On 7 December 2016, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) released a draft 2016 version of the Catalogue for the Guidance of Foreign Investment Industries for public comment until 6 January 2017.
The draft was issued following the recent reform of the foreign invested enterprise (FIE) approval regime. The special administrative measures on access of foreign investments (or the Negative List) section of the catalogue will be used to determine whether foreign investments in relevant industries will be subject to the approval of MOFCOM or its local branches.
The new draft also promises to open up a significant number of restricted and prohibited sectors to foreign investors. Compared with the current version of the catalogue, which was issued on 10 March 2015, the draft catalogue reduces the number of restrictive measures – namely limitations on ownership of shares, restricted items and prohibited items – from 93 to 62.
Business Law Digest is compiled with the assistance of Baker McKenzie. Readers should not act on this information without seeking professional legal advice. You can contact Baker McKenzie by e-mailing Danian Zhang (Shanghai) at: danian.zhang@bakermckenzie.com
