“I thought it would be complicated for a foreign-capital enterprise to apply for a business license, but in fact it took only a single day to receive it,” said Ms. Li from Yichang Hydrocarbon Cloud Energy Co., Ltd. after receiving the license on March 1. “Via applying online in advance and with a whole-course service during registration, there is no need to go back and forth. All these boost my confidence to invest and start business in Yichang.”
This is the first foreign enterprise registration with an Apostille serving as the proof of qualification handled by Yichang Municipal Market Supervision and Administration Bureau, and the company is the first foreign-capital corporation which got registered after the Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents (hereinafter referred as the Convention) came into effect.
According to the staff of the Municipal Market Supervision and Administration Bureau, the implementation of the Convention came into force in China since 7th November, 2023, and it facilitates foreign enterprises to invest in China and frees them from verification of registration certificates by the embassies among the 125 states parties to the Convention, with the Apostilles issued by the respective foreign competent authorities instead. It is more time-saving as it used to take an average of 15 working days for embassy certification while it takes an average of 5 working days to apply for the Apostille now.
Yichang Hydrocarbon Cloud Energy Co., Ltd., a key investment project of Dianjun District, with a foreign shareholder company in Singapore, is in line with the requirements of the Convention to simplify the transnational circulation of public documents. The Municipal Market Supervision and Administration Bureau plays an active role in guiding enterprises to prepare the documents including the Apostilles as well as the whole process of application to handle business licenses rapidly, which greatly saves time and labor force for the enterprises. (Correspondents/Wang Bin & Zhao Chang )