Source: People's Daily
02-05-2009 08:15
Foreign trade operators will be allowed to register at city-level commerce authorities this year, so that it will be easier for them to enter the business, China’s Ministry of Commerce announced on February 2.
The document issued by the Ministry on Jan. 23, 2009, reiterated the criteria and procedures of establishing registration offices at local level.
So far, China’s Ministry of Commerce authorized 228 local commerce departments in China (among which 180 are at prefecture and city levels) to offer registration for foreign trade enterprises, and 313,377 enterprises had been registered with these local departments by the end of 2008.
The registration makes no barrier for anyone to get the rights of doing business and is used only as information to facilitate the regulation of the sector by the government.
In line with its WTO commitment, China fully opened its foreign trade operation rights in 2004. According to the revised version of the Foreign Trade Law, which came into effect on July 1, 2004, the approval system for foreign traders is replaced by registration, and thresholds for qualification are removed. The business is also open to individuals once they go through legal procedures.
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Editor:Xiong Qu