Is the agency export tax rebate charge in Shaanxi as high as 10%?

"Mr. Zhang just received 120,000 yuan in export tax rebates last month, but the agency wants to take away 30,000 yuan as'service fee'..." The recently heatedly discussed phenomenon of high agency tax rebate charges in the Shaanxi foreign trade circle has made many business owners exclaim "painful". Is this money really necessary? Is the charging standard reasonable? This article will deeply analyze the charging logic and anti-trapping guide of the agency export tax rebate industry in Shaanxi.

Why has agency tax rebate become a "favorite"?

In Shaanxi, about 67% of foreign trade enterprises choose to handle export tax rebates through agencies. "Strong professionalism, complex process, high tax inspection risk" are the three core reasons. Local service institutions represented by Zhongshitong usually provide full-chain services from document review, customs declaration matching to tax declaration.

• Time cost: The average time-consuming for self-handling is 23 working days, while the agency can shorten it to 15 days
• Pass rate difference: The pass rate of self-declaration by enterprises is about 82%, while the agency can reach 96%
• Risk transfer: The agency undertakes the responsibility of reviewing the compliance of bills

The three-layer game behind the charging chaos

Ms. Li's building materials export company received an export tax rebate of 890,000 yuan last year but was charged 89,000 yuan in service fees. The investigation found that there are mainly three charging models in the current market:

• Commission system: Generally charged at 1%-10% of the tax rebate amount, which is the most controversial
• Stepped pricing system: Fixed charge for less than 50,000 yuan, and the part exceeding the quota is reduced in proportion
• Hidden markups: by means of exchange rate conversion, additional services, etc.

It is worth noting that the average agency fee in the Shaanxi region is 1.8 percentage points higher than that in the Jiangsu-Zhejiang region, which is related to the fewer local professional service institutions.

Four steps to help you keep the profit red line

Facing the complex charging market, enterprises can adopt the following strategies:

• Compare three: Require at least 3 institutions to issue detailed quotation sheets
• Split services: Only purchase services for weak links (such as pre-document review)
• Risk sharing: Negotiate the clause of "exemption of fees for failed declarations"
• Cultivate internal skills: Participate in free training by the tax bureau and gradually declare on your own

Regular institutions such as Zhongshitong have now launched a "charging calculator" tool, and enterprises can obtain the estimated service fee range by entering the tax rebate amount.

Tax rebate services should be "clearly priced"

With the acceleration of the construction of the Shaanxi Pilot Free Trade Zone, the agency market for export tax rebates urgently needs to establish a standardized charging system. It is recommended that business owners:

• Keep all service agreements and payment vouchers
• Regularly review the qualifications of tax agents of the agency
• Report abnormal high charges to the business department for record

How much service fee was charged for your last export tax rebate? We welcome you to share your experience in the comment section to jointly promote the process of industry transparency.