Registration Requirements: none

Corporate Structure: flexible

Market Access: openness

Industries: trading, import or export businesses, if needed

Minimum Capital: 20,000 USD

Company Types: LLC, WFOE, INC

Process: 30 working days (business registration 20 workdays, plus import export permits 10 workdays).

Published by: SMEsChina.com

 

A Chinese trading business entity, refers specifically to the commercial activities managed by a corporation through purchasing, selling, supports of after sale, and other business activities to deal with daily transactions, orders. If you are deciding expanding product marketing in mainland China, as a trader you have to learn the procedure of opening a trading enterprise and related regulations through this guidance step by step.

 

Since 2019, a lot of policies on VAT tax, personal tax laws and corporate income tax published and implemented at the Chinese new year which is attracting more and more foreign traders, brokers and international organizations to bring their brands and creative products to the Mainland market. Whatever trading businesses you plan to establish here, you must have 2 conditions and requirements to understand, then can be approved to run businesses in China.

 

Hereinafter, you should collect and prepare these required documents to start a business in China. Trading companies can be approved to do domestic trading, international transactions ( importers and exporters ), and relevant post-sales services and technical assistance.

 

1st Condition, confirm registration information, must include:

 

1). Corporate structure, you have to decide who will be the shareholder(s), and who is the legal representative ( executive director ) and supervisor, shareholder(s) can be individuals or existed enterprises registered in other countries, legal representative and supervisor must be individuals ( one person cannot be appointed to both positions ).

2). Confirmation of information for your business registration, include registered capitals, shares and shareholders, business activities, commercial office address, secretary, accountant, this information can be confirmed and collected by online communications with SMEsChina depend on your decisions.

2nd Condition, prepare required documents to submit verification:

 

Requirements of opening a trading company in China, you have to provide valid identification documents and submit to local market and supervision department ( known as: Industrial and commercial Administration Bureau ). Documents include legal notarized files for shareholder(s), legal representative and supervisor depending on your corporate structure.

Once you have already prepared these legal documents to identify their authenticity and legitimacy, wherever you are, you can start the process of company formation smoothly, comfortably and easily through SMEsChina’s assistance. ( Do not need to visit or interview personally ).

 

Processing of opening a Chinese business

There a few differences with consulting or services industries, a trading company needs an additional procedure to apply for the qualification of foreign trade and import and export licenses and permits to obtain an approval to operate international businesses and transactions. These extra programs need 10 workdays, plus the process of business setting up, total needs 30 working days through the 4 steps as following.

 

Step 1. Application for business registration

 

1). Approval name of corporation with both languages.

2). Identify required documents.

3). Obtain business license and company stamps.

4). Obtain certificate of registration of the foreign enterprises.

 

Step 2. Bank account opening

 

1). Identify legitimacy of the corporation, submit application forms.

2). Check the authenticity of legal representative and licensed files.

3). Obtain corporate bank account details, and internet banking.

 

Step 3. Tax registration and VAT

 

1). Registration of qualification of corporate taxpayer.

2). Publish VAT invoices machine and tax system.

3). Obtain a general taxpayer qualification ( VAT ).

 

Step 4. The Customs registration

 

1. Certificate of registration issued by the Customs.

2. Business certificate of international trading.

3. Import and export licenses and permits.

4. Electronic port IC cards and system, machine, known as: e-port system.

 

What mercantile activities and trading scope

A large amount of business activities can be written and submitted to obtain registration approval depending on your situations of the corporation. Whether you are engaged in domestic or international businesses ( or both ), you should choose an available and acceptable list of products and related after-sales services to submit in terms of New Policies of China foreign investment industrial guidance catalogue.

 

From our experience, you may select business scope from SMEsChina’s industrial guidance simply and quickly with this link How Selecting Business Scope ( you can list activities from our cross-industry selections ), but you have to understand the written rules, if you want to write the pen, paper as the list, you must list stationery or office supplies, in a similar way, if your trading company operates chips, coffee beans, chocolates, sausages, you should list the business scope as food. Why selecting main categories? Because it can choose and write more industrial selections and Chinese characters.

 

What is cross industrial selections: that means you can select different business activities from multiple industries. For example, you can choose mechanical and electrical equipment ( except for special equipment ), sales, installation, maintenance from selection 1, also can choose the advertisement design, production, agency, publication from selection 2, or other industrial selections.

 

What products need special permits: licensed permits include multiple industries, such as medical apparatus and instruments, medicine distribution, hazardous chemicals business, food business, alcohol sale, dairy products, manufacturing industry, precursor chemicals. Certainly, some service industries also need to apply for industrial permits include, cultural management, internet culture, pawnbroking, auction industry, entry and exit services, study abroad agency, tourist industry, catering services, transport and logistic, filmdom, radio and television programs and television drama production, printing industry, publishing industry, commercial performance institutions, etc.

 

Import permits, import licenses are the certificates of qualification of products importing issued by Ministry of Commerce of PRC, they are the valid documentations of the Customs clearance through licensing management and product supervision of import restrictions. Include 2 types, automatic import licensing and non-automatic import licensing in terms of the HS codes of the Customs.

 

Don’t worry, please. SMEsChina online consultants taking care of everything for your application of importing and exporting, if you have any troubles of selecting business activities, do not hesitate sharing to us please.

The author of this guidance.