Top Chinese Star Zheng Shuang Fined $46 Million For Tax Evasion

Shuang's tax evasion case spans "multiple regions, multiple companies and multiple performing arts projects" and is "complicated," reports quoted a Chinese State Tax Administration (STA) official as saying on Friday.

Authorities say the 30-year-old failed to declare her true taxable income to the tune of $29.5 million between 2019-2020. There are charges of tax evasion and underpaid taxes, according to local reports. Authorities said she will not face criminal charges if the amount is duly paid.

In China, with its notoriously limited speech and media freedoms, this incident is being understood as yet another blow by Beijing authorities to the entertainment industry's creamy layer.

Simultaneous to Shuang's controversy are emerging reports of an abrupt and unexplained ban on renowned actor Zhao Wei, whose name has reportedly been removed from the credits of multiple projects she starred in, much to the confusion of fans.

Know Who Is Zheng Shuang And Why She Is Making Headlines

Shuang is accused of using yin-yang contracts to evade taxes during her work on television show A Chinese Ghost Story. The yin-yang scheme uses two contracts - one that reflects the true (high) salary, another that reflects a lower amount so as to lessen the tax burden.

Parallels are being drawn between Shuang's case and that of China's highest-paid celebrity Fan Bingbing, who in 2018, was similarly fined for using the yin-yang scheme to conceal her earnings and evade taxes.

This controversy comes following another scandal Shuang was caught in earlier this year, with regard to surrogacy. According to reports, in January, her former partner Zhang Heng accused her of abandoning their babies born through surrogacy in the United States.

Shuang drew massive criticism, including from China's rigid ruling communist party which said such "disregard of life makes one bristle with anger."

Image: Global Times