The government still has no timetable to levy the environmental tax so far, Vice-Minister of Environmental Protection Pan Yue said at the annul session of the CPPCC Wednesday.
"The ministries of finance, taxation and environmental protection have worked closely to speed up the progress, but the new tax is not likely be imposed very soon and will not aggravate enterprises' burden," said Pan, who is also a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).
An environmental tax plan jointly proposed by the three ministries has been submitted to the State Council for final review. If the plan is adopted, one or two provinces are expected to be named to pilot green taxation this year.
The tax would join a series of other measures, including bank loans, securities and insurance, as part of a policy package to boost the green economy, experts said.