China to Simplify Commercial Enterprise Registration System

On June 29, the General Office of the State Council released on its website the Opinions on Accelerating the Reform of the Enterprise Registration System to "Integrate Three Certificates into One," with a stated aim of integrating the current "three certificates" - the business license issued by the administration of industry and commerce, the organization code certificate issued by the quality inspection department, and the tax registration certificate issued by the tax bureau - into "one license, one code," that is one business license affixed with a unified social credit code issued by the Administration of Industry and Commerce.

The Opinions encourage the "one license, one code" registration model to be first piloted in the China free trade zones, including Shanghai, Guangdong, Tianjin and Fujian, with full implementation throughout the country by the end of 2015, allowing for a coordinated grace period between the relevant departments for the transition before full implementation.