Abstract: The determination of the legal interest protection of tax evasion is not only related to the determination of the elements of tax evasion crime, but is also relevant to the relationship between administrative illegality and criminal illegality of tax evasion. By analyzing the procedure model of judicial practice of tax evasion, and the logicality of Article 201 of the Criminal Law, we explore the legal interest protection in first offense exception of tax evasion and find that determining the relationship between the administrative illegality and criminal illegality of tax evasion is mostly related to procedures but not to crime entity or theory;the declarative clause of first offense exception of tax evasion is a "bridge" between the behavior and tax evasion crime,which warns the actus reus not to do anything to reduce national tax revenue and the legal interest protection is empty; the criminal liability procedures of tax evasion should be strictly implemented with the principle of administrative procedure priority:cases of tax evasion which are not investigated and punished by tax authorities cannot be brought to judicial proceedings.

Key words: Article 201 of the Criminal Law, law interest protection, practice mode, illegality, case of tax evasion