New Rules Impact Individual Income Tax Liabilities in China

1 July 2011
On 30 June 2011, China’s National people’s Congress announced some major changes to the collection of individual income tax (IIT). These will undoubtedly have a large impact on employees but could also influence the payment practices of foreign-invested companies in China. The new rules will be implemented after the summer, on 1 September 2011. 1. […]
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Due Diligence - the First Step to M&A Business in China

19 April 2011
This article is an extract from Chapter 8 (Mergers and Acquisitions) of “Chinese Commercial Law: A Practical Guide”. Published in October 2010 by Kluwer Law International, author Maarten Roos (Managing Director of R&P China Lawyers) wrote this book for foreign managers with operations in China. It is available through the publisher (www.kluwerlaw.com) or in online […]
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Purchasing Colonial Religious Property in China

19 April 2011
Recently, one of our clients consulted us on the purchase of an old house located in Shanghai. After investigating its ownership, we found that the house was in fact an old colonial property belonging to a catholic group. As a result, we had to advise our client that under present PRC laws and practices, it […]
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Risky Business: China Issues New Rules on Permanent Establishment Risk for Foreign Business in China

2 April 2011
Many foreign companies are unaware that their business may be subject to Chinese corporate income tax if such business creates a Permanent Establishment (PE) in China. In a recent notice, the State Administration of Taxation clarifies in great detail how PE conditions apply to a foreign company’s domestic activities, and gives local tax bureau’s better […]
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China Strengthens Administrative Enforcement of Patent Infringements

2 March 2011
China’s patent owners have two legal remedies to tackle infringements: the civil lawsuit or the administrative action. However, since administrative departments lost the authority to decide on compensation for damages of infringement under the amended PRC Patent Law of 2001, the number of administrative actions has gradually decreased. This may be about to change. Administrative […]
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China's Turnover Taxes Revised

22 February 2011
After the Enterprise Income Tax of the People’s Republic of China on 1 January 2008 unified China’s corporate income tax system, China has since the start of this year implemented a second wave of tax reforms, this time involving the three types of turnover taxes: BT (business tax) – levied on service income, the transfer […]
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Conflicting Intellectual Property Rights

20 February 2011
Businesses around the world have been receiving phone calls, faxes, and emails from Chinese domain name registration companies, with news that a third party is trying to register a domain name with the same name as their own name/trademark. These businesses are advised that to protect their rights, they should act quickly to register their […]
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SAIC to Penalize Fraudulent or Unfair Contracts

20 February 2011
Foreign companies and their subsidiaries that source from or distribute to businesses or consumers in China are wise to confirm their transactions with Chinese counterparts in a detailed commercial contract. This will not only ensure there is clarity on the rights and obligations of the parties, but the more details are agreed upon on paper, […]
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Increased Penalties for Invoice Fraud

20 February 2011
In China, a simple receipt does not suffice to record a purchase in a company’s accounting books. Only official tax invoices (called fapiao in Chinese) are accepted, making fraud with these invoices a particular problem to (foreign) businesses operating in China. In recent years, efforts to combat invoice fraud have been intensified, as exemplified by […]
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Pursuing Claims in Chinese Employment Disputes

20 February 2011
In a recent case, a German-invested company in Shanghai terminated the employment agreement with one of their managers, but then failed to pay compensation as agreed in the termination agreement. Settlement negotiations failed, and so the manager had no choice but to turn to arbitration. With our help, he claimed for compensation due under the […]
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