Special Administrative Measures for Foreign Investment Access (Negative List) （2021 Edition）[Effective]
I. Agriculture, Forestry, Animal Husbandry, and Fishery
1.
For the breeding and seed production of new wheat varieties, the Chinese shareholding ratio shall not be less than 34%;
For the breeding and seed production of new corn varieties, Chinese investors must hold a controlling stake.
2.
Investment is prohibited in the development, breeding, cultivation, and production of rare and unique precious fine varieties under Chinese jurisdiction, including related propagation materials (covering superior genes in planting, livestock, and aquaculture industries).
3.
Investment is prohibited in the breeding of genetically modified crop, livestock, and aquatic seed varieties and the production of their genetically modified seeds (seedlings).
4.
Investment is prohibited in the catching of aquatic products in waters under China’s jurisdiction and inland waters.
II. Mining
5.
Investment is prohibited in the exploration, mining, and beneficiation of rare earths, radioactive minerals, and tungsten.
III. Manufacturing
6.
Printing of publications must be controlled by the Chinese party.
7.
Investment is prohibited in the application of traditional Chinese medicine decoction processing techniques such as steaming, frying, roasting, and calcining, and the manufacturing of Chinese patent medicines with confidential formulas.
IV. Production and Supply of Electricity, Heat, Gas and Water
8.
Construction and operation of nuclear power plants must be controlled by the Chinese party.
V. Wholesale and Retail
9.
Investment is prohibited in the wholesale and retail of tobacco leaves, cigarettes, re-dried tobacco leaves, and other tobacco products.
VI. Transportation, Warehousing, and Postal Services
10.
Domestic water transportation companies must be controlled by the Chinese party.
11.
Public air transport companies must be controlled by the Chinese party.
The investment ratio of a single foreign investor and its affiliated enterprises shall not exceed 25%.
The legal representative must be a Chinese citizen.
In general aviation companies, the legal representative must be a Chinese citizen; agricultural, forestry, and fishery general aviation companies are limited to joint ventures; other general aviation companies must be controlled by the Chinese party.
12.
Construction and operation of civil airports must be relatively controlled by the Chinese party.
Foreign investors shall not participate in the construction or operation of airport control towers.
13.
Investment is prohibited in postal companies and domestic letter express delivery services.
VII. Information Transmission, Software, and Information Technology Services
14. Telecommunications companies:
Limited to telecommunications services opened in accordance with China’s WTO commitments.
For value-added telecommunications services, the foreign shareholding ratio shall not exceed 50% (except for e-commerce, domestic multi-party communications, store-and-forward services, and call centers).
Basic telecommunications services must be controlled by the Chinese party.
15.
Investment is prohibited in internet news information services, online publishing services, online audio-visual program services, internet culture business (excluding music), and internet information dissemination services to the public (except for content already opened under China’s WTO commitments).
VIII. Leasing and Business Services
16.
Investment is prohibited in Chinese legal affairs (excluding the provision of information related to China’s legal environment).
Foreign investors shall not become partners in domestic law firms.
17.
Market research is limited to joint ventures.
Radio and television ratings surveys must be controlled by the Chinese party.
18.
Investment is prohibited in social surveys.
IX. Scientific Research and Technical Services
19.
Investment is prohibited in the development and application of human stem cells and gene diagnosis and treatment technologies.
20.
Investment is prohibited in humanities and social science research institutions.
21.
Investment is prohibited in:
geodetic surveying, marine surveying and mapping, aerial photography for surveying and mapping, mobile ground surveying, surveying and mapping of administrative boundary lines;
compilation of topographic maps, world political maps, national political maps, provincial-level political maps, national teaching maps, local teaching maps, true 3D maps, and navigation electronic maps;
regional geological mapping, mineral geology, geophysics, geochemistry, hydrogeology, environmental geology, geological disasters, and remote sensing geology, etc.
(Except where mining rights holders conduct such work within their mining rights area.)
X. Education
22.
Preschool education institutions, ordinary high schools, and higher education institutions are limited to Sino-foreign cooperative education and must be led by the Chinese party.
The president or chief administrative officer must be a Chinese citizen.
Chinese members of the council, board, or joint management committee must not be fewer than one-half.
23.
Investment is prohibited in compulsory education institutions and religious education institutions.
XI. Health and Social Work
24.
Medical institutions are limited to joint ventures.
XII. Culture, Sports, and Entertainment
25.
Investment is prohibited in news organizations (including but not limited to news agencies).
26.
Investment is prohibited in the editing, publication, and production of books, newspapers, periodicals, audio-visual products, and electronic publications.
27.
Investment is prohibited in radio stations, television stations, radio and television channels, radio and television transmission networks (including transmitting stations, relay stations, radio and television satellites, satellite uplink stations, satellite receiving stations, microwave stations, monitoring stations, and cable radio and television transmission networks), as well as radio and television video-on-demand services and installation services for satellite TV ground receiving facilities.
28.
Investment is prohibited in companies engaged in the production and operation of radio and television programs (including import business).
29.
Investment is prohibited in film production companies, distribution companies, cinema line companies, and film import business.
30.
Investment is prohibited in auction companies engaging in cultural relic auctions, cultural relic shops, and state-owned cultural relic museums.
31.
Investment is prohibited in performing arts troupes.
Disclaimer: The regulation of company registration in China is translated by FDIChina for reference only. There may be different interpretations of the Chinese version.