Italian Desk Present on China’s New Foreign Investment Law

On 6 November 2019, Dezan Shira’s Deputy Regional Manager and Head of the Italian Desk, Riccardo Benussi, along with our Senior Consultant, Andrea Volpe, presented on the topic, “The upcoming Foreign Investment Law and how it will affect current enterprises in China” and “Free Trade Zones”.

The presentation took place during a road show for the Italian Accountants Association, “Consiglio Nazionale Dottori Commercialisti ed Esperti Contabili”, in Shanghai, China. Ninety professionals from Italy attended this show.

Doing Business in China and the Impact of the New Foreign Investment Law

“Doing Business in China” was the central topic of the round table discussion hosted by the Italian Embassy in Beijing and Italian General Consulate in Shanghai, together with the China- Italy Chamber of Commerce and the European Union Chamber of Commerce.

China is an attractive, albeit challenging, market for Italian companies. The Chinese market is highly dynamic and competitive which may cause certain difficulties in a company’s internationalization process. Therefore, it is paramount for accountants to build a trustful network of competent partners abroad to facilitate Italian enterprises and ensure their business interests are secure and compliant.

This “Grand Tour” was conducted with the purpose of analyzing which key skills and resources are necessary to enter the Chinese market and what are the difficulties and opportunities entrepreneurs will encounter.

During the event, Riccardo presented on the different forms for corporate establishment in China and the impact of the new Foreign Investment Law rolling out in January 2020. Riccardo commented on how Italian manufacturing SMEs represent the largest share of Italian exports, too often overshadowed by the luxury or F&B industries (which are dwarfed by the former).

Later in the day, Andrea held B2B sessions with chartered accountants to strengthen ties. The day after, the above topics were discussed further, during an in-depth workshop organized at our Shanghai office. Other topics covered during the round table discussions ranged from the relationship between China and EU nations, Italy in particular, how the Belt & Road Initiative will impact Italian businesses in China, and how to obtain a Business Visa (Z Visa) for China and tax reforms.

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Il 6 novembre 2019, il nostro Deputy Regional Manager e Head dell’Italian Desk Riccardo Benussi, e il nostro Senior Consultant Andrea Volpe, hanno presentato intorno a “La nuova Foreign Investment Law e l’impatto sulle aziende in Cina” e alle “Free Trade Zones” durante la Missione in Cina 2019 del Consiglio Nazionale dei Dottori Commercialisti e degli Esperti Contabili, che ha visto 90 professionisti italiani in visita istituzionale a Shanghai oltre che a Hong Kong e successivamente a Pechino.

La tavola rotonda a tema “Doing Business in China” è stata organizzata con il patrocinio dell’Ambasciata d’Italia a Pechino e del Consolato Generale Italiano a Shanghai, insieme alla Camera di Commercio Italiana in Cina e la European Union Chamber of Commerce in China. La Cina si dimostra un mercato attraente ma impegnativo per le aziende italiane, non sempre abituate a una realtà tanto dinamica e competitiva, e il processo d’internazionalizzazione può presentare numerose difficoltà da affrontare. La creazione di una affidabile rete di partner qualificati all’estero è pertanto di fondamentale importanza per facilitare le aziende italiane in questa impresa.

L’obiettivo di questo “Grand Tour” e’ stato quello di comprendere gli aspetti chiave, in termini di competenze e risorse, per affrontare il mercato cinese e quali possano essere le sfide e le opportunità che questo paese presenta. Durante l’evento, Riccardo ha presentato le diverse forme societarie alla luce della disciplina contrattuale cinese, menzionando quale sarà l’impatto della nuova Foreign Investment Law che entrerà in vigore dal primo gennaio 2020. Riccardo ha voluto inoltre ricordare che le piccole e medie società manifatturiere italiane rappresentano il punto di forza dell’export italiano, troppo spesso messe in ombra dal settore del lusso o dall’industria del food and beverage. Durante la stessa giornata Andrea ha invece preso parte a sessioni B2B per rafforzare i rapporti con i Dottori Commercialisti. I medesimi argomenti sono stati ulteriormente approfonditi durante un workshop organizzato per il giorno seguente presso l’ufficio di Shanghai di Dezan Shira. Ulteriori temi toccati durante la tavola rotonda hanno spaziato dalle riforme fiscali del 2019 e le politiche sui visti e, marginalmente, l’impatto della Belt and Road Initiative sulle imprese italiane in Cina.

About Dezan Shira’s Italian Desk

Our Italian Desk members have international academic education, especially in Italy and China, which allow them to understand cultural differences in doing business and garner a solid understanding of regulatory differences. This is relevant for SMEs looking for clarification and support when investing in Asia.

The Italian Desk drafts and disseminates a variety of business intelligence for Italian companies interested in or operating in Asia, which include articles, podcasts, webinars and newsletters. These can be downloaded from our websites for free and discovered via a number of our social media networks.

We regularly write and publish articles in both English and Italian. You may sign up for our monthly newsletter which covers regulatory updates, analysis, and commentary on issues concerning Italian investors in Asia. You can also read our spotlight news of our Italian desk here. Publications and Resources on Doing Business in Asia To stay up-to-date with free Asia news and publications, please visit our Asia Briefing website and download our publications.

You can also subscribe to our investor resource library, Asiapedia, for related resources.

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