New Negative List to Cover Expanded Geographic Region

On April 12, the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) issued an updated investment negative list. The new negative list, officially called the "Draft Market Access Negative List (Trial Version)", will first be implemented in Shanghai, Tianjin, Guangzhou, and Fujian, marking a major geographic expansion from the previous list, which was restricted to the free-trade zone areas. It should be noted that while the negative list was only posted publicly on April 12, it was dated March 2, meaning that it was likely released to internal stakeholders more than a month ago. 

According to the official NDRC and MOFCOM announcement, the new negative list now has 328 sections, including limited market access in 232 areas and outright prohibition of market access in 96 areas.  

In the sections most relevant to the information communications technology (ICT) industry, there do not appear to be any new openings for foreign enterprises. In particular, chapter 9 entitled "Information Transmission, Software and Information Technology Services" states that enterprises are prohibited from operating any telecommunications businesses without a relevant license, with services defined in the recently amended Telecoms Service Classification Catalog (2015 version).

While the negative list is technically a draft version, and the announcement welcomes industry feedback, there does not appear to be a standard channel for companies or associations to submit formal comments. USITO has submitted a request for clarification on this matter, and will keep members abreast of any developments.