A view of Zhoushan. [Photo/zhoushan.cn]

Zhoushan in East China's Zhejiang province, along with 26 other cities, received approval from the State Council on Feb 8 to establish a cross-border e-commerce pilot zone, local media reported.

The State Council aims to encourage these pilot zones to explore the procedures and regulations concerning cross-border e-commerce transaction, payment, logistics, customs clearance, tax reimbursement, and foreign exchange settlement.

The cross-border e-commerce companies in the pilot zones will be exempted from added-value tax and consumption tax, according to a staff member from Zhoushan municipal bureau of commerce.

He noted that the pilot zone in Zhoushan is expected to help improve the business environment in the city, and its preferential policies will alleviate the pressure faced by companies involved in foreign trade during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In recent years, Zhoushan has been optimizing its business environment for cross-border e-commerce.

The city has built a public service platform for cross-border e-commerce companies and introduced online shopping bonded import businesses. It has also been approved as a pilot city for cross-border e-commerce import retail.

Zhoushan has also constructed cultivation centers for talent involved in cross-border e-commerce.