Chinese Premier Li Qiang has signed a decree of the State Council to unveil the revised edition of regulations aimed at ensuring timely payments to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Major revisions to the previous regulations issued in 2020 include the detailing of work responsibilities, clear requirements for payment deadlines, improvement of supervision, and enhancement of punishments for illegal acts.

The new regulations, which will go into effect on June 1, detail the responsibilities of the relevant departments at the central and local levels to ensure timely payments to SMEs.

The regulations specifically require that large-scale enterprises pay SMEs within 60 days of the delivery of cargo, projects or services.

The new regulations also improve supervision and settling of complaints to ensure timely payments to SMEs, while stepping up punishment of illegal acts. 

China on Wednesday issued an action plan to stabilize foreign investment in 2025, which was approved by a recent State Council executive meeting.

The action plan was devised by the Ministry of Commerce and the National Development and Reform Commission, according to a notice issued by the General Office of the State Council.

Foreign investment is a key aspect of promoting high-standard opening-up, and plays a significant role in fostering new quality productive forces and advancing Chinese modernization, according to the action plan, which was formulated to ensure stable foreign investment in 2025.

Per the plan, China will support pilot regions in effectively implementing opening-up policies related to such areas as value-added telecommunication, biotechnology and wholly foreign-owned hospitals, providing whole-journey services for foreign-invested projects in these sectors.

The country will continue expanding its pilot programs to open up fields such as telecommunication and medical services in a timely manner.

According to the plan, China will seize the initiative by opening its education and cultural sectors further, publish implementation plans, and push those plans forward steadily.

The plan calls for efforts to expand the national pilot program to open the services industry further and promote the orderly opening-up of the biomedical sector.

Additionally, it emphasizes encouraging foreign equity investment in China to attract more high-quality foreign direct investment in the country's listed companies.

China will lift restrictions on domestic loans for foreign-invested enterprises, allowing these firms to use domestic financing for equity investments, according to the plan.

It highlights key sectors to attract foreign investment. According to the plan, foreign businesses are encouraged to invest in animal husbandry-related fields such as breeding, feeding equipment production and production of feed and veterinary medicine, and enjoy national treatment.

It also supports foreign enterprises to participate in China's new industrialization, with a focus on high-tech fields. Foreign investment is also welcomed in services sectors such as elderly care, culture and tourism, sports, health care, vocational education, and finance.

It calls for clarifying standards for the government procurement of domestic products, and for measures to ensure products produced by enterprises of different ownership within China participate equally in government procurement activities.

The plan was approved at a State Council executive meeting held earlier this month. The meeting highlighted the important role of foreign-invested enterprises in employment, export stability and industrial upgrading, and urged more practical and effective measures to maintain existing investments and attract new ones.

In 2024, 59,080 new foreign-invested enterprises were established in China, up 9.9 percent year on year. China attracted an annual overseas investment of over 1 trillion yuan (about 139.5 billion U.S. dollars) for three consecutive years from 2021 to 2023.

Foreign investors are becoming increasingly bullish on the Chinese market, bolstered by the country's recent incremental policies aimed at vitalizing growth momentum.

UBS Investment Bank has raised its China 2024 growth forecast to 4.8 percent from 4.6 percent, while Goldman Sachs has lifted China's GDP prediction this year from 4.7 percent to 4.9 percent.

The uplift is mostly due to China's third-quarter year-on-year GDP growth of 4.6 percent, slightly above market expectation of 4.4 percent, and the series of support policies the government recently launched, said UBS economist Wang Tao.

Economists with Goldman Sachs noted that the latest round of China's incremental policies clearly indicates that policymakers have made a turn on cyclical policy management and increased their focus on the economy.

So far this year, multiple international institutions, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, have raised their forecast for China's economic growth for 2024.

In the face of mounting challenges at home and abroad, China's GDP grew 4.8 percent year on year in the first three quarters of this year. The country set a target of economic growth at around 5 percent for this year.

To beef up the economy in response to looming challenges, Chinese authorities have unveiled a broader-than-expected policy package since late September, which focused on enhancing counter-cyclical adjustments, expanding effective domestic demand, supporting business operation, promoting the recovery of the property market, and invigorating capital markets.

Aside from these pro-growth policies, Chinese policymakers continued to improve investment facilitation, create a favorable investment environment, promote high-level financial opening up to the outside world, and actively support foreign investors in participating in the Chinese capital market.

Alan Ho, co-senior country officer for China at J.P. Morgan, said that the pace of China's financial market opening up had accelerated in recent years.

For example, foreign ownership restrictions in local securities, funds and futures companies have been lifted and financial markets' connectivity mechanisms have been maturing more quickly than expected, which has brought broader development opportunities to foreign financial institutions, Ho said.

Data from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange showed that foreign holdings of domestic renminbi bonds have so far exceeded 640 billion U.S. dollars, reaching a historic high.

Net foreign investment in domestic bonds surpassed 80 billion U.S. dollars in the first three quarters of this year, while foreign investment in Chinese equities saw notable improvement.

Foreign central banks and commercial banks are the biggest investors in domestic renminbi bonds, as they allocate a higher proportion of investment in medium and long-term bonds such as treasury bonds and policy bank bonds, according to the foreign exchange regulator.

The growing foreign holdings have reflected the global investors' confidence in the Chinese market. Currently, 24 global systemically important banks have a presence in China.

Industry insiders believed that foreign investors' active buy-in of Chinese assets has shown their optimism in China's continuous opening-up measures and policy support in the capital market.

During the World Bank's 110th meeting of the Development Committee last week in Washington DC, Vice Minister of Finance Liao Min pledged that China will intensify countercyclical adjustments of fiscal policy.

A series of strong measures will be implemented to resolve local government debt risks, stabilize the real estate market, increase the income of key groups, enhance people's livelihoods, and drive equipment upgrades and trade-in deals for consumer goods, Liao said.

By leveraging government spending to stimulate social investment and consumption, effective demand will be increased, he said, noting that China is confident in achieving the annual economic growth target, and will continue to inject impetus to world economic growth.

China will introduce a package of targeted incremental fiscal policy measures in the near future to boost the economy, Minister of Finance Lan Fo'an told a press conference on Saturday.

The package includes increasing the debt ceiling on a relatively large scale in a lump sum to replace existing hidden debts of local governments and help defuse their debt risks.

The minister said the counter-cyclical adjustment involves not just policies that are already going through relevant decision-making procedures but also other policy tools in consideration, such as debt issuance and deficit rise.

There remains considerable room for China's central finance to issue debts and expand the deficit, he said.

For the property market, the minister said the country will apply a set of fiscal policy tools including local government special-purpose bonds, special funds and taxation policies to help stabilize the sector.

China will issue special treasury bonds to support large state-owned commercial banks in replenishing the core tier-1 capital, according to Lan.

The move is aimed at enhancing the banks' risk resilience and lending capacity to better serve the development of the real economy, he said.

An executive meeting of the State Council, presided over by Premier Li Qiang on Monday, reviewed and approved four documents, discussed policy measures to support the high-quality development of innovative small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and approved five nuclear power projects.

Among the approved documents was the 2024 edition of a set of special administrative measures -- a negative list -- for foreign investment access.

According to the negative list, China will relax restrictions on foreign investment further by completely abolishing entry barriers in the manufacturing sector, while accelerating the opening up of sectors such as telecommunication, education and health care services.

Another document approved at the meeting was a set of guidelines on promoting the high-quality development of services trade through high-level opening up.

The meeting stressed that accelerating the development of services trade is essential to expanding high-level opening up and fostering new foreign trade drivers.

Efforts should be made to promote innovative development in key services trade areas, as well as the integration of services trade and goods trade, according to the meeting.

It also highlighted the importance of efforts to create new services trade growth drivers, and to support the international development of professional services such as finance, consultation, design and certification.

The meeting discussed measures with a focus on strengthening policy coordination in areas of taxation, finance, science and technology, industry and human resources, in order to foster innovative SMEs that use specialized, sophisticated technologies to produce novel or unique products.

Efforts must also be made to make those SMEs smarter, and more digitalized and eco-friendly in a bid to enhance their core competitiveness, according to the meeting.

Noting that safety is the lifeline of nuclear power development, the meeting stressed the need to strengthen safety regulations to ensure the utmost safety of nuclear power and promote the long-term healthy development of the industry.

1. Institutions and individuals (including foreign-invested enterprises, research and development centers with foreign investments, foreign enterprises, and foreign individuals) shall be exempt from the business tax on the incomes gained from technological transfer, technological development business, relevant technological consultation, and technological services.

2. According to GSBF (2004) Doc. No.80, the approval for business tax exemption on the income gained from technical transfer by foreign enterprises and foreign individuals in Chinese territory is cancelled. Upon cancellation, foreign enterprises and foreign individuals applying for business tax exemption shall submit the following documents to the taxation authorities:

(1) The Chinese version of thecontract for technical transfer or technical development;

(2) The certificate of examination opinions, provided by the provincial sci-tech department in charge at the location of the technology transferee;

(3) The technology transfer permit issued by state department in charge;

(4) Foreign enterprises and foreign individuals, who entrust a Chinese technology transferee to handle the procedures for business tax exemption, shall provide a Power of Attorney document, signed by the legal representative of the applicant.

3. Foreign enterprises which merely sold software to enterprises in Chinese territory, or transfered related software with posts and communication equipment and computers, no matter whether the domestic accepters have paid the customs duty and value-added tax in the import link for the above-mentioned software or not, will not be charged business tax for the software use fee.

4. Ordinary life insurance and pension insurance within less than one year (including one year) which return both the principal and interest, as well as health insurance above one year (including one year) launched by the insurance companies, can be exempt from business tax, if examined, and listed by the Ministry of Finance and State General Administration of Taxation as tax-free.

5. Insurance income, from individual investment bonuses launched by the insurance companies, may be exempt from the business tax.

6. The grain logistic project which has been loaned by the World Bank may be exempt from construction and installation business tax, and from project service income tax.

7. Tax deductions for foreign-funded financing business; In case foreign financial institutions engaged in financing business, the interest payment for an overseas foreign exchange loan shall be deducted from the payable business tax, but the domestic foreign exchange (or RMB) loan interest shall not be deducted from the payable business tax.

8. RMB transactions between foreign financial institutions shall not be levied with business tax, temporarily.

9. In case foreign companies transfer the stock rights of an enterprises owned in Chinese territory, the business tax may be exempted if the stock right is not involved with the transfer of intangible assets or real estate.

10. Foreign funded enterprises engaged in financing lease business, with the approval of the Ministry of Commerce, shall enjoy equal treatment, in terms of business tax collection, as do domestic enterprises in the financing lease business, with the approval of the People's Bank of China, based on relevant regulations for financing lease.

11. Any foreign enterprise identified with countries that signed the Protocol and Agreement with China, meeting the terms of Protocol of Double Tax Levying Avoidance, signed between China and other countries, the terms of the Protocol of Mutual Exemption for International Transport Income of Shipping Companies, the Ocean Shipping Agreement, as well as other agreements or Exchange of Notes, (hereinafter called Protocol or Agreement), may be exempt from the enterprise annual income tax and business tax, if they get freight income from international transports, by operating shipping based on the terms defined in The Notice of Interpreting Chinese Transport Issues in the Tax Levying Regulations, promulgated by State General Administration of Taxation(GSH[1998]No.241, except for the agent income of various shipping agents.

12. Foreign-funded enterprises engaged in the treatment of financial assets in China are exempt from the business tax, if they handle retreatment of creditor's right and equity capital (including transfer from the creditor's right to the equity capital).

13. China Mobile Group Corp., and its mainland subsidiaries under China Mobile (Hong Kong) Ltd., are exempt from the business tax for various forms of communications and relevant services they provided in the process of sponsoring the Organizing Committee of Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

1. Schools, hospitals, sanatoriums for the old, nurseries, and kindergartens which are run by Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan residents, foreign-funded enterprises, enterprises with funds from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, foreign citizens, or citizens without nationality (stateless persons), are exempt from urban real estate tax for private use of housing.

2. Foreign-funded enterprises and enterprises with funds from Hong Kong, Macao and, Taiwan, whose handicapped employees account for more than 35% of the average staff, for an entire year, are exempt from urban real estate tax for their self-use houses.

3. Foreign citizens, citizens without nationality, and residents of Hong Kong, Macao and, Taiwan are exempt from urban real estate tax for their non-business use of houses.

4. Unsold or untapped commercial houses which are developed and built by foreign-funded enterprises and enterprises with fund from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan are exempt from urban real estate tax.

5. Foreign-funded enterprises and enterprises with funds from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan are temporarily exempt from 50 per cent of the urban real estate tax for the residential buildings they rent to their employees.

6. Foreign-funded enterprise is exempt from the urban real estate tax, for temporary shops built and leased, in the process of commodity development.

7. Hong Kong & Macao International (Group) Co. , Ltd., as well as its mainland and Hong Kong subsidiaries, is exempt from the urban real estate tax for its real estate in Chinese territory, and the real estate transferred from a debtor.

8. The urban real estate tax, levied in terms of the original value, shall be temporarily deducted by 20%; levied in terms of the lease income, and shall be temporarily deducted by 33.3%. The taxpayer having difficulty in paying the real estate tax may apply to the local tax authority for corresponding exemption. With the examination and approval of the local tax authority of and above prefecture level, based on this very article and the authorities over tax-reduction, the urban real estate tax may be reduced accordingly.

(1) Foreign experts are exempted from the individual income tax for their wages. The following foreign experts are exempted from individual income tax for their wage and salary (CSZ (1994) No. 20):

a. Foreign experts directly designated by World Bank to China according to the Special Loan Agreement of the World Bank;

b. Foreign experts directly designated by UN organizations to China;

c. Foreign experts designated to China for the UN aid programs;

d. Foreign experts designated by donor countries to China for the donated programs without payments;

e. Foreign cultural and educational experts in China for cultural exchange programs for no more than 2 years based on the agreement of two governments, whose wage and salary are borne by the designated country;

f. Foreign experts designated by non-official scientific research institutes, with the wage and salary borne by the organization of the designated country.

(2) Foreign employees who work only in international organs and embassies in China may be exempted from the individual income tax temporarily.

(3) The foreigners can be exempted from individual income tax with relevant verifications approved by tax authorities for their housing allowance, accommodation allowance, washing fee, removal costs, business trip allowance, home leave expense, language training fee, children educational expense and other allowances in the form of non-cash or complete reimbursement.

(4) The foreign investors shall be exempted from income tax for the profits (stock bonus, interests) gained from foreign invested enterprises or stock bonus and dividends gained from Sino-foreign joint ventures.

(5) Foreign enterprises and individuals holding B Share shall be temporarily exempted from the enterprise income tax and individual income tax respectively for the stock bonus (dividends) they gained from B Share or overseas share issuing enterprises within Chinese territory.

(6) Upon the verification of local taxation authorities, foreign insurance premiums of employees working in China, which are paid by foreign invested enterprises or exclusively foreign funded enterprises but not deducted from taxable income of the enterprise and which, according to relevant state laws and regulations, are fees of social insurance and shall be paid by the employer, may not be included in the individual income tax of the employee.

(7) Teachers and researchers concerned, who are citizens of the contracting state and engaged in teaching, lecturing or scientific researches in Chinese universities, colleges, schools or other educational institutes, or scientific research institutions, based on the tax exemption clause in the agreement signed by Chinese and foreign departments, are exempted from the income tax during the period stipulated by the agreement.

To build a more transparent business environment and facilitate trade and investment, the Department of Foreign Investment Administration and the Investment Promotion Agency updated the Foreign Investment Guide of the People's Republic of China. The Guide, retaining the basic framework of the 2021 edition, is composed of five chapters—"Meeting China," "Investing in China," "The Legal System for Foreign Investment in China," "Procedures for Business Operation", and "Foreign Nationals in China", with newly-added contents, such as digital economy, a unified national market at a faster pace, alignment with international standards, and opening-up of the financial sector based on suggestions of foreign-invested enterprises. Detailed information was shared on carbon dioxide peaking and carbon neutrality as well as the special team for key foreign investment projects. Data, procedures for business operation, and directory of institutions were also updated. The Guide will be released in Chinese and English, online and offline, to comprehensively introduce the international market-oriented and law-based business environment of China. It is hoped that the Guide will be helpful for foreign enterprises and investors.

Full text: Foreign Investment Guide of the People's Republic of China (2022 Edition)

The removal and streamlining of approval procedures for certain foreign-invested projects will attract and assist overseas companies while benefiting overall investment this year, experts and industry insiders said.

In a recently released guideline, the National Development and Reform Commission said that foreign-invested projects under $30 million will no longer need to follow filing procedures for approval.

Also, approval for projects over $30 million and under $300 million will be handed from ministerial-level authorities to provincial-level ones. The projects must be in industries covered by China's Catalogue of Industries for Encouraging Foreign Investment.

The changes were announced in a broader guideline released by the NDRC on March 22 on further facilitating and streamlining investment projects.

Researchers and insiders believe the step will further boost China's ability to attract foreign investment as procedures are eased and the role of lower-level governments is increased.

Guo Meixin, a senior researcher at the Academic Center for Chinese Economic Practice and Thinking at Tsinghua University, said the move will not only cut red tape for overseas businesses, but also encourage provincial-level governments to work more closely with the NDRC.

Guo said based on the center's research data most of the foreign-invested projects under $30 million and which qualify under the catalogue of industries are small and medium-sized ones in scientific and technological research, software and manufacturing industries.

Projects below $30 million are relatively small and those between $30 million and $300 million are more likely to be medium-sized ones, she added.

Guo said providing more power of approval to provincial-level governments will incentivize them to develop potential foreign projects.

The guideline made clear that for projects between $30 million and $300 million, the potential investor will be allowed to directly file the application with provincial-level authorities.

"Provincial-level governments, more often than not, know more specifics of these investment projects than the NDRC," she said. "Giving them such a mandate will help formulate a positive link between local governments and foreign businesses."

Greater market role

The changes are part of the country's broader efforts to let the market play a more decisive role in allocating resources by cutting institutional costs for foreign businesses and building a level-playing field, she added.

Guo said that with some countries, particularly in Asia, gradually resuming production as they recover from the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, China's foreign trade volume may face pressure in the second quarter. This is why the NDRC changes are timely and necessary, she said.

Tu Xinquan, dean of the China Institute for WTO Studies at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, believes the steps are part of China's overall efforts to boost investment this year.

"As economic recovery is gradually gathering pace and a certain amount of investment is needed to sustain growth momentum for the wider economy the encouragement of foreign investment is an important step," Tu said.

He added that the changes were in line with China's policy direction of promoting opening-up and luring overseas investment.

The National Bureau of Statistics figures show that from January to February the value of fixed asset investment stood at 4.52 trillion yuan ($688 billion), a 25 percent year-on-year increase and up 3.5 percent from 2019.

Foreign businesses welcomed the changes to encourage foreign-invested projects.

Michael Mei, vice-president at Smiths Group, a United Kingdom-based industrial goods manufacturer that operates across 55 countries and regions, sees the adjustments as China's latest effort to deepen reform, promote opening-up and further improve the country's business environment.

"Removing the previous filing requirements will facilitate investment procedures for foreign investors and improve our efficiency. It will be conducive to luring foreign businesses to set up more projects in China at a faster pace," he said.

"What we expect is that provincial-level governments can fully implement the policy adjustment in coordination with the NDRC, so that this incentive will be a clear, stable and consistent one in its implementation," he added.

Bai Ming, deputy director of the Ministry of Commerce's International Market Research Institute, said the changes to approve projects under $30 million were a major step.

"Smaller investment projects need much greater flexibility to meet market demands and are much more responsive to an evolving economic situation," he said. "It's often the case that by the time filing procedures are completed the golden time for investment is gone."

With the country making progress in streamlining administrative procedures and improving the role of government functions, the changes to approval of smaller projects should go smoothly when oversight of compliance is in place, he predicted.

Bai said China has been working hard to expand market access for foreign investors. Items on the negative list for foreign investors in China have been cut to 33 from 93.

The World Bank's Doing Business report last year indicated that China carried out a record eight business reforms last year and ranked 31st among 190 countries in terms of the ease of doing business.

"Foreign investment will be playing an increasingly visible role in stabilizing China's economy via job creation and stabilizing supply and production chains," he said. "These policy incentives will continue to facilitate foreign investors and help them enjoy accessible government services in China."

Provisions of Hunan Province on Optimizing the Business Environment

Order No. 307 of the Hunan Provincial People’s Government, issued on November 26, 2021

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1 To continuously optimize the business environment, implement the “Three Hubs and Four New Missions” Strategy, promote high-quality development, and accelerate the building of a modern new Hunan, the Provisions are formulated in the light of the local conditions of Hunan province, and in accordance with the Regulation on Optimizing the Business Environment issued by the State Council and other laws and administrative regulations.

Article 2 For optimizing the business environment, the principles of marketization, rule of law, and internationalization shall be adhered to, the needs of market participants shall be centered around, the profound transformation of government functions shall be the core, and the “One-step Approval Process” shall be thoroughly implemented. The service concept of “being responsive to requests and without making any unnecessary intervention” shall be put into practice. Benchmarking the advanced international and domestic level, a first-class business environment will be created to achieve trade and investment facilitation, fair participation in market competition, high administrative efficiency, and advanced legal system. All these efforts are made to create a stable, fair, transparent, and predictable sound environment for various market participants to invest and prosper business.

Article 3 The people's governments at all levels shall strengthen the organizational leadership of the work on optimizing the business environment, establish and improve the working mechanism for optimizing business environment; enhance the allocation of human resources and fiscal guarantee; improve policies and measures to optimize the business environment; promptly coordinate and resolve the significant issues in optimizing the business environment; and, take the results of work into the government performance evaluation. The main person in charge of the local government is the first person that is accountable for optimizing the business environment.

The development and reform department of the Hunan Provincial People’s Government is the competent department for optimizing the business environment within the province's administrative areas. It is responsible for organizing, coordinating, guiding, supervising, investigating, verifying, overseeing, and inspecting the work concerning optimizing the business environment. In addition, local governments at the municipal or county level shall designate the departments responsible for the work related to optimizing the business environment.

Other relevant departments shall effectively conduct the work related to optimizing the business environment within their respective scopes of functions and duties.

Article 4 All regions and departments should learn from advanced experience and vigorously explore and innovate concrete measures to optimize the business environment. The relevant entities and individuals who make mistakes or deviate in their exploratory work, but make and implement decisions in accordance with the relevant regulation of the State and the provisions of this province in a diligent and responsible attitude, without making any private gains may be exempted from or relieved of their liabilities according to the law. The units and individuals that have made outstanding achievements in optimizing the business environment will be commended and rewarded in accordance with the relevant rules of the country and the province.

China (Hunan) Pilot Free Trade Zone, Xiangjiang New Area, national industrial parks, and other regions, should play a leading role in piloting various reform measures conducive to optimizing the business environment.

Article 5 Vigorous measures will be taken to connect with the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, integrate into the Yangtze River Economic Belt development, and enhance exchanges and cooperation in optimizing the business environment with other provinces and municipalities.

The integration of the business environment in Changsha, Zhuzhou, and Xiangtan will be advanced. Critical breakthroughs in such areas as integrated administrative service, integrated property rights protection, joint market supervision, and public legal service will be made, to promote barrier-free communication and sharing of innovative resources, public services, talents and funds, information, and logistics.

Article 6 The development and reform department of the Hunan Provincial People’s Government should formulate the assessment indicators that are suitable for Hunan province together with relevant departments and in accordance with the national business environment assessment system; entrust third-party institutions to conduct evaluations of the business environment of all regions; propose lists of problems and suggestions for improvement; and, submit them to the provincial government for approval before notifying the regions participating in the assessment.  

The regions participating in the assessment should promptly adjust and improve the policies and measures to optimize the business environment based on the problems discovered in the evaluation.

The people’s governments at the municipal, prefectural or county level are not allowed to organize business environment assessments.

Article 7 The people’s governments at all levels and relevant departments should encourage, support, and guide the development of the non-public economy, and protect various market participants in equal use of public service resources, production factors, and equal applicable policies, and fair participation in market competition.  

The people’s governments at all levels and relevant departments should support sound development of private economy; publish the list of top 100 private enterprises in Hunan province; commend contributions to building a new Hunan; strengthen the construction of the provincial service institution for private enterprises; compile manuals of policies and measures supporting private enterprises; strengthen the deliberative and coordinating mechanism of the province for optimizing the business environment; and, improve the platforms for the commercialization and application of advances in science and technology and regional equity markets.

The people’s governments at all levels and relevant departments should encourage and promote foreign investment; construct and improve the foreign investment service system; put into effect pre-establishment national treatment and negative list system; advance trade and investment facilitation; and, protect legitimate rights and interests of foreign investors.

Article 8 A market participant shall abide by the law and regulations; observe social morality and business ethics; be honest and trustworthy; engage in fair competition; fulfill its statutory obligations in all aspects including safety, quality, energy conservation and carbon emission reduction, protection of the ecological environment, protection and economical and intensive use of land resources, protection of laborers’ rights and interests, and protection of consumers’ rights and interests; respect internationally accepted rules in international economic and trade activities; shoulder its social responsibilities; and, contribute to optimizing the business environment.

Chapter II Market Environment

Article 9 The people’s governments at all levels and relevant departments shall strictly implement a national unified system of negative lists for market access and shall not separately develop a negative list in the nature of market access. Furthermore, the people’s governments at or above the county level shall investigate, identify, and clear up various obvious and hidden barriers, and unblock feedback channels and mechanisms for handling and responding to market participants’ comments on market access barriers.

Article 10 The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments shall optimize enterprise startup services, advance the normalization and standardization of enterprise startup, and realize “one place, one-time notification, all-in-one window service, one category of application forms, one-time information collection, all-in-one website service, and one-time delivery”.

Promoting integration of enterprise startup service items into one service, including establishment and registration, business seals, invoice application (including tax-control facilities), insurance registration, payment registration of enterprise housing provident fund, and appointment for bank account opening. And the whole process can be handled online and finished at one time.  

The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments shall implement the measures including “separating permits from the business license”, and explore integrating multiple permits involved in one industry access into a comprehensive industry permit, so as to facilitate enterprises in conducting related business activities after obtaining a business license.

Article 11 The people’s governments at or above the county level shall complete the policy system for government financing guarantee support, improve the risk compensation and insurance premium subsidies mechanism, and provide various credit enhancement services for the financing of private enterprises, and small and medium-sized enterprises; promote bank-enterprise financing connection, bank-guarantee institution risk sharing, and bank-tax authority information sharing; and, encourage financing institutions to support private enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises to apply for guaranteed financing against chattels and rights such as the assignment of receivables, production equipment, products, vehicles, ships, and intellectual property.  

Financial institutions shall increase credit extensions to private enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises in accordance with the specifications of the state, reasonably build up the support of medium and long-term loans and credit loans, and ensure better access to loans; shall not raise financing costs in a disguised form such as converting loans into deposits, linking deposits with loans, changing interest into fees, and tying other financial products to loans when issuing loans; shall not require enterprises to pay related fees when introducing external data, information or ratings for the credit assessment.

The people’s governments at or above the county level should encourage venture capital investment and angel investment to support innovation-oriented small and medium-sized enterprises by equity investment and other means. In the areas where conditions permit, relevant fees arising from going public, listing, and issuing bonds, among others, may be covered by subsidies.

Article 12 The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments shall strengthen vocational education and training; deepen school-enterprise cooperation; advance industry-education integration; promote labor supply-demand matching; improve support living services for the workers and staff members in industrial parks; and, help firms navigate employment challenges.    

The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments shall strengthen talent services and provide policy support and service guarantee in the following aspects, including residence and household registration, housing purchase and renting, social security and medical insurance, education for their children, employment of their spouses, project incubation, financial support, recruitment and promotions of professional rank and title.

The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments should provide convenience for overseas talents in multi-entry visa application and customs clearance and carry out “One-step Approval Process” for the government affairs service items, including application for stay or residence and identity authentication of foreign professionals and students returning from overseas.

Article 13 The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments should encourage and support market participants to promote innovation in product development, technology, business model, and management, implement favorable tax policy for scientific and technological innovations, and improve enterprises’ capacities of independent innovation and scientific and technological achievement transformation; develop professional maker spaces and incubators for scientific and technical enterprises, and strengthen small and medium-sized scientific and technical enterprises; and, support enterprises to establish various technological innovation platforms and alliances, and enhance collaborative innovation of the upstream, midstream and downstream of the industrial chain and the large, medium, and small-sized enterprises.

Article 14 The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments shall reorganize, and release and update a list of policies benefiting enterprises; specify all factors including implementing departments, policy basis, policy duration, conditions for application, application materials, processing procedures, time limits for processing, consulting methods, implementation forms, and oversight ways; and, voluntarily and precisely share policy updates and give advice to enterprises.

Information sharing among government departments, big data analysis, and other means are encouraged to ensure that qualified enterprises directly enjoy beneficial policies without making any application. For policies benefiting enterprises that require enterprises to apply, application conditions shall be reasonably established, and the application procedures shall be simplified.

Article 15 A list-based management system on enterprise-related charges shall be strictly implemented. No entity shall establish arbitrarily charging items, raise charging rates, or expand charging scope. Extorting support, compelling donation, or any form of contribution shall be prohibited. It is forbidden and in violation of provisions to force a market participant to pay for commercial insurance. 

The substitution of financial institution letters of guarantee and guarantee insurances for cash in paying enterprise-related security deposits is promoted. Restrictions shall not be imposed on enterprises making independent choice of the way of paying security deposits in accordance with the relevant provisions. The security deposits shall be refunded within the prescribed time limit according to prescribed procedures after guaranteeing items have been handled or guaranteeing reasons have ceased.

Article 16 Industry associations and chambers of commerce are encouraged to establish complete standards for industry self-regulation and professional code of ethics to regulate the conduct of their membership.

Unless otherwise provided by any of the laws and regulations, no industry association or chamber of commerce shall compel a market participant to join or withdraw from it and to participate in an appraisal, compliance, training, evaluation, or any other activity and charge fees. No industry association or chamber of commerce shall continue to implement canceled administrative licenses directly or in disguise.

Article 17 Utility enterprises or public institutions providing public utilities such as water supply, electric supply, gas supply, drainage and sewage treatment, communication, radio and television should co-locate at a government affairs service hall; optimize the procedure for applying for a connection; and, disclose service standards, fee rates, processing time limits, and other information. The interconnection between government service platforms and self-built operation systems of utility enterprises or public institutions is promoted to achieve data sharing and joint processing.

Utility enterprises and public institutions shall not commit any of the following actions:

(1) Create, in violation of provisions, directly or in disguise, processing links, application materials, and preconditions in relation to application for a connection;

(2) Charge fees in violation of provisions for engineering construction, access to the connection, examination and acceptance and opening, facility maintenance, alternative supply, and any other link; or,

(3) Force, directly or in disguise, a market participant to receive designated services regarding construction and equipment procurement. 

Article 18 Online bid tendering, bid opening, and remote bid evaluation are promoted to gradually achieve the entire process of electronic bidding.

A market participant shall be treated lawfully and equally in bid tendering and government procurement. Any of the following circumstances shall not occur:

(1) Set any unnecessary conditions concerning qualification and eligibility, properties, and scales beyond procurement or tender purpose;   

(2) Require bidders to register and establish subsidiaries, branches, branch offices in the local area, or possess a certain area of office accommodation and pay social insurance in the local area;  

（3）Use the performance and awards from a specific administrative area or a specific industry as bidding conditions, conditions for scoring points, or conditions for successful bids for projects that must be tendered in accordance with the law; and,

（4）Set other unreasonable conditions to exclude or restrict potential suppliers or bidders.

Article 19 The people's governments at all levels and relevant departments shall honor policy undertakings make to market participants and the contracts concluded with the market participants in accordance with law, and comply with the following provisions:

(1) Formulate and implement preferential policies on investment promotion under the statutory authority;

(2) Strengthen government contract management, keep up with contract performance, and take timely measures to prevent and respond to contract risks;

(3) Do not breach or repudiate any contract by reason of adjustment of an administrative division, government reshuffle, institutional or functional adjustment, and replacement of related responsible persons;

(4) Any change in a policy undertaking or contract entailed by the state interest or public interest shall be made in accordance with the statutory authority and procedures, with fair, reasonable, and timely compensation made for any loss caused thereby to the market participant; and,

(5) Do not default on the payments of goods, projects, and services owed to market participants.

Article 20 Local government agencies should improve the facilitation of enterprise deregistration; strengthen the joint processing of tax affairs, social insurance, finance, and market supervision; and, improve the online service zone for enterprise deregistration.  

Where an enterprise has no creditor's rights or debts or has settled creditor's rights or debts; or liquidation expenses, employees' wages, social insurance premiums, statutory compensation, and tax payable (overdue fees and fines) do not occur or have been settled; and, all the investors undertake to assume legal liability for the veracity of the aforesaid situation in writing, the enterprise may withdraw from the market according to law after undergoing simple deregistration procedures.

Article 21 The people's governments at or above the county level should in collaboration with the people's courts as needed, establish and improve a coordination mechanism for enterprise bankruptcy work and coordinate the resolution of such issues as starting a bankruptcy proceeding, making settlement arrangements for the employees, handling tax-related items, disposing of assets, repairing credit, and reorganizing bankrupt enterprises.

The people's governments at or above the county level will support a bankruptcy administrator to carry out bankrupt liquidation and reorganization. When the bankruptcy administrator enquires about the information on registration materials, contribution of social insurance premiums, bank account deposit status, real estate, vehicles, and intellectual properties of the bankrupt enterprise in accordance with the law, relevant departments and financial institutions shall cooperate.

Chapter III Government Services

Article 22 The administrative management service department of the provincial people’s government and relevant departments prepare and disclose a unified catalogue of government service items and service guidelines in accordance with the requirements for reducing links, materials, time limits, and fees; uniformly specify the processing conditions, procedures, time limits, and materials of the same item at provincial, city, county, township, and village levels; advance the nondiscriminatory acceptance of the same item by the same standards in the whole province; and, promote province-wide and cross-province availability of government services.

The service guidelines' handling situations and required materials shall not contain "other", "related", or other equivocal and catch-all requirements. Relevant departments shall not require applicants to provide application materials other than those specified in the guidelines. Except as otherwise provided by laws, administrative rules, and regulations, applicants shall not be required to provide any information which can be checked and verified on an e-government service platform.  

Article 23 The people's governments at all levels and relevant departments should expand the application scope of “One-step Approval Process” in government affairs service items. For items included in the “One-step Approval Process”, the principle of “one-time notification, one category of application forms, one-time joint processing, and one-time delivery” is carried out through optimizing processing procedures, simplifying materials, achieving online and offline integration, and strengthening departmental coordination.

Article 24 With the exception of cases involving confidentiality and security, the people's governments at or above the county level should process government affairs service items in the administrative area at a comprehensive government affairs service hall in a unified manner. The government affairs service items implemented by vertical administrative departments of the central government are encouraged to be integrated at the local comprehensive government affairs service hall.

Government affairs service halls should, in accordance with the work model of “comprehensive acceptance by the front desk, categorized examination and approval by the background, and issuance of permits by comprehensive windows”, implement “all-in-one window” to integrate services; strengthen standardization administration; improve such service rules as one-time notification, first-inquired person in charge, receipt vouchers, and time-limited processing; and, improve such service modes as appointment, assistance in handling, agency services, and staggered and extended services.

Administrative agencies that have settled in the government affairs service hall shall grant corresponding power of administrative approval to service windows, and strengthen service personnel allocation and professional training.

Article 25 Government affairs services will be promoted to be processed on an “all-in-one website”. The government affairs management service department of the provincial people’s government and the administration for the construction of the provincial integrated online government affairs service platform will take the initiative to promote the people’s government at all levels and departments to achieve connection and data sharing between various government affairs service systems and the provincial integrated online government affairs service platform, to avoid second-time data entry and multi-system processing. The power of data use will be delegated to cities and counties by classification, region, and authority, to satisfy the processing needs of grassroots-level government affairs service items. Construction of both the mobile and self-service platforms will be promoted to improve online and self-service processing efficiency. Service measures for special groups including the senior will be improved.

An applicant is entitled to choose government affairs service channels, and shall not be denied of adopting offline processing method in the name of the fact that the online processing channel has opened.

Article 26 The people's governments at or above the county level shall delegate power of administrative approval in accordance with the law. Administrative agencies that have delegated power of approval items should strengthen technical support, professional guidance, and supervision and inspection for the undertaking authority.

The electronic administrative efficiency supervision system of the provincial integrated online government affairs service platform will be adopted to carry out real-time monitoring, early warning of corrections, and efficiency assessment of the whole process of various government affairs services.

A government affairs service evaluation system is improved to support enterprises and individuals in judging whether the service is up to scratch. A mechanism for verification, supervision, rectification, and feedback of negative comments and complaints is established. The results of evaluation are analyzed in a comprehensive way and applied in a more effective way, and the supervision and assessment mechanism is enhanced, so as to improve the quality of government affairs services.

Article 27 Electronic licenses, electronic seals, and enterprise electronic archives in compliance with provisions have the same legal effect as paper ones, be recognized and shared among departments and across regions, and serve as the legal basis or proofs for a market participant to apply for government affairs service items or obtain related qualifications.

Except as otherwise provided by laws, administrative rules and regulations, and department regulations, electronic licenses issued by the people’s government at all levels and relevant departments shall be collected in real time and transferred into the electronic license database. Where the organization responsible for handling the service may obtain the electronic license required for business processing through the electronic license database when an applicant applies for relevant matters, the organization shall not refuse to process or require the applicant to provide the paper license, except for the situation where the original license shall be revoked pursuant to the law.

Article 28 The provincial departments of housing and urban-rural development, natural resources, transportation, water conservancy and energy shall continue to take the lead in promoting the reform of the approval system for engineering construction projects in their respective sectors. Service guidelines, application forms, lists of application materials, and approval procedures, etc. shall be standardized according to the nature of the projects, the scale of investment, the risk level, and others.

The provincial engineering construction project approval and management system will be improved and comprehensively utilized, so that administrative licensing, filing, technical review, municipal public services, and other items involved at all stages including project approval, land use, planning, construction, acceptance inspection, and accessibility of municipal public facilities can be processed on an “all-in-one website”.

Industrial parks, development zones, and other areas with relevant conditions should explore and reform “the land list and the notification and commitment system”. Prior to land allocation or transfer, a unified list of requirements for construction land will be compiled based on regional general surveys or regional assessments. After an enterprise obtains the construction land, the notification and commitment system may be applied to approval items that are subject to regional assessments and meet the applicable conditions.

The reform of the planning and approval system for construction projects will be advanced. A list of items for review will be compiled. Efforts will be made to explore the separation of technical review and administrative approval. The province should have clear and unified lists of projects that can be processed through the notification and commitment system and that can be exempted from review in the process of applying for a construction project planning license.

Article 29 The regional assessment results will be widely applied, and should be shared among new construction projects in industrial parks at or above the provincial level. No separate assessment requirements shall be renewed for market participants in the assessed regions. The expense of regional assessment shall not be borne by a market participant.

Technical standards and rules of surveying and mapping will be standardized, and the system of the surveying and mapping results will be established for sharing at all stages including project approval, land use, planning, construction, acceptance inspection, and real property registration so as to avoid repetitive surveying and mapping.

The online, contactless, and cost-free review of construction drawings will be implemented, and the application of building information modeling technology in the review of construction drawings will be promoted.

Article 30 Real property registration agencies shall, in accordance with relevant regulations issued by the state, strengthen cooperation with the departments of housing and urban-rural development, agriculture and rural affairs, forestry, taxation, and finance, among others, and implement “all-in-one window” and multi-track processing of real property transactions, tax payments, and registration.

Relevant departments shall also shorten the whole process time limit for the construction projects from acceptance inspection to real estate first-time registration, and transfer registration, and gradually enable purchasers of newly-built commercial housing to apply for real estate ownership certificates upon the delivery of the housing.

The qualified regions shall achieve the joint handling of water, electricity, gas, maintenance funds, and other matters involved in real estate transfer registration.

Article 31 The people’s governments at the provincial, municipal and prefectural levels and their relevant departments shall review and regulate intermediary services for administrative approval, implement a standardized list-based management system, and make dynamic adjustments.

Where technical services that shall be provided by intermediaries under the authorization of administrative agencies in accordance with the regulations for administrative approval are included in the procedures and overall timing plan of administrative approval, administrative agencies shall authorize intermediaries to provide technical services, and bear service expenses on its own, instead of transferring them to a market participant. Administrative agencies and their staff shall not use their powers to designate intermediaries to provide services, nor shall they restrict the number of intermediaries through quota management.

For intermediary service projects using fiscal funds, the entrusting party shall select intermediaries from online “intermediary supermarkets”, except that public bidding or government procurement is required to choose intermediaries in accordance with laws, regulations and rules.

The competent industry department shall strengthen supervision over intermediaries.

Article 32 When certification materials are required by administrative agencies or organizations authorized by laws and regulations to manage public affairs in the application for administrative service items, the notification and commitment system for certification items shall be implemented for the convenience and benefit of the people. However, the notification and commitment system shall not be applicable to certification items that may cause relatively large risks, high costs in error correction, and irreversible losses.

The applicant will make a commitment that the requirements for licensing have been met when applying for an enterprise-related business licensing item, and the notification and commitment system can be implemented for activities that fail to meet the requirements can be corrected and risks can be effectively prevented through interim and ex post supervision.

If an applicant has a seriously bad credit record or has made a false commitment, the notification and commitment system shall not be applied before the applicant’s credit is restored. If a commitment is identified untrue, administrative agencies shall terminate the processing procedures according to law, order the applicant to make corrections within a specified time limit, cancel the administrative decision or impose an administrative penalty by operation of law, and include into the credit record.

Article 33 Cross-border trade facilitation will be promoted. The expansion of the functions of the “all-in-one window” for international trade from port customs clearance enforcement to port logistics and trade services as an entire chain, will be advanced. The “advance declaration and customs clearance” of import and export goods will be advanced. The customs clearance model of “two-step declaration” for imports, and the model of port operations and logistics organization will be optimized. Port logistics documents will go paperless, and the whole-process electronization will be enhanced.

The system of publicizing the list of charging items at ports will be implemented. Fee collection entities should make public their charging items, scope of charging, fee rates, and pricing methods through the “all-in-one window” for international trade, so as to achieve online public disclosure and online inquiry for fee rates of port, shipping agency, tidy goods, etc. Compliance costs occurred in various links of imports and exports will be reduced by means of market guidance and industry norms.

Article 34 Tax agencies shall continuously optimize tax services, promote the combined declaration and payment of relevant taxes and fees, make full use of existing and sharing information resources, simplify taxation materials and procedures, shorten the time of tax-processing, develop contactless tax and fee payment services, promote the use of electronic invoices, and remind market participants of tax payment and risk.

Article 35 The “12345” hotline of government service set up by the people’s governments at or above the county level should provide round-the-clock manual service, and improve the working mechanism that involves “one unified hotline, collection of demands, classification-based handling, unified coordination, joint efforts by departments, limited handling time, and evaluation and assessment”.

The “12345” hotline of government service at all levels shall arrange “special seats” of servicing for enterprises and optimizing business environment to intensively accept and separately process relevant claims from enterprises.

Chapter Ⅳ Regulation and Enforcement Actions

Article 36 The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments shall, in accordance with the law, compile a list of regulatory items; clarify regulatory boundaries; specify regulators, supervisees, regulatory measures, designating basis and handling methods, among others; incorporate above items into the province’s online regulatory platform for unified management. The list of regulatory items shall be dynamically adjusted and disclosed to the public.

Article 37 The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments shall implement a credit-based regulatory system covering different levels and categories, adopt differentiated regulatory measures for market participants based on their credit status and risk level, optimize the frequency of inspections for market participants with good credit records and low risk, and increase the frequency of inspections for those with records of violating law, bad credit and high risk.

Article 38 The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments should exercise accommodative and prudential regulations on new technologies, new industries, new business forms, and new models, and explore new regulatory mechanisms such as “triggered regulation” to provide them with a relaxed environment for development while setting a regulatory bottom line. In case that regulatory measures need to be taken according to law, relevant legal procedures should be followed, regulatory methods should be adapted to the characteristics of regulatory items, and the regulatory intensity should match the existing risks.

Article 39 Except for special industries and critical areas as stipulated by the state, an administrative inspection conducted through the random selection of both inspectors and inspection targets and the prompt release of results shall be implemented in the field of market regulation. A unified provincial catalogue of items subject to random inspection in this field shall be compiled. An annual work plan for joint reviews by relevant departments shall be formulated to avoid overlapping or duplicate checks by different departments. Except for the circumstances that are not suitable for disclosure according to law, the relevant departments should make public the results of random inspection and examination within 20 working days after the completion of random inspection.

Full coverage of key supervision shall be achieved on food and drug safety, safe production, and other special industries and critical areas directly affecting public security and people’s lives and health according to law, the number of vital regulatory items shall be limited, and crucial regulatory procedures shall be standardized.

Article 40 The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments shall, in reliance on the provincial online regulatory system, strengthen the collection, sharing, correlation, and integration of regulatory information, implement off-site regulation characterized by remote monitoring, mobile regulation, early warning, and prevention and control, and reduce on-site inspection.

Article 41 An administrative law enforcement agency shall conduct administrative law enforcement in strict accordance with the law. It shall not interfere with the normal production and operation activities of market participants, extort or accept money and goods, or seek illegitimate benefits. When conducting an on-site inspection, an administrative law enforcement agency shall not require the persons in charge of enterprises to accompany it if unnecessary.

The people’s governments at or above the county level shall strengthen supervision and inspection on enterprise-related administrative law enforcement actions; regularly assess and examine the performance of administrative law enforcement; review the administrative law enforcement case files; and, standardize implementation of enterprise-related administrative law enforcement.

Article 42 Relevant departments of the provincial people’s government shall, in accordance with the relevant provisions issued by the state, establish their own administrative law enforcement discretion benchmarks for administrative punishment and license; reasonably determine the scope, type, and extent of discretion; and, regulate the exercise of discretion in administrative law enforcement actions, so as to prevent arbitrary law enforcement. The benchmarks shall be disclosed to the public and be adjusted timely in accordance with the revision of laws, regulations, and rules.

When relevant departments of the provincial people’s government establish their own administrative punishment discretion benchmarks, the relevant departments shall specify the standards of giving no administrative punishments on trivial illegal acts and lighter or mitigated administrative punishments on general enterprise-related violations of law. In addition, a list of items to specify the circumstances under which the administrative penalty may be lightened, mitigated or exempted shall be drawn up to provide clear guidelines for the administrative law enforcement agencies at lower levels when conducting administrative law enforcement action.

Article 43 The people’s governments at all levels and their departments shall neither require market participants in relevant industries and sectors or relevant regions of general shutdown, nor illegally take the measure of stopping the supply of public services such as water supply, power supply, gas supply, and network service, against the market participants.

Chapter V Legal Safeguard

Article 44 When an administrative normative document, policy, or measure relating to the rights and obligations of market participants is formulated, legality review shall be conducted.

Fair competition review shall be conducted in the course of formulating rules, normative documents, other policy documents, and case-by-case specific measures related to the market participants in economic activities, such as market access and exit, industry development, investment promotion, bidding and tendering, government procurement, standards of operations, and qualification standards, among others, to prevent excluding or restricting market competition.

Where a market participant believes that the above regulations, documents, particular policies, or standards have obstructed fair market competition, the market participant may be entitled to reporting to the formulating authorities, their superior authorities, or the market regulation administration of the people’s government at the same level or above. Where the report is handled in written form and with a relevant factual basis, the aforementioned authority, or administration, shall handle the report promptly, and provide feedback results.

Article 45 The operating autonomy, property rights, and other legitimate rights and interests of market participants and the personal and property safety of enterprise operators shall be protected in accordance with the law.

The seizure, freezing, and detainment on the property of a market participant or the personal property of a business operator beyond the statutory authority, prescribed scope, sum, and time limits shall be strictly prohibited. Electronic seizure and other modern scientific and technological approaches are encouraged to minimize the adverse impact on normal production and operation activities of a market participant involved in the case.

The public security authorities and other relevant departments shall safeguard the construction, production, and operation order of market participants in accordance with the law, and promptly investigate and punish illegal acts such as soliciting projects in a forced way, maliciously stopping people from working, forcing to buy and sell, and causing a nuisance and disturbance.

Article 46 The people’s governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments shall strengthen protection of intellectual property rights for market participants; establish a punitive damages system for infringement; improve mechanisms for unified coordination of intellectual property administrative law enforcement at provincial, municipal, and county levels, cross-regional law enforcement cooperation, and case guidance on intellectual property rights protection through administrative means; promote the cohesive mechanism in between administrative and judicial protection; explore the implementation of administrative adjudication of patent infringement disputes; and, push forward judicial confirmation of administrative mediation agreements for intellectual property disputes.

The people’s governments at the provincial, municipal, and prefectural level and their relevant departments shall establish and improve the intellectual property rights public service system, the assistance mechanism for enforcement of intellectual property rights, and the early warning and analysis mechanism for intellectual property rights; promote the establishment of a comprehensive intellectual property service work mechanism in major industrial parks and zones; and, provide one-stop services for intellectual property rights agency, information and consultation, rights and interests protection, and other affairs.

Article 47 The building of a public legal service system is advanced, the content, form, and supply mode of general legal services are innovated, the public legal service resources such as lawyers, notaries, judicial appraisal, mediation and arbitration are integrated, and the quality and level of public legal services are improved with the means of public legal service centers and public legal service hotlines.

The construction of legal advisers’ team for administrative agencies and government lawyers is strengthened. In addition, lawyers are encouraged to innovate the legal service model; help market participants effectively prevent legal risks through professional legal services; and, resolve various disputes in a timely and efficient manner.

The enterprise-related notary services are optimized, the list-based system for proof materials of high-frequency notary matters is carried out, the system of notification at one time is implemented, the implementation of the system of notification and commitment is explored, and the notary proof materials is regulated and streamlined. Furthermore, under the premise of strict procedures, the notary agencies are advocated to shorten time limits. For notarization matters with simple legal relationships, clear facts, and sufficient supporting materials, the notarization is issued on the same day.

Article 48 The competent departments for optimizing the business environment of the people’s governments at or above the county level shall establish a social supervisor system for optimizing the business environment and engage industry associations, chambers of commerce, enterprises and business operators as supervisors to supervise the business environment. The people’s governments at all levels and their relevant departments shall accept the supervision and address the verified problems promptly.

Article 49 The competent departments for optimizing the business environment of the people’s governments at or above the county level may supervise the optimization of the business environment by the following means:

(1) Carry out supervision and inspection, and open and unannounced visits as planned;

(2) Learn about the situation from relevant entities and individuals, and collect and retrieve evidence;

(3) Hold regulatory talks with the persons in charge of relevant entities;

(4) Put forward suggestions to competent authorities; and,

(5) Other supervision means as stipulated under laws, regulations, and rules.

Article 50 The competent departments for optimizing the business environment of the people’s governments at or above the county level shall establish a system to accept complaints of and violation reports about impairing the business environment; implement a whole-process management mechanism of setting up a file for problems, recording problems processing, and writing off when cases are closed; give timely feedback on the results of the handling; and, accept evaluations by those who made complaints or tip-offs on handling procedures and results.

Article 51 A joint mechanism is established integrating optimizing the business environment with disciplinary inspection and supervision, auditing, and supervision, to share clues to the problems that impair the business environment.

When the competent departments for optimizing business environment of the people’s governments at or above the county level receive or discover problem clues impairing the business environment, a preliminary investigation shall be conducted. After preliminary investigation, those administrative agencies or public officials involved in discipline and law violations shall be transferred to disciplinary inspection and supervision authorities.

Article 52 The people’s governments at all levels, their departments, and any of their working staff that fail to perform their duties in accordance with the Provisions, or infringe upon the legitimate rights and interests of any enterprise; and utility enterprises or public institutions, industry associations, chambers of commerce, and intermediaries in violation of the Provisions or impairing the business environment, shall be held accountable in accordance with the laws and regulations.

Chapter VI Supplementary Provisions

Article 53 The Provisions come into force as of January 1, 2022.

“Three Hubs”: a hub of advanced manufacturing industry of national importance, a hub of technological innovation with core competitiveness, and a hub of reform and opening up in inland regions.

“Four New Missions”: to break new ground in promoting high-quality development, make progress in building a new development paradigm, demonstrate a renewed sense of responsibility in promoting the rise of central China and the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, and play Hunan’s part in the adherence and development of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era.