East China

American Express Extends Reach to China’s e-Payment Market

By Vivian Ni

Jan. 30 – Although China has made it more difficult for foreign investors to enter its e-payment sector over the last year, the potential profits offered by the country’s massive consumer population are proving too attractive to miss. Recently, American Express – the U.S. financial service provider that has long considered China as its critical strategic market – established a new partnership with a growing Chinese payment service company, Lianlian Group, by means of equity investment and technology authorization.

AmEx said on January 18 that it will license its digital wallet Serve – a next-generation commerce technology developed to target lower-end consumers – to the Zhejiang-based Lianlian Group. The Chinese company will be allowed to apply the technology in its payment services, but will not necessarily use the Serve brand. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, East China, Markets, Technology | Tagged American Express, China Online Payment Lisence, China Online Payment Market, China Third-party Payment Market, Lianlian Group, People's Bank of China, Tencent TenPay | Leave a comment

Shanghai Offers Fiscal Support to Promote VAT Reform

Jan. 30 – Shanghai’s newly included value-added tax (VAT) payers (pilot enterprises) may be able to receive fiscal compensation if they see increases in their actual tax burdens under the new tax scheme, local authorities said recently.

The focus of the ongoing VAT reform is to reduce duplicate taxation and extend supply chains that are eligible for VAT deductions, the local government emphasized. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, East China, Finance, Tax and Accounting, Legal and Regulatory, Regulatory Update | Tagged China VAT, Shanghai Fiscal Compensation to VAT Reform, Shanghai Pilot Taxpayers, Shanghai VAT Reform | Leave a comment

Zhejiang to Invest RMB2 Billion into Oceanic Economy

Jan. 17 – In order to exploit its massive “oceanic productivity potential,” the Chinese eastern coastal province of Zhejiang is looking to establish a special RMB1 billion fund for the development of its oceanic economy, and another separate RMB1 billion fund for the promotion of its oceanic industries.

The RMB2 billion investment will mainly focus on the advancement of emerging oceanic industries, the development as well as protection of important islands, the expansion of bulk commodity exchange centers, and the improvement of port logistics information interconnection as well as interchange throughout Northeast Asia. Continue reading →

Posted in East China, FDI and Foreign Trade, Shipping & Logistics | Tagged China Bulk Commodity Exchange, China Logistics, China Oceanic Industries, China Shipping, China Uninhabited Island Development, China Zhejiang Oceanic Economy, Northeast Asia Port Logistics, Zhejiang Zhoushan Archipelago | Leave a comment

China Specifies Services Eligible for Zero VAT Rate and VAT Exemption

Jan. 10 – The beginning of China’s pilot value-added tax (VAT) reform has aimed to make transport services and a list of modern services in pilot areas subject to VAT, instead of business tax. Recently, as a new update to the implementation details of the ongoing VAT reform, China’s Ministry of Finance (MoF) and State Administration of Taxation (SAT) clarified that some of these VATable services can enjoy zero VAT rate and VAT exemption.

Zero VAT rate
According to the “Circular on the Application of Zero VAT Rate and VAT Exemption on VATable Services (caishui [2011] No. 131)” issued on December 20, 2011, the following VATable services provided by taxpayers in pilot areas are subject to the zero VAT rate: Continue reading →

Posted in Business, East China, Finance, Tax and Accounting, Legal and Regulatory, Regulatory Update, Shipping & Logistics | Tagged China Tax, China Tax Exemption, China Tax Rebates, China VAT Exemption, China VAT Reform, China Zero VAT Rate, Deduction and Refund, Shanghai VAT Reform | Leave a comment

Shanghai SAFE Requires Additional Documents for Forex Settlement

Jan. 3 – The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) issued the “Supplementary Circular on Issues Relating to Improving Business Operations with Respect to the Administration over Payment and Settlement of Foreign Exchange Capital of Foreign-invested Enterprises” (Huizongfa [2011] No. 88, “Supplementary Circular”) on July 18, 2011, which came into effect on August 1, 2011. Our previous posting on the content of the Supplementary Circular can be found here.

On July 29, 2011, the Shanghai branch of SAFE issued a Circular (“Shanghai Circular”) requiring designated foreign exchange banks to comply with the Supplementary Circular. However, for small-amount invoices under RMB2,000, the Shanghai Circular states that an enterprise applying for foreign exchange capital settlement only needs to submit written documents guaranteeing the authenticity of the small-amount invoices, signed by the legal representative and stamped with the official seal of the enterprise. This requirement replaces the Supplementary Circular’s requirement of providing hard copies of results of the tax department’s Internet invoice authenticity inquiry system stamped with the official or financial seal of the enterprise. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, East China, FDI and Foreign Trade, Finance, Tax and Accounting, Legal and Regulatory, Regulatory Update | Tagged Foreign Exchange Settlement, Shanghai, State Administration of Foreign Exchange | Leave a comment

China Visas Explained

China clamps down on expats working in China – but which visa type is required?

Dec. 30 – China currently issues nine different types of visa for various purposes, however for foreign nationals working in China, only the Z visa is valid. Here we provide details on all of the different types of visas and their applications and permitted uses as follows. A summary on the Z visa situation and the required supporting documentation is provided at the end.

The nine types of Chinese visas fall into two categories, namely, ordinary and diplomatic visas. The ordinary visa consists of eight types, which are respectively marked with Chinese phonetic letters F, L, Z, X, C, J-1, J-2, G and D. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, East China, FDI and Foreign Trade, Legal and Regulatory | Tagged China Business Visit Visa, China C Visa, China Crewmember Visa, China D Visa, China Diplomatic and Service Visa, China F Visa, China G Visa, China J Visa, China Journalist Visa, China L Visa, China Residence Permit, China Residence Visa, China Student Visa, China Tourist Visa, China Transit Visa, China Visa, China Work Permit, China Work Visa, China X Visa, China Z Visa | 16 Comments

Strong Showing for Chinese Cities on List of Asia-Pacific Cities of the Future

Dec. 22 – Chinese cities performed well in the new ranking of the Asia-Pacific Cities of the Future 2011-12 published by FDI Intelligence magazine, a bi-monthly news and foreign direct investment (FDI) publication owned by The Financial Times based in London.

The FDI future cities survey is carried out across 141 Asia-Pacific cities every two years. The ranking is made according to six criteria: economic potential, human resources, cost-effectiveness, quality of life, infrastructure and business friendliness. Continue reading →