2013 National joint annual inspection guide for foreign investment Enterprises

According to the Company Law of the People's Republic of China, Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Administration of Registration of Companies and Regulations of Annual Inspection for Enterprises, Administrative authorities in each province or municipal city shall take annual inspection on foreign investment enterprises (FIEs) registered in their administrative regions.

The way of the annual inspection for the FIEs is called Joint Annual Inspection, it is a process used by the Chinese government to determine whether FIEs have passed yearly qualifications for their continued operations in China. If FIEs do not pass the joint annual inspection, they could lose the qualification of business operation and business licenses could be cancelled or revoked. Therefore, it is very important for FIEs to take the joint annual inspection process seriously to avoid any unnecessary troubles.

According the 2013 Guide, there are SIX administrative authorities will participate this year’s inspection process. They are Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Finance, State Administration of Tax, State Administration for Industry and Commerce, Bureau of Statistics and State Administration of Foreign Exchange.

FIEs need to complete the online inspection reports and submit these reports for online assessment first. Per Azure Group’s experience, the online assessment process normally takes 10 -14 working days, however, it may take longer for the Ministry of Commerce and the Tax Administration to provide their assessment results and feedback.

Once the online assessment has passed, FIEs need to bring all original certificates, licenses and audited financial reports to the Ministry of Commerce to receive on-site review of the reports. If the review is passed, an approval seal will be stamped on the Certificate of Approval for next year’s operation in China.

Apart from the Joint Annual Inspection, FIEs also need to complete the separate annual inspection required by the Administration for Industry and Commerce and the Administration of Taxation in order to receive the approval stamps for the Business License and the Certificate of Tax Registration. 

The 2013 inspection will end on 30 June 2013. If you haven’t started the online process yet, Azure Group reminds every enterprise to start it as soon as possible. If you have any concerns with your yearly inspection process, please contact us for professional advice on ourteam@azuregroup.com.au. 

中文翻译：

根据公司法和其他相关法律规定, 每省市的行政机构应对注册在自己行政区内的外商投资企业进行年检。所谓外商联合年检，就是通过这个年检的流程来确定外资企业是否有违规操作和继续在中国经营的资格。如果年检不通过，外商有可能会失去原有的经营权限并吊销营业执照。所以，联合年检是十分重要的，艾祖尔提醒外商投资者必须重视这个过程。

根据2013年检手册，参与今年年检的行政部门分别为各地的商务部、国税局、外汇管理局、工商局、财政局、统计局。外商企业需先填写网上年检报告书和相关信息表并递交各部门预审。根据艾祖尔的经验，网上预审一般需要10 到14个工作日，其中商务部和税务局可能需要更长的时间审核。

网上预审通过后，外商应按照预审结果准备相关资料（年检报告书，批文，执照，审计报告等）到商务部指定地点做现场资料复核。复核通过，商务主管部门加盖印章并由经办人签名后方为有效。