Administration streamlining for better services was mentioned at least 50 times at executive meetings of the State Council over the last year. Premier Li Keqiang stressed that implementation of this policy should be fully centered on people’s well-being and needs.
There are an array of keywords about this policy, including commercial system reform, pre- and post-supervision, Internet Plus governmental services, administrative approval system reform, random inspections and information disclosure to the public, and one-stop services.
This policy brings more convenience to the people. Subscription capital system took place of the previous paid-in capital system, enabling entrepreneurs to establish companies regardless of the amount of capital they possess.
Multiple certificates have been streamlined into one, greatly relieving people’s burdens. Additionally, setting up enterprises is becoming easier, as getting hold of all certificates is no longer a prerequisite as long as the business license is issued, compounded with approval procedures simplified into filing management and one-stop services available online.
Meanwhile, more measures are also in place to further support entrepreneurs. China has abolished a total of 697 approval items over the past five years, representing 41 percent of the whole. The approval system has been replaced by a filing system, and the number of investment projects subject to central governmental approval saw a 90 percent decrease, while 95 percent of foreign-funded projects went through the filing management instead.
Additionally, 434 occupational licenses have been phased out, and a negative list for market access came into force in 2018, offering market entities of all types a level playing field.
Several measures add efficiency and transparency to the regulations. The government has put together a list of all the items of administrative fees and governmental funds, acting as a clear and solid charge standard hereafter. A list of occupational licenses further strengthens the regulation.
In addition, fairness of inspection on market entities is increased with the introduction of a principle of random checking system and disclosure of the checking results. Meanwhile, a further clarification of demarcation between the duties of law enforcement departments greatly promotes their efficiency.
According to a report by the World Bank, China rose by 18 places in the rankings of business environments and 58 places in the convenience of establishing enterprises from 2013 to 2017. In the meantime, the number of newly registered enterprises on a daily basis increased to 16,600 in 2017, more than twice the figure in 2013 (6,900).
