With China’s “Open Door Policy”, introduced by Deng Xiao Ping in 1978,the nation welcomed and encouraged foreign investment. Since 1993, China has become the second largest FDI recipient in the world, and the single largest among developing countries. However, to protect local industry, China’s government issues a Foreign Investment Industrial Guidance Catalogue from time to time that divides industries into four categories for the purpose of foreign investment: encouraged, permitted, restricted and prohibited.

Our FDI legal team is highly skilled and able to provide "one-stop" service to foreign investors. We can advise clients on entry strategies and the selection of investment vehicles (representative office, wholly foreign-owned enterprise, equity joint ventures, and contractual joint ventures) based on the Catalogue and the client's specific needs, draft incorporation documents and internal guidelines; go through incorporation procedures with the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC) or its local agencies; negotiate and draft office and/or factory lease agreements; handle local hiring and expatriate matters with the relevant labor administration and public security authorities; apply for enterprise code, audit, and tax certificates; open foreign exchange accounts with the State Administration of Foreign Exchange; and apply for and renew business licenses from administration authorities for industry and commerce.

We maintain agood relationship with officers of the MOFTEC and its local agencies. By consulting with them and sharingour understanding regarding specific investment schemes, we are able to best structure new schemes.  These schemes include, butare not limited to, foreign investment with RMB funds, and foreign company purchasesof equity share in a local company.

We also have experienced attorneys working on FDI in China's central and western regions. We can provide advice on government financial support, tax incentives, land and mineral resource policies, as well as inspecific industrieswithin which a client may be seeking to invest.

Our FDI legal team is experienced in FDI in the areas of manufacturing, infrastructure, public utilities, real estate, domestic trade, consulting, e-commerce, education and medical industries.

Please see the other practice areas of Chinese law in which we can provide consultations below:

• Anti-dumping
• Financing
• Arbitration & Litigation
• E-Commerce
• Corporate
• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)
• Intellectual Property
• International Trade
• Mergers and Acquisitions
• Securities