Under E - Commerce Discussion On Tariffs

E-commerce, one of the hot topics concentrated globally, is a newborn thing ineconomic activities. Its generation and development syncretize new technologiesand expansion of commercial operations. The world economy is stepping intoinformationalization times. Digital economy, network economy, and informationeconomy are becoming main streams of economic development progressively.Since the end of the 20th century, electronic commerce, taking Internet whichinfluences people's life deeply as its platform, greatly changes transaction forms ofthe whole society, and meanwhile enormously challenges the entire legal systemfrom all respects. However, there is no proper rules regulating e-commerce activities,especially those for tariff legislation, throughout the world currently, like those grayareas in traffic rules for highway.E-commerce's shock upon international tariff, escalating by years, has beenpaid attention all over the world, and will further its impacts in dimension and indepth, with quick development of e-commerce and its growing proportions ininternational trade. The imbalance of its development throughout the world makesresearch levels and attached importance diversified. Majority of the scholars onlytouch upon a certain issue of tariff under e-commerce by writing treatises, leavingdisputes upon understanding substantial terms and designing legal solutions.Generally speaking, there never exists one universal framework for impacts frome-commerce upon tariff policies. Each economic entity has its own discourse power,with its magnitude depending upon its economic power.Under this circumstance, there must be varied controversy, diminishing theinternational tax order established by the current tariff policy, and generating manynegative results. As to this, the author holds the viewpoints as follows: (1) Tariffimposition will produce more disadvantages than advantages; and certain protectionmeasures still needs to be attached to developing countries; (2)the principle ofpermanent establishment still be persisted when dividing e-commerce tax benefit,against any view weakening or intending to weaken source jurisdiction, though newconflicts of tax jurisdiction have been produced under e-commerce situation;(3)Online transaction should be categorized into services trade, and GATS rules shallapply to it; (4)New patterns of online tariff system should be created and established to make connection between Internet and banks, between Customs and onlinecommercial users into reality, and realizing the online surveillance and investigation,preventing international tax avoidance or tax evasion.This paper, studying tariff issues under e-commerce, is composed of five parts:PARTⅠ: Introduction of e-commerce's historical development, features andinfluences. E-commerce is a newborn economic activity. So before studying thetariff issues under e-commerce, it's necessary to comp rend e-commercesystematically, and further analyzing the necessity of tariff imposition undere-commerce.PARTⅡ: Discussion on influences from e-commerce upon traditional tariffsystem, including various shocks upon and challenges to tariff general principles,tariff constituting factors, and tariff administration, triggering consideration upondisputes settlement.Though with that, there still never form a universal tariff policy. Therefore, this partalso comparatively analyzes e-commerce tariff policies in each country respectively,including experience from US, EU, OECD, and that in developing countries. Acomparative study, one effective method in international studies, provides referencesfor tariff legislation completion under e-commerce, by comparatively studying tariffpolicies in each country.PARTⅢ: Solutions to several tariff issues. The author, further study severalprominent issues under e-commerce, such as jurisdiction definition, e-commercequalification, tax avoidance and tax evasion.PARTⅣ: Assumptions and suggestions for establishing tariff system undere-commerce in China.PARTⅤ: Epilogue of the paper.This paper, scrutinizing the current studies domestic and abroad, analyzesrespectively varied issues brought forward by e-commerce such as shock upon tariffsystem, re-identification of jurisdiction and applied rules etc, and put forward theauthor's suggestions for tariff system completion under e-commerce, based on thecomparative studies of solutions already existing in international society.