Using Hainan Incentives: What to Watch During Day-to-Day Operations
Author: Junanda ConsultingReviewed by: Junanda Service Team2026-09-19
Reading the policy text correctly does not mean an enterprise will qualify smoothly in practice. The real difficulty lies at the level of implementation: are the people actually on the island, is there any trace of an office, where are the books kept, does the revenue mix remain within the required profile, do the cross-border documents reconcile with one another? This article does not interpret policy. It deals only with the compliance actions that have to be embedded in operations and the rhythm of self-checking, so as to help you avoid the uncomfortable position of having your qualification questioned and the benefit clawed back.
Economic Substance: Turning the Four Elements into Everyday Records
The assessment of economic substance is usually built around four elements. The key point is this: it is not a matter of assembling documents at short notice, but of creating records as part of normal operations.
| Element |
Everyday record-keeping |
Common weakness |
| People |
Employment contracts, social insurance records, attendance and payroll records |
A contract without social insurance |
| Premises |
Lease contract, utility and property management invoices, photographs of the site, nameplate and office interior |
The registered address differs from the actual office |
| Books |
Books kept on the island, finance staff in place, a defined place for filing vouchers |
Books prepared elsewhere, with no accounting trace on the island |
| Assets |
Fixed asset register, equipment list, records of where assets are kept |
The asset list does not reconcile with physical items |
It is advisable to file the four categories of material quarterly into an "economic substance file", marked with dates and page numbers, so that it can be produced whenever required.
Monitoring Revenue Mix and the Share of Core Business
Entitlement to an incentive is often linked to the revenue mix, and that mix changes throughout the year. It is worth keeping a monthly record containing at least:
- A classified summary of each business line's revenue, according to the applicable assessment basis;
- The workings for core business revenue and total revenue, with the formulas and data sources retained;
- The monthly trend of the relevant share, with an early warning where it approaches a threshold.
The specific thresholds and calculation bases are subject to the latest official rules and should not be judged by impression. Once the mix looks likely to move away from the required profile, the business arrangements should be adjusted early, rather than discovering at annual settlement that the conditions were not met.
Filing Procedures, Supporting Records and Cross-Border Consistency
Entitlement does not apply automatically. Filing or record-keeping procedures usually have to be carried out in accordance with the rules:
- Confirm the specific matter relied on and the corresponding filing forms;
- Complete the filing or record-keeping within the prescribed period and report it accurately at annual settlement;
- Build a supporting records list, bound annually, covering the basis on which qualification was assessed, evidence for the four elements, the revenue mix workings, and the relevant contracts and vouchers;
- Retain the official texts of the underlying policy, including publication dates and versions, so that the basis for applying it can be explained.
Hainan business often involves funds crossing the border and goods moving in and out of the island. Verification of such business focuses on consistency between three sets of documents:
- Contracts and orders: who signed, and what subject matter and amounts are involved;
- The flow of funds: the paying and receiving parties, currency, amount and timing;
- The flow of goods and services: customs declarations, transport documents, and acceptance or service delivery records.
Inconsistency between the data sets is the most common source of risk — for example, a contract amount that does not match the amount received, a customs declarant that is not the same entity as the recipient of the funds, or a service with no delivery record. It is advisable to open a separate file for each cross-border transaction, so that the contract, invoice, receipt or payment of foreign exchange, and customs declaration (where applicable) can be matched one to one.
Related-Party Transactions and Transfer Pricing
Transactions between related parties are a focus area for tax authorities. In the course of business you should:
- Be able to explain the pricing of related-party transactions by reference to comparable prices between independent third parties or to market practice;
- Prepare basic documentation describing the content of the transaction, the pricing method, and the functions and risks borne by each party;
- Keep related-party and third-party transactions clearly separated in the accounts, avoiding mixed accounting;
- Where the prescribed standard is reached, prepare the corresponding level of contemporaneous documentation in accordance with the current rules.
The specific thresholds and the levels of documentation are subject to the latest official rules.
Group Structure: Headquarters Elsewhere, Hainan as a Branch
Where an enterprise adopts a structure in which the headquarters are elsewhere and Hainan hosts a branch or subsidiary, particular attention is needed to the following:
- Whether the Hainan entity genuinely performs functions relating to people, premises, books and assets, rather than serving merely as an invoicing or fund-passing channel;
- Whether the attribution of revenue and the allocation of costs to the branch have a reasonable basis;
- Where decision-making actually takes place, and whether meeting minutes and approval records can corroborate this.
The structure itself is not improper, but a structure that exists on paper only is very difficult to defend when it is verified.
Tracking Policy Changes and Building the Compliance Routine
Policy is updated and interpretations are adjusted, so a fixed tracking mechanism is worth establishing:
- Designate a person to consult the official publication channels of the tax, customs, market regulation and other authorities on a regular basis;
- Subscribe to official notices, and download and file important documents with their effective dates noted;
- Where an interpretation changes, assess what it means for the enterprise's position in the current year.
Suggested self-check rhythm: a quarterly review focusing on the revenue mix, the records for the four elements and the completeness of cross-border documents, plus a comprehensive check before annual settlement covering the full year's data, the completeness of the files and the accuracy of the filings. A small quarterly check prevents a large year-end clean-up.
A good system still becomes a paper document unless it is tied to named people and dates. It is worth turning the self-check actions into three lists.
The first is a list of role responsibilities. Assign the four categories: people and social insurance to human resources, premises and assets to administration, books and vouchers to finance, and cross-border documents to the business or customs function. Name a backup for each category, so that staff turnover does not break the record trail.
The second is a monthly action list. Every month: update the revenue classification and share record, file cross-border documents transaction by transaction, reconcile bank statements with the books, and review the official publication channels once. The monthly workload is light, but keeping to it makes the quarterly and annual checks much easier.
The third is an annual timetable. Set out the timing and the scope of the four quarterly self-checks, together with the comprehensive check before annual settlement, and mark them in the calendar in advance.
Once the three lists work together, the enterprise's compliance position shifts from reactive to routinely controlled. When an interpretation changes or the business model shifts, the affected part can be identified quickly and adjusted in a targeted way, instead of a full-scale clean-up.
Common Pitfalls
This article is general business information prepared by Junanda Consulting. Specific policy positions, tax rates, deadlines and procedural requirements are subject to the latest official versions issued by the competent authorities. To understand how these requirements apply to your business, please contact Junanda Consulting for further information and support.