Every company registered in China shall apply for a business license during its incorporation. The business license is a certificate issued by the State Administration for Market Regulation (the ‘’SAMR’’) used as the official proof of incorporation of the company and providing preliminary identity information of the entity.
In order to improve the business environment along with the need to avoid physical contact due to the Covid-19 global pandemic, the Chinese authorities have recently implemented the new Electronic Business License (the ‘’E-Business License’’). Following the Circular of the State Administration for Market Regulation on Issuing the Administrative Measures for Electronic Business Licenses (for Trial Implementation) released in December 2018, the E-Business License has been officially launched last year.
This new measure aims at easing the incorporation procedure in China which can be complex and time-consuming since several authority approvals requiring submission of application documents are necessary.
It is worth to notice how the E-Business License has the same legal authority as the paper business license. Therefore, it is considered as a legal certificate proofing the company’s incorporation and can also be used for identification purpose as well as for the electronic signature procedure. Moreover, applying for the E-Business License will open the possibility for the legal representative to authorize other individuals to handle applications or procedures on behalf of the company. This option will certainly help foreign companies to complete procedures involving employees or third parties.
Overall, although the E-Business License has been recently implemented, we believe that in the near future foreign investors will be required to apply for the said digital certificate during the incorporation procedure of their future entity in China or while completing mandatory procedures. To this matter, Orcom C&A would be happy to assist your company with the application for the E-Business License and therefore get you ready for the future.
