Housing Container Tax

Container houses do not need to pay real estate tax. Details are as follows:

Container Houses Are Not Within the Scope of Real Estate Tax Levy

• Definition and Attributes: A container is essentially a container for loading goods, intended for transportation purposes, and does not belong to real estate. Even if it is transformed into a place for people to work or study, since it has no property rights, it does not fall under the category of real estate tax payers and should not pay real estate tax.
• Legal Basis: According to the 'Explanation and Regulations on Several Business Issues Concerning Real Estate Tax and Vehicle and Vessel Usage Tax' (Caishuidizi [1987] No. 3) issued by the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation, 'real estate' refers to property in the form of a house. A house must have a roof and enclosing structures (walls or pillars on both sides), be able to shelter from wind and rain, and be available for people to engage in production, work, study, entertainment, residence, or store goods. Container houses do not meet this definition of 'real estate'. Meanwhile, Article 2 of the 'Provisional Regulations on Real Estate Tax' stipulates that real estate tax is paid by the property owner. Since container houses have no property rights, there is no need to pay real estate tax.

Special Circumstances and Precautions

• Legality Requirements: Although container houses generally do not need to pay real estate tax, if container-style houses, garages, etc., are constructed without application or approval and without obtaining land use rights and planning permits, they are considered illegal structures. Illegal structures must meet two conditions: having a certain scale and stability, and violating legal procedures without approval. However, container houses are highly mobile and generally do not constitute stable structures. But if they are used for storage and occupy public land, affecting the environment or residents' lives, urban management agencies can intervene and request relocation.
• Validity of Lease Contracts: If a transformed container with housing attributes is placed in a planned area for temporary construction, it should be approved by the relevant government planning department. If it is put into production or daily use without approval, it will not only affect the overall urban and rural planning but also pose significant safety hazards. In this case, the 'House Lease Contract' signed between the lessor and the lessee should be considered invalid.