（English Version)公安部《境外非政府组织代表机构登记和临时活动备案办事指南》
Guidelines for the Registration and Temporary Activities of
Representative Offices of
Overseas Non-governmental Organizations within the Territory of China
Public Security Ministry
In line with the regulations of the Management Act on Activities of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations within the Territory of People’s Republic of China, the guideline is formulated for the registration and temporary activities of overseas non-governmental organizations (hereafter referred to as ONGOs) within the territory of China.
I. Registration of Representative Offices of ONGOs
1. Registration
1) Terms of Registration
ONGOs refers to the foundations, social groups, think-tank institutes and other non-profit, non-governmental social organizations, legally engaged in activities for public welfare in the fields of economy, education, science and technology, culture, public health, sports, environmental protection, poverty- and disaster-relief work. For the registration of a representative office within the territory of China, the ONGO must meet the requirements as follows:
a) it is a legally registered establishment outside the territory of China;
b) it is an independent entity able to take civil liability;
c) it contributes to public welfare in its purpose and business scope stipulated in its charter;
d) it has been in good standing outside the territory of China for over two years and in active operation;
e) it conforms to other terms stipulated by law or administrative laws and regulations.
2) Procedure of Registration
a) In line with the List of Fields of Activity, Categories of Projects, Business Administration Departments for Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (2017), an ONGO submits its application, in light of its business scope, fields and nature of activity, to the corresponding department for the latter to be its business administration department.
b) With the approval of the business administration department, the ONGO submits the required documents for registration to the administrative office of ONGOs affairs of the public security bureau of provincial government (i.e., the registration administration department) of the region where the representative office is intended to be established.
c) The registration administration department may organize a panel of expert to assess the application.
d) Once reviewed and approved by the registration administration department, the ONGO will be issued a certificate of registration and registration shall be publicly announced. Items require registration include: name of the organization, residence, scope of business, area of activities, chief representative and business administration department.
e) With the certificate of registration, the ONGO proceeds, according to law, with its tax registration, seal engraving, bank accounts opened at banks in China, and submits a copy of the certificate of tax registration, the seal pattern and the bank accounts to the registration administration department for filing (of records).
3) Documents Required for Registration
a) Application for Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 1);
b) Registration of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 2);
c) Registration of Chief Executive Officers of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 3);
d) Letter of Authorization for registration of the representative office of the ONGO;
e) Proof of legal registration of the ONGO outside the territory of China;
f) The charter of the ONGO;
g) Proof of good standing and active operation of the ONGO outside the territory of China for over two years;
h) Valid identity and resume of CEO of the representative office of the ONGO;
i) Certificate / Statement of Clean Criminal Record of CEO of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 4);
j) Proof of location of the representative office of the ONGO;
k) Proof of financial resources of the representative office of the ONGO;
l) Documents of approval of the business administration department.
4) Documents of Representative Offices of ONGOs to be Notarized & Authenticated and Procedures
The documents submitted by the ONGO, including all the proofs, the charter, the identity of the non-Chinese citizen or the resident of Hong Kong, Macao or Taiwan appointed to be CEO of the representative office of the ONGO, must be authorized according to the following procedures:
a) The identity of the non-Chinese citizen, the proof of legal registration of the ONGO outside the territory of China, the charter, the certificate of good standing and active operation of the ONGO outside the territory of China for over two years shall be notarized by the notary public or departments of the country of which he / she is a citizen (unless stipulated otherwise by law of that country), and authenticated by authorities concerned, before authenticated by the Chinese embassy / consulate in that country.
b) The identity of the Hong Kong resident, the proof of legal registration of the ONGO in Hong Kong, the charter, the certificate of good standing and active operation in Hong Kong for over two years shall be notarized by the notary public recognized by mainland China.
c) The identity of the Macao resident, the proof of legal registration of the ONGO in Macao, the charter, the certificate of good standing and active operation in Macao for over two years shall be notarized by the official notary departments of Macao Special Administrative Region or by the notary public recognized by mainland China.
d) The Taiwan resident shall submit The Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents to prove his / her identity, the proof of legal registration of the ONGO in Taiwan, the charter, the certificate of good standing and active operation in Taiwan for over two years shall be notarized by the notary public recognized by mainland China.
5) Determination of Name of Representative Offices of ONGOs
The name of the representative office of the ONGO shall consist of the following parts in the order of “the name of the ONGO”, “the site of office” and “the representative office (or agency, liaison office, etc.)”.
“Site of office” refers to the name of the administrative division at or above the county level where the representative office of the ONGO is located.
The ONGO not identifying the original site (country or region) of registration in its name shall indicate the name of the original site (country or region) of registration, i.e., “the name of the ONGO”, “the original site of registration in brackets”, “the site of office” and “the representative office (or agency, liaison office, etc.)”.
6) Determination of Area of Activities of ONGOs
The ONGO shall define its area of activities in China. The area could be either within or larger than the local provincial administrative district. The area of activity shall correlate with the scope of business as well as the actual activity of the representative office. For ONGOs with more than one representative office in China, there should be no overlap between each area of activities.
2. Change of Registration
1) Terms and Procedures
In case of change of the name, CEO, locations of office, business scope, locations of activity, business administration department of the ONGO, the ONGO shall, within 30 days upon the approval of the business administration department, apply for change of registration to the registration administration department which will issue timely approval to the ONGO that meets the requirements.
2) Required Documents
a) Change of Name
In case of change of the name of the ONGO, the ONGO shall make corresponding change in the name of its representative office:
Approval of the business administration department;
A copy of Registration Certificate of the representative office of the ONGO;
Application for Change of Registration of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 6);
Proof of change of the name of the ONGO (with notarization and authentication).
Upon completion of change of registration of its name, the representative office of the ONGO shall submit its certificate of tax registration, its seal pattern and bank accounts for another filing (for records).
b) Change of CEO
Approval of the business administration department;
A copy of Registration Certificate of the representative office of the ONGO;
Change of Registration of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 6);
Letter of Appointment of the CEO of the ONGO to be appointed (with notarization and authentication);
Registration of CEO of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 3)
Valid identity of the CEO to be appointed (with notarization and authentication);
Certificate / Statement of Clean Criminal Record (Form 4) of the CEO to be appointed.
c) Change of Locations of Office
Approval of the business administration department;
A copy of the Certificate of Registration of the representative office of the ONGO;
Change of Registration of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 6);
Proof of the new location of office.
d) Change of Business Scope and Locations of Activity
Approval of the business administration department;
A copy of the Certificate of Registration of the representative office of the ONGO;
Change of Registration of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 6).
In case of change of the business administration department as a result of change of business scope and locations of activity, the ONGO shall submit the applications for both.
e) Change of Business Administration Department
A copy of the Certificate of Registration of the representative office of the ONGO;
Change of Registration of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 6);
Approval of the previous business administration department;
Approval of the intended business administration department.
In case of change of more than one item above, there is no need to submit duplicated documents.
3. Filing (of records) for Annual Activity Plan and Annual Review
1) Filing (of records) for Annual Activity Plan
a) The representative office of the ONGO shall submit before December 31st each year its annual activity plan for the next year, including implementation of projects and use of funds, to the business administration department, fill out upon the latter’s approval Filing (of Records) for Annual Activity Plan of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 7), and submit to the registration administration department for filing (of records), with the annual activity plan attached.
b) In case of change of the annual activity plan under particular circumstances, the representative office of the ONGO shall fill out Filing (of Records) for Change of Annual Activity Plan of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 8) to the registration administration department for filing (of records).
2) Annual Review
The representative office of the ONGO shall submit before January 31st each year its annual work report of the previous year to the business administration department, fill out Year 20** Annual Work Report of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 9) upon the advice of the business administration department, and submit it to the registration administration department before March 31st for the annual review.
The annual report shall include the financial accounting report of unified national standard and audited by the accounting firm within the territory of China, details of activity, change of personnel and organization, etc. The annual report shall be made public on the official website of the registration administration department.
4. Deregistration
1) Terms of Deregistration
The representative office of the ONGO shall apply to the registration administration department for deregistration in one of the following scenarios and make a public announcement:
a) the closure of the representative office of the ONGO;
b) the termination of the ONGO;
c) the lawful deregistration or suspension of certificate of the representative office of the ONGO;
d) reasons for termination other than the above.
2) Required Documents
a) Application for Deregistration of Representative Offices of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 10);
b) Liquidation report (including the liquidation of social insurance);
c) Proof of tax deregistration, or proof of no tax registration, issued by tax authorities;
d) Proof of closure of relevant affairs, or proof of no relevant registration, issued by foreign exchange authorities;
e) Proof of closure of bank accounts;
f) Proof of return of seals;
g) The original and a duplicate of Registration Certificate;
h) Other documents required to be submitted by the registration administration department.
Upon deregistration of the representative office of the ONGO, any unsettled issues and the corresponding legal responsibilities shall be taken by the ONGO that has established the representative office.
II. Filing (of Records) for Temporary Activities of ONGOs
1. Terms and Procedures of Filing (of Records)
1) In case of temporary activities within the territory of China, the ONGO with no representative office within the territory of China shall collaborate with China’s state departments, public groups, institutions or social organizations (hereafter referred to as Chinese partners).
2) In case of the ONGO’s temporary activities, its Chinese partners shall apply for review and approval according to state stipulations and submit the required documents (of records) 15 days prior to the temporary activity to the Administrative Office of ONGO Affairs of the public security bureau of the provincial government (the registration administration department). In case of temporary activities involving emergencies such as disaster relief or rescue work, the submission period required above may be waived.
3) The registration administration department shall issue timely notification to the Chinese partners to terminate the temporary activity if the activity does not conform to the regulations stipulated in Article 5 of the Management Act on Activities of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations within the Territory of People’s Republic of China.
4) The Chinese partners shall, within 30 days upon the end of the temporary activity, submit to the registration administration department a written report on details of the activity, use of fund and other relevant issues.
5) The temporary activity shall not last more than one year and shall be submitted for new records in case of extension by necessity.
2. Documents Required for Submission (of Records) for Temporary Activities
1) Filing (of Records) for Temporary Activities of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (Form 11);
2) Proof / Documents of legal registration of the ONGO;
3) Written agreements between the ONGO and its Chinese partners;
4) Proof of project funds and financial resources of the temporary activity, bank account of the Chinese partners;
5) Documents of approval procured by the Chinese partners.
All the documents concerning the ONGO submitted above shall be notarized and authenticated.
III. Notice
1. The business administration department of the representative office of the ONGO shall be determined in line with the List of Fields of Activity, Categories of Projects, Business Administration Departments of Overseas Non-governmental Organizations (2017); in case of the business scope of the representative office involving multiple fields of activity, the business administration department shall be determined based on its major fields of activity.
2. The forms attached to this guideline are available for download and printout on the service platform of the official website of the registration administration department concerning ONGOs’ affairs: www.mps.gov.cn
3. All documents submitted shall be in A4 size, and documents in languages other than Chinese shall be attached with their corresponding Chinese versions.
4. Exchanges and cooperative activities between overseas schools, hospitals, research institutes or academic organizations in natural science and engineering technology and their Chinese counterparts shall proceed in line with the corresponding state stipulations.
5. The contact phone number of the Administration Office of ONGOs’ affairs of Public Security Bureau: 010-58186465, 58186464
6. According to this guideline and the actual local situations, the Administration Office of ONGOs’ Affairs of public security bureau of the provincial governments shall formulate the corresponding guidelines to provide guidance and service for the registration and filing (for records) of ONGOs.
上海复恩社会组织法律服务中心为境外非政府组织提供设立境内代表处和临时活动备案等专业法律服务，详细请咨询方哲律师：fangzhe@forngo.org 或致电：(8621) 6093 6919 ext. 808
FORNGO provides professional legal services for assisting overseas NGO with registration of overseas NGO representative offices, application of filling the record of temporary activities, etc.
Please contact FANG Zhe at (8621) 6093 6919 ext. 808 or fangzhe@forngo.org for more details.