进项 (jìn xiàng) literally means 'incoming item' — 进 (jìn) means 'to enter' or 'incoming', and 项 (xiàng) means 'item', 'entry', or 'category'. In modern Chinese, especially in accounting, finance, and tax contexts, it refers specifically to 'input tax credit' — the VAT (value-added tax) paid on purchases or expenses that a business can deduct from its output tax liability. It is not used for general income or revenue (which is usually 收入 shōu rù); rather, it's a technical term in China’s VAT system.

This word appears almost exclusively in formal financial documents, tax filings, and business discussions. It contrasts with 销项 (xiāo xiàng), meaning 'output tax amount' — the VAT collected from sales. Learners should note that 进项 carries strong domain-specific meaning and rarely appears in everyday conversation or non-business writing.