【重磅】《国务院关于扩大对外开放积极利用外资若干措施的通知》解读（双语）
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张丹律师，北京安杰律师事务所合伙人
中国政法大学及英国萨塞克斯大学法学学士，东南大学及美国西北大学法律硕士。自2001年起执业，主要执业领域为私募股权投资，并购，资本市场及商事争议解决。
改革开改三十年是中国经济腾飞的三十年，而外资进入中国对于促进中国制造业的腾飞更是作出了不可磨灭的贡献。随着近年来对外商投资企业税收等优惠政策的减少，以及中国原材料、劳动力、不动产等成本的上涨，加上许多领域限制外资进入，有观点认为中国环境已经不再鼓励外资在中国的发展。然而，无论是2015年三资企业法修改将外商投资企业的管理从批准制改为备案制，还是2016年发改委商务部就《外商投资产业指导目录》与《中西部地区外商投资优势产业目录》修订征求意见，尤其是采取负面清单的形式大幅删减放开原《外商投资产业指导目录》中的限制与禁止类行业，都显示中国政府坚定不移地贯彻改革开放的方针及加大加深开放力度措施的决心。
2017年01月12日《国务院关于扩大对外开放积极利用外资若干措施的通知》（以下简称“通知”）是中国政府以国务院发文的形式宣告了中国政府将在经济全球化浪潮下继续坚定不移地进一步扩大利用外资和创造内外资公平竞争环境的态度。与以往类似通知不同的是，本次《通知》所列二十项措施内容详尽，且各责任单位具体落实到位，中央地方政府各部门联动，确保《通知》得到有效执行。二十项措施可谓亮点不断，现摘取其中若干予以解读：
一是通过进一步扩大对外开放以推动制造业升级。改革开放的头二十年曾迎来中国制造业的腾飞，但那时的制造业多以粗放型的简单粗加工及三来一补业务为主。伴随着全球制造业的升级，这种简放粗放、依靠廉价资源、廉价劳动力的落后生产方式势必要被淘汰，而不断上涨的人力和各项资源成本也使得传统的中国制造正在失去优势。在这种形势下，国务院于2015年5月8日提出《中国制造2025》发展纲领，要分三个阶段在新中国成立一百年时使中国进入世界制造强国前列。而本次《通知》配合此战略，明确提出要以开放发展理念为指导，重点推进制造业、采矿业领域放宽外资准入限制。发改委、商务部在此前对《外商投资产业指导目录》2015版修订的征求意见稿中已经放开了轨道交割设备制造、摩托车制造、燃料乙醇生产及油脂加工等领域，此次《通知》进一步放宽油页岩、油砂、页岩气的外资准入，并将石油、天然气领域对外合作项目由审批改为备案制。同时明确鼓励外资投资高端制造、智能制造、绿色制造，相应放开工业设计和创意、工程咨询、现代物流、检验检测认证等生产性服务业，促进传统产业的改造升级。
二是进一步放开服务业，特别是放宽对银行类金融机构、证券公司、证券投资基金管理公司、期货公司、保险机构、保险中介机构、会计审计、建筑设计、评级服务的外资准入。在《外商投资产业指导目录》2015版修订证求意见稿中，上述领域仍然在其负面清单中，而《通知》将这些核心领域全部予以放开，显示出中国政府将改革推入深水区的巨大决心。当然具体放开的步聚措施还需要在发改委、商务部的牵头下各部门逐步落实，相信《外商投资产业指导目录》的2017版也会相应予以修订。电信、互联网、文化、教育、交通运输领域下一步也将有序放开。这些领域是我国下一经济增长点，放开外资进入、推动公开竞争将为这些领域带来先进的技术经验和活力。
三是保障、促进内外资公开竞争。应当说，在改革开放的最初，外资企业享受了许多超国民待遇，客观上造成了内资企业竞争上的某种不公平；然而伴随着外资超国民待遇的取消，内资企业尤其是大型国企央企在资源上的垄断地位突显，加之许多领域外资准入限制，近年来又有外企发声表示遭遇了某些不公平竞争。本次《通知》则试图在根本上摒弃任何对于内外资的不公平待遇。除了大幅度放开对外资准入的限制（除涉及国计民生、核心技术与国家安全的产业外，所有领域几乎都将有序放开）外，更要求各级政府在审核外资企业牌照资料和资质申请时要做到内外资企业统一标准、统一时限；外资企业与内资企业同等适用公司法，特别是同等适用关于最低注册资本的要求；各级政府不得擅自提高外资企业的注册资本要求；在政府采购招标时对内外资企业生产的产品一视同仁；各级政府制定政策不得擅自增加对外资企业的限制；同时外资企业有权与内资企业一样通过资本市场（无论是主板、中小板、创业板或新三板）进行股权或债权融资。
四是引导外商投资向中西部、东北地区进行产业转移，带动中西部、东北地区产业升级和经济发展。《通知》要求各级政府进一步做好招商引资优惠政策制订工作，并对鼓励类外资企业工业项目用地给予了全国工业用地出让最低标准70%的价格优惠。
最后，为配合前述服务业、制造业、采矿业各领域的放开，《通知》为海外高层次人才来华就业创业提供支持，要求对持有中国绿卡的外籍高层次人才创办科技型企业给予等同于中国公民的国民待遇，同时为外籍高层次人才及其家属来华办理签证或居留提供便利条件。
综上，本次《通知》的各项措施力度空前，落实具体明确。可以预见，未来三十年，符合中国产业政策的外国投资者又会迎来一个黄金时代。
Further opening and creating a fairer and more convenient environment for foreign investment——Interpretation of the Circular of the State Council on Several Measures concerning the Expansion of Opening and Active Use of Foreign Capital
China’s economy has been thriving for 30 years since the launch of the policy of Reforming and Opening, and it is undeniable that foreign investments have made an in delible contribution to the prosperity of China's economy during this process. However, with the reduction of preferential policies such as taxation policy for foreign invested enterprises, and the rising of costs of raw materials, labor and real estate, coupled with the restrictions on foreign investments in many areas, a view emerged recent years that the Chinese environment is no longer favor of foreign investments. However, both the amendment of the law on foreign invested enterprises (including Law of the People's Republic of China on Sino-Foreign Equity Joint Ventures , Law of the People's Republic of China on Sino-Foreign Cooperative Joint Ventures, and Law of the People's Republic of China on Wholly Foreign-owned Enterprises ) in 2015 which changed the administration of foreign invested enterprises , and the exposure draft of revision on Catalogue for the Guidance of Foreign Investment Industries (2015 version，the “Catalogue”) and Catalogues of Foreign-funded Advantage Industries in Central and Western China, especially the negative list of the Catalogue which significantly reduces the restricted and prohibited industries in the Catalogue, demonstrate that Chinese government is determined to unswervingly implement and further deepen the policy of Reforming and Opening.
Issued by the State Council on January 12, 2017, the Circular of the State Council on Several Measures concerning the Expansion of Opening and Active Use of Foreign Capital (hereinafter referred to as the "Circular") is an official document declaring that Chinese government will continue to and further expand the use of foreign capital, and create a fairer competitive environment under the tide of economic globalization. Different from previous similar circulars, twenty measures listed in the Circular are detailed and specific, and responsible units from central to local governments are linked together to ensure the effective implementation of the Circular. These measures are full of highlights, and we choose some of them for a further analysis.
First is the further opening to foreign investments to promote the upgrading of manufacturing industry. China's manufacturing industry developed rapidly during the first two decades of Reforming and Opening. However, such development mainly focused on rough machining, and processing & compensation trades. With the global manufacturing’s upgrading, such simple, rough and lagging processing which relies on cheap resources is bound to be eliminated. Meanwhile, the rising costs on both nature and human have made traditional Chinese manufacturing be losing its competitive advantages. On May 8, 2015, the State Council issued the "China-made 2025" strategy, which proposes that China is missioned to be the first-class powerful manufacturing country in the world by 2045. In line with this strategy, and guided with the concept of further opening and developing, the Circular specifically suggests to derestrict the foreign investments in industries of manufacturing and mining. As we notice, in the exposure version of the revision of the Catalogue, industries of rail transportation equipment manufacturing, motorcycle manufacturing, fuel ethanol production and oil process have already been open to foreign investments. The Circular further derestricts the foreign investments in oil shale, oil sands and shale gas, and changes petrol and natural gas Sino-foreign cooperation administration from approval system to record-filing system. The Circular encourages foreign investments in high-ended manufacturing, intelligent manufacturing and green manufacturing, and correspondingly opens areas including industrial design & creation, engineering consulting, modern logistics, testing & certification to promote the upgrading andtransition of traditional industries.
Second is the opening of service industry. In particular, the Circular relaxes the restrictions of foreign investments into commercial and investment banks, mutual and hedge funds management companies, futures companies, insurance institutions, insurance intermediaries, accounting and auditing institutions, and construction andrating agencies. We notice that these areas are still on the negative list in the exposure version of the revision of the Catalogue. The opening of these key areas by the Circular shows Chinese government’s determination to push the Reforming in to the deep-water areas. Of course, the implementation of opening these areas are still relying on the stimulation of regulations by all departments of government under the leadership of Ministry of Commerce and the National Development and Reform Commission. Yet it is believed the 2017 version of the Catalogue shall be revised in line with the Circular. The telecommunications, internet, culture, education, and transportation industries will also be gradually opened in the near future. As all believed that China’s next economic growth point lies in these industries, foreign investments’ entry into this market will bring more competition and vitality.
Third is to protect and promote the fair competition between foreign and domestic enterprises. At the initial of the Reforming and Opening, foreign enterprises enjoyed a lot of super-national treatment which did cause some domestic enterprises to be disadvantaged. However, with the abolition of such super-national treatment and the growth of domestic enterprises, especially the emerging of monopoly and dominant position of state-owned enterprises in resources grabbing, coupled with restrictions on foreign enterprises to enter into many industries, many foreign companies gradually think that they are disadvantaged in market competition. The Circular tries to fundamentally exclude all unfair treatment, not only relaxing the restrictions on foreign investments substantially (except those fields related to the core technology, national economy and national security, almost all fields will be released gradually), but requiring a uniform treatment to both foreign and domestic enterprises as well. For example, the Circular requires that all governments shall apply same standards and same time limit when approving the license or qualification applications from foreign and the domestic enterprises; the Company Law of the People's Republic of China, especially the legal requirement about minimum registered capital shall be same applied to all enterprises; all products, no matter produced by foreign or domestic companies, shall be treated same in government procurement; and foreign enterprises shall be entitled to the same right of being listed in capital market (whether in main board, small and medium-sized board, the GEM or the new third board) to get equity or debt financing.
Fourth is to guide foreign investments transferring from southern & eastern regions to central, western and northeastern regions, and to promote the regional industries’ upgrading and economic development. The Circular requires all governments of such regions to make every effort to stimulate preferential policies for investments. The Circular also grants a 30% price concessions to foreign invested projects which are on the encouraged list of the Catalogue on the basis of minimum price of Standard Granting Price for National Land for Industrial Use.
Finally, in line with opening all industries above, the Circular grants supports for overseas high-level talents coming to China to work and start businesses. the Circular sets up a national treatment to foreign high-level talents who come to China to set up science and technology enterprises and who hold Chinese green cards. Additionally, the Circular suggests to provide visa or residence permission convenience to foreign talents’ family members.
All in all, all measures in the Circularare detailed and specific, and shall be well implemented. It is foreseeable that the future decades will be another golden age for all foreign investments which meet the Chinese industrial policies, and these foreign investments will receive warmly welcome and continue to thrive in China.