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Hainan Free Trade Port 2020 Negative List for Foreign Investment Admissions Published
Hainan Free Trade Port relaxes access to foreign investment (Rui Finance)
Jiangdong New District, Haikou City, Hainan Province is one of the key parks of the Hainan Free Trade Port. Local fish ponds were turned into wetland parks by bringing fishing back to moisture and river dredging. The picture shows the comprehensive treatment project of the Furong River in Jiangdong New District. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Guo Cheng.
The National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Commerce issued the “Special Administrative Measures for Foreign Investment Access of the Hainan Free Trade Port (Negative List) (2020 Edition)” on December 31, 2020, which will be implemented on February 1, 2021. The relevant one pointed out that the 2020 version of the negative list of free ports has a total of 27 items, which are further reduced compared to the 33 and 30 items of the 2020 version of the negative lists of access to national foreign investment and free trade pilot zone, and some items are partially liberalized. Help improve the level of investment liberalization and facilitation of the Hainan Free Trade Port. In the future, the negative list of the Hainan Free Trade Port is expected to be further shortened.
Eliminate restrictions on foreign investment in multiple fields
Free trade ports have the highest level of openness in the world today. According to the relevant person in charge of the National Development and Reform Commission, in light of the negative list of foreign investment access in national free zones and pilot launched in June 2020, the 2020 version of the negative list of free ports has measures more open, which are reflected mainly in three aspects.
—— Promote the opening of key areas such as telecommunications and value-added education. Expand the opening of value-added telecommunications services, remove restrictions on foreign investment in online data processing and transaction processing businesses, and allow companies with registration of entities and service facilities in the Port of Free Hainan Commerce develop Internet data centers and content distribution network services throughout the free trade port and internationally, and promote Hainan collect data to develop a digital economy. Allow foreign high-level science, engineering, agricultural and medical universities and vocational colleges to run schools independently in the Hainan Free Trade Port, and support the construction of the Hainan International Educational Innovation Island.
—— Expand the opening of business services. In the field of legal services, foreign investors can invest in some non-litigation business legal matters related to Hainan, in order to better meet the needs of foreign-related legal services in the fields of trade, investment and finance. from Hainan Free Trade Port. In the field of consultation and research, with the exception of radio and television listening and viewing surveys that must be controlled by the Chinese side, foreign investment in the field of market research is canceled; foreign investment in social surveys is allowed, and the share of Chinese participation is not less than 67%, and the legal representative must have Chinese nationality.
——Relaxes the entry of the manufacturing and mining industries. In the manufacturing sector, the national and pilot free zones “will remove the restriction on foreign participation in passenger car manufacturing in 2022 and the restriction that the same foreign company may establish two or fewer joint ventures in China to produce passenger car products. similar vehicles “in advance. , To support the opening of the auto industry of the Hainan Free Trade Port first. In the mining industry, the ban on foreign investment in rare earths, radioactive minerals and tungsten exploration, extraction and beneficiation will be canceled, and the management will be implemented according to the same measures in the mining industry of the state and Hainan province.
New foreign investment projects are accelerating to settle in Hainan
On June 1, 2020, the “Master Plan for the Construction of the Hainan Free Trade Port” was published, marking Hainan’s transition from the construction of a pilot free trade zone to the construction of a free trade port. . Since the publication of the master plan, foreign investment has accelerated the deployment of the Hainan Free Trade Port.
A few days ago, the fourth batch of key Hainan Free Trade Port projects was signed, including 14 foreign-funded projects, involving culture and sports, international settlements, financial technology and other fields. According to the data, from June 1, 2020 to November 20, 2020, Hainan added 671 companies with foreign investment, an increase of 230% year-on-year. Renowned foreign companies like Tesla, EDF, Kovosch, Hungarian Savings and Commercial Bank, etc. Seated in.
The National Development and Reform Commission emphasized that the general direction of formulating the 2020 version of the negative list of free trade ports is to improve the level of investment liberalization and facilitation of the Hainan Free Trade Port, and promote the implementation of the more China’s high level of internationally competitive foreign investment access policies in the Hainan Free Trade Port. .
Zhang Jianping, deputy director of the Academic Committee of the Ministry of Commerce Academy and director of the Regional Center for Economic Research, told our reporter that the “ultra-short” negative list released this time focuses on the needs of the Hainan Free Trade Port to develop tourism, modern service industries and high-tech industries. , Promote the opening of advanced manufacturing, business services, education, value-added telecommunications and other fields. “These are all foreign capital concerns. The relaxation of market access in these areas has sent a positive signal for China to expand and open up, which may attract more foreign capital to the Hainan Free Trade Port, promote agglomeration. of high value-added industries and build the Hainan Free Trade Port. To become an important gateway that leads China to open up in the new era, forming a new growth pole and a radiation pole. “
Continue to reduce the negative list of Hainan Free Trade Port
The 2020 Negative List of Free Trade Ports will be implemented on February 1, 2021. How to ensure its implementation? The National Development and Reform Commission noted that it will work with the Ministry of Commerce and other departments and Hainan province to effectively implement the Hainan Free Trade Port negative list to ensure that the new opening measures are implemented in a timely manner. Currently, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress is formulating the “Hainan Free Trade Ports Law”, which involves the liberalization and facilitation of investments and other aspects, which will provide a stronger legal guarantee for the implementation of the negative list of the Hainan Free Trade Port.
“It is necessary to closely link the administration and decentralization with the implementation of the negative list. Especially for the service industry, considering its high dependence on rules, certifications and qualifications, in the process of implementing the negative list, it is necessary to avoid opening up to foreign capital. There are also “revolving doors and spring doors.” “Zhang Jianping said that in addition, the Hainan Free Trade Port is located in the center of the free trade zone of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP), and should actively connect with the RCEP system rules. At the same time time, Sino-European investment agreement negotiations have been completed recently. Hainan Free Trade Port should fully integrate its rules and agreements to promote investment liberalization and facilitation, learn from the experience of free trade ports accelerate the formation of internationally competitive open policies and systems, and create more innovations Attractive environment for investment and business.
“We will continue to reduce the negative list of the Hainan Free Trade Port, and gradually realize the freedom and convenience of investment in the Hainan Free Trade Port,” said the head of the National Development and Reform Commission.
Qiu Haifeng
