民国时期遗产税制度的构建与运作

Construction and Operation of the Inheritance Tax System in the Republic of China

民国时期,遗产税制度经过各方的讨论和推动,最终在抗战时期迈向实践。但是,作为西方世界的舶来品,遗产税制度与中国社会现实存在着巨大龃龉。由于户口统计和财产登记工作的疏漏,加之权贵阶层的逃税,导致大量税源游离于征管之列。在这种情况下,遗产税制度不仅未能发挥调剂贫富的作用,也没有带来可观的财政收入,成为中国财政现代化进程中的重大缺憾。这一史实表明,税制改革必须立足基本国情,只有在配套条件具备的情况下,才能发挥出积极作用。

During the period of the Republic of China,the estate tax system was finally put into practice during the Anti-Japanese War after discussion and promotion by all parties.However,as an exotic product from the Western world,the inheritance tax system has great discord with the reality of Chinese society.Due to the omission of household registration and property registration,as well as the tax evasion of the powerful class,a large number of tax sources are separated from the collection and management.In this situation,the inheritance tax system has not only failed to play a role in regulating the rich and poor,but also failed to bring significant financial revenue,which has become a major regret in the process of China’s financial modernization.This historical fact shows that the tax system reform must be based on the basic national conditions,and can play a positive role only when the supporting conditions are available.