The foreign representative office as a resident representative office of foreign enterprise in China. The examination and approval procedure in China for a representative office is most simple, there is no requires for registered capital. But a representative office cannot carry out operating activities directly. It can only carry out business liaisons, product introduction, market research and technical exchange on behalf of an offshore company within the scope of their operations. A representative office does not qualify as a legal entity. The offshore company should undertake the legal liability that it represents.

A representative office can only carry out business liaisons, product promotion, market research and technical exchange on behalf of an offshore parent company within the scope of operations of its headquarters and cannot carry out operating activities directly in its own capacity.

• Notary proof of business subsisted for two years or above of the offshore parent company
• Notary proof of creditworthiness issued by bankers of the offshore parent company
• Notary proof of memorandum or organization agreement of the offshore parent company
• Notary proof of authorized signatory of the offshore parent company and notary copy of his/her passport
• Notary proof of appointment letters of the chief representative of the offshore parent company
• Curricula vitae of the chief representative
• Notary copy of the passport of the chief representative (A copy of Z-visa of the chief representative is required for certain regions of the PRC)
• Four 2-inch color photographs of the chief representative
• Lease agreement or certificate of title in relation to the premises

The term of residence of the foreign representative office is three years and shall not exceed the subsisting period of the foreign company. The representative office can apply for extension before expiry of term. In doing so, the representative office shall submit the related application report to the relevant authority 60 days before expiry.