Before using China's Individual Income Tax app, identify the document you will use to register. The Shanghai Tax Bureau's April 2026 bilingual guide distinguishes face-recognition registration from registration with a code issued at a tax service hall. The State Tax Administration's foreign-user FAQ also explains the hall-code route for the app and Natural Person Electronic Taxation Bureau.
Choose the route that matches your document
Shanghai's guide lists the document types supported by face recognition, including the Foreign Permanent Resident ID Card. A foreign passport is not on that list. If your document is not listed, the guide directs you to register with a tax-office registration code. Take your valid identity document to a tax service hall to request the code. Both official pages say the code is valid for seven days. Confirm the service hall and any current appointment arrangement with your local tax bureau before visiting.
Complete registration and check access
- Use the official Individual Income Tax app and open its registration screen.
- Choose face recognition only if your ID type appears in the tax bureau's supported list. Otherwise, obtain a hall registration code and choose that route.
- Enter your document type, number, name, nationality or region and the other fields requested by the official interface. For the code route, enter the code while it is valid.
- Set the password and mobile number and complete SMS verification as the guide describes. Check that you can sign in before leaving a service hall.
If registration fails
First check whether the route supports your ID type and whether a hall code remains valid. If the app rejects your details or SMS verification, ask the tax service hall or your local tax bureau which official correction or support route applies. Do not invent a different document spelling or use someone else's identity to get past the screen.
Registration gives access to official tax services; it does not decide whether you owe tax, your residency status or an amount payable. Those questions require your records and current tax rules. Ask the relevant tax authority or a qualified adviser for case-specific guidance. Shanghai's guide is useful for the ID-route distinction, while your local bureau must confirm its own hall arrangements.