Fresh boons to market entities amid better business environment

Governments should not only help market entities survive, but also energize them through reforms to streamline administration, delegate powers and improve the services, Premier Li Keqiang said when meeting with Chinese and foreign reporters at a press conference after the closing of this year's two sessions in May.

Premier Li vowed to build a market-oriented, law-based international business climate in which market entities could compete in a fair way, with unreasonable restrictions removed.

In a circular issued on July 21, the General Office of the State Council announced moves to improve China’s business environment and create a level playing field for market entities by removing unreasonable barriers and offering better services to them.

Optimize launching of new projects

1. If conditions permit, government departments should synchronously conduct evaluation and review and jointly provide feedback after project contractors submit reports on feasibility, land use pre-examination, site selection, environmental impact and safety assessment, in order to accelerate project implementation.

2. The national online review and supervision platform for investment projects should optimize review procedures, allowing online printing of approval documents.

3. Small low-risk projects for new construction, renovation or expansion can be launched once government departments issue related certificates based on land acquisition by enterprises, their eligibility and undertakings made by them.

4. Whole-process review and approval of construction projects online should be expedited, with required data submitted collectively and ensuing review and approval results communicated immediately.

5. Before the end of 2020, approval services with clear standards and fees should be provided online, covering administrative permission, filing, assessment and review, intermediary services, and municipal utility services.

6. Technical standards and rules for surveying and mapping should be unified, accompanied by all-stage information sharing and alignment in surveying and mapping results.

Lower threshold

7. Market entry threshold should be further lowered for engineering construction, education, medical service, and sports, among others, through the removal of unreasonable barriers concerning qualifications, funds, personnel, location and other aspects of enterprises.

8. Studies should be carried out on implementing a filing-based system for environments and operations of clinics, and supplies of medical services should be expanded.

9. Efforts should be made to remove qualification examination for road freight transport drivers, except those related to transportation of dangerous goods.

10. University students in veterinarian-related majors should have easy access to tests that can qualify them as veterinarians.

11. The administration authority over major industrial products production licenses should be delegated to the provincial level by the end of this year.

12. Restrictions over registering the premises should be relaxed for micro and small enterprises and self-employed businesses.

13. Operation sites should be allocated to mobile street vendors as appropriate.

14. With food safety ensured, convenience store chains may be subject to lower local approval requirements for the size of food processing areas, and trials aimed at shifting food business licensing (pre-packaged foods only) to a filing-based system should start.

Simplify procedures

15. Approval procedures for cross-regional tour performances should be simplified through methods such as online approval.

16. Local authorities should cancel unreasonable regulations on the location of registration of sellers of secondhand vehicles and simplify their purchase registration procedures.

17. Local governments should conduct the reform of "one business license, multiple operation sites", and cut the red tapes for enterprises to set up branches.

18. The unemployment insurance transfer procedure should be unified, and the applying process should also be simplified.

19. Items that required mandatory announcements on newspaper should be explored to be abolished or adjusted to free online announcements.

20. Reform on "one industry, one permit" should be promoted. The government will integrate multiple permits concerning market access to an industry into one, achieving operation with one permit and cross-regional recognition.

21. Application procedures for tax preferential policies such as value-added tax will be simplified, and approval procedures will no longer be required in principle.

22. By the end of 2020, time for reviewing trademark registration will be shortened to four months on average.

Reduce burdens

23. Platform enterprises are encouraged to reduce the commission fees and charges for small and micro enterprises, and they are also not allowed to charge high service fees.

24. In areas such as project construction and government procurement, insurance and letter of guarantee could replace cash as the security deposit to reduce the enterprises' cash flow pressure.

25. Commercial banks are encouraged to support financing for medium and small businesses with their movable properties and rights as guarantees such as accounts receivable, production equipment, products, vehicles, ships and intellectual properties.

26. Mutual identification on job seekers' medical examination results should be promoted to reduce their burdens.

Online settlement

27. All procedures for starting a business should be completed online, and the system for enterprises to register and verify their names should be done electronically, and the application of electronic business licenses and seals should be accelerated in service fields such as taxation, human resources and social security, housing provident fund and commercial banks.

28. By the end of 2020, value-added tax invoices should be online, and major tax services should also be offered online.

29. Data sharing among departments such as tax administration, customs administration and the People’s Bank of China should be improved to speed up the tax rebate process and promote paperless document registration.

30. Efficiency of registering trademarks as well as the frequency of updating data on the online trademark service system should be increased, and the system's smart search function should be improved. Online automatic comparison of trademark patterns should also be advanced.