According to the Circular on Issues Concerning Changes in the Registration Form for FIEs issued by the industrial and commercial bureau of Sichuan, there will be major changes in the wording of FIE registration forms and documents required with effect from 1 January 2005.

    According to the latest regulations, the wording of "signature of chief representative to be appointed" or "signature of chief representative" in the application form for the establishment, alteration of registration details and deregistration of resident representative offices of foreign enterprises will be changed to "signature of authorised officer of foreign enterprise", and the wording of "signature of person-in-charge to be appointed" or "signature of person-in-charge" in the application form for the commencement of business, alteration of registration details or deregistration of foreign enterprises in China will also be changed to "signature of authorised officer of foreign enterprise".

    The circular also stipulates the following changes. The state-owned assets property rights registration record, approval document for project proposal or feasibility study report, and photocopies of proof of identity of directors and supervisors will be removed from the list of documents required when applying for the establishment and registration of FIEs. There is no need to submit credit proof if the registered capital is in place. A 90-day validity is no longer required for credit reports. For Chinese investors which are limited liability companies, assurance that their investment outside China will not exceed 50% of their net asset value will not be required. For the change of registration details regarding the equity of FIEs, if the new shareholder is a limited liability company, assurance that its accumulated investment will not exceed 50% of its net asset value will not be required; and in the case of equity transfer by the Chinese party that used state-owned assets as investment, documents from state asset administration departments confirming the evaluation of these assets will not be required.