. Whether they reflected people's interests or not, was up to the rulers'attention to people. As for tax revenue, people had no certain rights to their own property, and had no rights on how and how much to be collected. So the true rights of taxpayers are out of the question. In modern times, almost in step with constitutionalism, tax rights went into constitutional times along with human rights. To a great extent, the constitutional system of a country is determined by its tax system. In a sense, tax system determines the relation between state powers and civil rights. Taxpayers'rights play important roles in the system of rights, so the protection of taxpayers'rights becomes one of the indispensable and important protections of civil rights. The theoretical basis of taxpayers'rights is closely linked with the theory of tax rights relationship and the doctrine of stat distribution on basis of "state-centered approaches", which emphasizes the taxpayers'duty and neglects their rights for a long time. This article criticizes the traditional tax theory and provides theoretical demonstration to the protection of taxpayers'rights in China. First, it proves the protection of taxpayers'rights from Social Contract—the basis of tax revenue; second, it expounds the protection from the theory of tax debt relation—the nature of tax law relation; third, the proof is from the aspect of economics, chiefly from the relation of taxpayers'rights protection and public goods theory; fourth, it proves from the aspect of human rights; fifth, it demonstrates from the aspect of rule by law. Thus it concludes that the protection of taxpayers'rights is of great appropriation and of urgent reality meaning in current China. Chapter II: the analysis of the actuality of taxpayers'rights in China. In current China, it is in want of attention to either the theories of tax revenue, tax legal construction or during the process of tax enforcement. First, the related legislation of taxpayers'rights protection is seriously insufficient, making it hard to safeguard taxpayers'rights legislatively. The following are the main reflections: the traditional thought of tax legislation adheres to state-centered approaches for quite long time, and emphasizes the state powers and tax duty excessively; the legislative models are in disorder; just emphasize the actualization of tax financial function on the design of the current tax system; lack relief mechanism for taxpayers'rights; lack due democracy and publicity in the procedure of tax law making. Next, taxpayers'rights don't gain enough protection in the process of tax enforcement, which can be shown mainly in the following aspects: in the process of tax enforcement, administration is regarded as superior to services; taxpayers'rights are in short during tax enforcement; taxpayers'rights are in want during the use of tax revenue. Then, in the process of tax judicature, the lack of taxpayers'rights protection, tax judicial trials, and relief system, makes it hard to realize taxpayers'rights. The main reasons are: lack the independent organization for tax judicial trials; the range of tax proceedings is too narrow; the tax administrative powers influence too much on the tax judicial powers; tax administrative proceedings are not of enough convenience. In all, compared with the taxpayers'rights protection in developed countries, China has a long way to go in nearly all the aspects of theoretical construction, tax legislation, tax enforcement, tax judicature, etc. Chapter III: improving the system of taxpayers'rights in China. At present, developed countries have tried better in the aspects of theoretical construction, tax legislation, tax enforcement, tax judicature, etc. and taxpayers in those countries have gained better protections for their rights. Based on learning advanced experiences of other countries, and combined with our national conditions, the author believes that we should improve our system of taxpayers'rights beginning from the following aspects: First,improve tax legislation. It includes: one is to renew the ideas of tax administration; one is to establish tax service system, which contains: set a special service agent; complete the tax service system, namely, establish nationally unified service regulations; establish aiding system for taxpayers; establish training system for tax payers; strengthen the tax information construction on basis of establishing safe, high-efficient service technique; the other one is to establish the controlling mechanism of tax administrative enforcement, namely, build a gradable system for tax collectors; in the tax organizations, build a standard system of job responsibility for tax administrative enforcement and system of ascertaining where the responsibility; formulate complete evaluation system for tax service; try to establish standard, systematic, scientific audit system for tax costs as soon as possible;. Third, complete tax judicature. It contains: set special tax judicial organization; improve tax proceedings systems, that is, introduce the system of "taxpayers lawsuits"; enlarge the range of tax proceedings; establish inexpensive lawsuits system. Fourth, build self-protecting system for taxpayers'rights. It includes; enhance the awareness of taxpayers'rights; set up the rights-protecting organizations for taxpayers; perfect the system of tax agent. Taxpayers'rights protection is of great reality meaning in running state affairs according to law of today, but since long time ago, taxpayers'rights in China has not been fully embodied due to the serious lack of tax theories, tax legislation, tax enforcement, tax judicature, etc. the protection of taxpayers'rights is a huge systematic project. The improvement of protecting system of taxpayers'rights is just one aspect of realizing taxpayers'rights protection. Besides, all the societies have to make joint efforts to carry out the constitutionalism and make the state powers under the restriction and supervision of civil rights. Only in that way, taxpayers'rights can be fully safeguarded.