Livestreamer boasted she and her husband earned over 4 million yuan in a livestreaming sales show in a single day. Photo: screenshot of video

 
Reports say a Chinese tax regulator is investigating a popular livestreaming couple with more than 9 million followers over taxes after the couple claimed that they earned more than 4 million yuan ($592,944) through a livestreaming show.

The Chengdu bureau of State Taxation Administration is now carrying out an investigation after receiving a report on the company's tax situation, according to Beijing Youth Daily on Thursday.

The bureau declined to make comments when reached by the Global Times on Friday.

The popular livestreaming couple named "rainbow couple" said on short video platform Douyin on Wednesday that they sold goods valued 200 million yuan in one day, and earned around 4 million yuan after deducting all expenses.

Their remarks triggered a lot of discussion online, and some netizens questioned whether one livestreaming episode could earn more than 4 million yuan while others wondered whether they paid taxes after making so much money.

The couple sells daily necessities on Douyin through their company that was registered in December 2020. The company employs just under 50 people. 

Media reported the company's average sales after livestreaming eight times was 38.31 million yuan in the past one month. On August 3, the sales stood at 75 million yuan. 

The company could not be reached for comments on Friday. 

China has been clamping down on livestreaming tax violations in recent years. The tax department also said it will further strengthen tax services and fiscal supervision for online livestreaming to promote a healthy development of the industry.

In June this year, fiscal authorities in Fuzhou, East China's Jiangxi Province, imposed a fine of 108 million yuan on a livestreamer over tax evasion.

The livestreamer named Xu Guohao underpaid personal income tax of 17.56 million yuan by false declaration for the income he earned, from 2019 to 2020, and evaded personal income tax of 19.14 million yuan through fictitious business, according to the local tax bureau.

Also in June, game livestreamer Sun Zixuan, better known as Di Shi on the internet, was slammed with 11.7 million yuan in penalties and overdue taxes.

Chinese observers said such moves show the regulator's determination to continue to crack down on livestreaming tax evasion with a "zero tolerance" attitude.

Global Times