Suzhou company registration (RO) refers to set up branch office if a foreign company in China. In comparison with WFOE (wholly foreign-owned enterprise) companies, representative offices can not issue any invoices, and therefore gain any income by itself. All expenses of a representative office have to be fully funded by the company headquarters. There are no capital contribution requirements for a RO. Establishing a RO is therefore largely a matter of complying with the prescribed application procedures. A RO is restricted to conduct only "indirect operational activities", such as:
Business liaison;
Introduction of products for sales purposes;
Market Research;
Technology exchanges and;
Quality control audits.
Company Registration Address of RO
A RO must either be situated in an office whereby the landlord has a right to rent his office space or in a Grade "A" office building. A list of rental certificates and contracts are required and must be submitted to the government authorities for approval. If the landlord cannot provide such rental certificates, it is recommended to discuss with the government authorities whether the RO can be located there. It is highly suggested that no leasing contract be signed until it is certain that the RO can be registered in that location.
Chief Representative of RO
A Chief Representative must be appointed by the parent company. This person will be responsible for the activities of the RO and is considered the "legal face" allowing him to sign all related government forms and any documents that are required by the government offices. That said this person can also have automatic authorization on bank accounts and can create any type of Powers of Attorney.
Accounting and Tax Filing, Tax Exemption Applications and Annual Audit Requirements
A RO, although indirectly operational, is liable for filing and paying Business Tax, Enterprise Income Tax, and Individual Income Tax for the employees and Stamp Tax. This may sound strange to many FIEs, especially as a RO is a non-profit-making center, however the Chinese government does require that tax be paid as they consider that by having such an office in China, profit is being made in the parent company at least.
It is therefore recommended to keep a series of bookkeeping accounts based on all the expenses of the RO and all original receipts should be kept in the office for a minimum of five years according to the PRC Law.
Contact Us
If you have further inquires, please do not hesitate to contact Tannet at anytime, anywhere by simply visiting Tannet’s website english.tannet-group.com, or calling Hong Kong hotline at 852-27826888 or China hotline at 86-755-82143422, or emailing to tannet-solution@hotmail.com. You are also welcome to visit our office situated in 16/F, Taiyangdao Bldg 2020, Dongmen Rd South, Luohu, Shenzhen, China.
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