Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Regulations onAdministration of Technology Import Contracts of the People's Republic ofChina
Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Regulations onAdministration of Technology Import Contracts of the People's Republic ofChina
(Approved by the State Council on December 30, 1987 Promulgated bythe Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade on January 20, 1988)
Whole Doc.
Article 1
The Detailed Rules are formulated in accordance with the provisions
of Article 12 of the Regulations on Administration of Technology Import
Contracts of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as
the "Regulations").
Article 2
Regardless of country or region of the supplier, source of funds and
ways of payment of the recipient, technology import contracts hereunder
listed concluded between the recipient and the supplier as specified in
Article 2 of the Regulations shall apply for examination and approval from
the competent authority in accordance with the Regulations and the
Detailed Rules.
1. Contracts for assignment or licensing of industrial property
rights:
Contracts for assignment or licensing of industrial property rights
refer to those for assignment or licensing of rights relating to invention
patents, new utility model patents, exterior design patents as well as
trademarks excluding those merely for assignment of rights of trademarks.
2. Contracts for licensing of know-how:
Contracts for licensing of know-how refer to those for provision or
impartment of technical knowledge for manufacturing a product or applying
a technology as well as for product designs, technological processes,
formulae, quality control and management, which is neither publicized nor
under legal protection of industrial property rights.
3. Contracts for technical services:
Contracts for technical services refer to those for providing
services or consultations to the recipient by the supplier with his
technology for achieving a specific goal, including those for feasibility
study or engineering design undertaken by the supplier upon the
entrustment of the recipient or by the recipient in cooperation with the
supplier, those for providing technical services by foreign geological
exploration or engineering teams that are employed and those for providing
services or consultations by the supplier upon entrustment of the
recipient for technical transformation of enterprise, improvement of
production technology or product design and quality control as well as
enterprise management (excluding those for employing aliens in China's
enterprises).
4. Contracts for co-production and co-design which contain any one of
such contents as assignment or licensing of industrial property rights,
licensing of know-how or technical services;
5. Contracts for importing complete set of equipment, production line
and key equipment which contain any one of such contents as assignment or
licensing of industrial property rights, licensing of know-how or
technical services;
6. Other technology import contracts which need the fulfillment of
the procedure for examination and approval in the view of the competent
authority.
Article 3
To import technology, companies, enterprises, institutions or
individuals with no right to do technology import business with abroad
shall, with a letter of commission, entrust those companies and
enterprises with such rights to conclude technology import contracts.
Article 4
Technology import contracts concluded by Chinese-foreign equity joint
ventures, Chinese-foreign co-operative ventures and wholly foreign-owned
enterprises (hereinafter referred to as "foreign investment enterprises")
established in the territory of the People's Republic of China for
technology acquired from suppliers shall comply with the procedure of
examination and approval in accordance with the provisions of the Detailed
Rules.
If the foreign investor in the foreign investment enterprise uses
industrial property rights or know-how as his equity share, this will be
dealt with in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations of the
State for foreign investment enterprises.
Article 5
The competent authorities for examining and approving technology
import contracts are the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade
(hereinafter referred to as MFERT) and its authorized departments,
commissions, bureau of foreign economic relations and trade and other
administrative organs of provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities
directly under jurisdiction of the central government, coastal open
cities, special economic zones and cities under provinces with separate
economic plans (hereinafter referred to as the "authorized examining and
approving authorities").
Article 6
Technology import contracts are examined and approved at different
levels in accordance with the following stipulations:
1. Technology import contracts for projects with feasibility study
reports approved by the ministries/commissions of and departments under
the State Council are to be examined and approved by MFERT.
2. Technology import contracts for projects with feasibility study
reports approved by people's governments or their authorized responsible
organs of provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities, coastal open
cities, special economic zones and cities under provinces with separate
economic plans are to be examined and approved by the authorized examining
and approving authorities of the same levels; If the technology import
contracts are concluded by other transregional companies through
entrustment, they may be examined and approved by the authorized examining
and approving authorities of the spot where the entrustees are located
with the consent of the entrusters' local authorized examining and
approving authorities. After approval, the on-the-spot authorized
examining and approving authorities shall send a copy of the Approval
Certificate to the local authorized examining and approving authorities
for record. Nevertheless, technology import contracts concluded by
companies located in Beijing pursuant to transregional entrustment
(excluding those directly under Beijing municipality) are to be examined
and approved by MFERT.
3. Technology import contracts concluded by foreign investment
enterprises for acquiring technology from suppliers shall be examined and
approved by MFERT if the foreign investment enterprises were established
with the approval of ministries/commissions of and departments under the
State Council, or be examined and approved by MFERT-authorized organs if
the enterprises were not so established.
Article 7
Technology import contracts shall specify in terms of the following
items:
1. Name of contract;
2. Contents, scope and requirements of the goal directed technology
imported;
3. Criteria, time-limits and measures for quality rectification of
the imported technology and liabilities for risks;
4. Obligations of keeping-confidential for imported technology,
ownership and sharing of the technology improvements;
5. Price or payment in total and breakdown and terms of payment;
6. Calculations for compensation in case of violation;
7. Means of settlement for disputes;
8. Interpretation of terms and phrases.
Annex and data relating to implementation of the contract may
constitute an integral part of the technology import contract in
accordance with the agreement of the contracting parties.
Article 8
With respect to technology import contracts involving assignment or
licensing of patent or trademark rights obtained in China, relevant patent
numbers or patent application numbers, trademark registration numbers
together with trademark design shall be expressly specified. Contracts for
assignment of patent rights shall be recorded with the Patent Office in
accordance with provisions of the "Patent Law of the People's Republic of
China", and those for licensing of the trademarks shall be recorded with
the Trademark Office in accordance with provisions of the "Trademark Law
of the People's Republic of China".
Article 9
The supplier shall ensure that the technology or data documents
provided are complete, accurate, effective and capable of reaching the
technology goal specified in the contract. The time-limits for the
delivery of technology documents shall correspond with the engineering
programmer of the recipient.
Article 10
If the recipient requires the supplier to provide raw materials,
spare parts or equipment for the imported technology, the price shall not
be higher than that of the like product on international market.
Article 11
The supplier shall ensure that he is the legal owner of the
technology provided or that he has the right to assign or license the
technology. If the recipient, in producing or selling products with the
assigned or licensed technology, is accused of infringement by a third
party, the supplier shall respond to the lawsuit. If the infringement
charged by the third party is proved, all economic losses the recipient
may suffer shall be compensated for by the supplier
Article 12
Within the term of validity of the contract, the ownership of the
improved technology including the right to apply for patents belongs to
the party that has made the improvements. Where the recipient provides the
improved technology to the supplier, the terms shall be the same as those
when the supplier provides the improved technology to the recipient.
Article 13
The recipient shall undertake the obligations to keep confidential
for know-how and relevant information provided or imparted by the supplier
in accordance with limits and duration as agreed in the contract. The
duration of keeping-confidential shall not generally exceed the term of
validity of the contract. If special circumstances demand that the
duration shall exceed the term of the contract, it shall be expressly
specified in the contract, and reasons shall be made when applying for
examination and approval.
Within the duration in which the recipient undertakes the obligation
to keep confidential, if the technology is publicized not owing to the
recipient, obligations to keep confidential undertaken by the recipient
shall be immediately terminated. If it is specified in the contract that
the supplier provides its developed and improved technology to the
recipient within the term of validity of the contract, the recipient may
continue to undertake the obligations of keeping-confidential after
expiration of the contract. In that case, the duration for keeping-
confidential shall begin from the date when the supplier provides the
technology but not exceed the duration specified in the original contract.
Article 14
No provisions of restrictions on exportation of products manufactured
by the recipient with the imported technology may be included in the
contract without the approval of the competent authority, however, either
of the following cases shall be excepted:
1. In countries and regions where exclusive license contracts have
been concluded by the supplier;
2. In countries and regions where sole agent contracts have been
concluded by the supplier.
Article 15
No provision of prohibitions to be imposed on the recipient to
continue using the imported technology after expiration of the contract
maybe included in the contract without approval of the competent
authority. Where the contract has expired but the duration of the patent
relating to the imported technology has not expired, the relevant
stipulations of the "Patent Law of the People's Republic of China" shall
govern.
Article 16
The supplier shall pay taxes in accordance with the provisions of the
Tax Law of the People's Republic of China.
Article 17
The recipient or companies, enterprises acting as its agents who have
concluded the technology import contracts shall, in accordance with the
provisions of Article 6 of the Detailed Rules, submit to the competent
authority within thirty days from the date when the contract is concluded
the following official documents:
1. Application for approval. The contents of the application shall
include the name of the contract, country of the supplier and name of the
firm, the contents and scope of the goal-directed technology imported, the
approving organ and approved number of the feasibility study report of the
project, etc. ;
2. Copy of the contract (enclosing a Chinese version if it is in a
foreign language);
3. Copy of documents evidencing the legal status of the contracting
parties;
4. Approved feasibility study report and arrangement of the fund
needed.
To facilitate the examination and approval, the recipient or
companies, enterprises acting as its agents may ask for comments or
request for pre-examination from the competent authority on the main
contents or certain clauses of the contract either before or during
negotiations.
Article 18
In case the technology import contracts and other documents submitted
to the competent authority in accordance with the provisions of Article 17
of the Detailed Rules include any one of the following contents, the
competent authority shall require amendments within a prescribed
time-limits, and approval shall not be granted in case of failure to make
amendments:
1. that it is against the current laws and legislation of the State
and is harmful to public interests of the society;
2. that it is harmful to national sovereignty;
3. that the contents of the contract are inconsistent with the
approved feasibility study report of the project;
4. that the basic clauses and contents of the contract are imperfect;
5. that the contract contains no definite and rational stipulation
concerning the responsibilities and solutions to possibly-occurred
disputes over property rights due to the assigned or licensed technology
or other disputes that may occur in the course of implementation of the
contract;
6. that the contract contains no rational stipulation on the
technical level and economic efficiency which the assigned or licensed
technology should attain including quality warranty for the products
manufactured with the said technology;
7. that the price or ways of payment for the imported technology are
unreasonable;
8. that the stipulations on rights, responsibilities and obligations
of the contracting parties are unclear, unequal or irrational;
9. that the contract contains preferential tax commitment without the
consent from the Chinese tax authority.
Article 19
The competent authority shall decide whether or not to approve the
contract within 60 days from the date when the application is received. If
the competent authority requires amendments in accordance with the
provisions of Article 18, the duration of examination and approval shall
be counted from the date when the amended contract or text is received.
If the competent authority makes no response within the specified
time, the contract shall be deemed to have been approved.
Article 20
The contract shall come into force on the date of approval and the
competent authority shall issue a unified Approval Certificate for a
Technology Import Contract printed and numbered by MFERT.
Article 21
If the term of validity of the technology import contract exceeds the
period of ten years stipulated in Article 8 or includes the restrictive
provisions listed in Article 9 of the Regulations, the recipient shall
submit the application with detailed explanations to the competent
authority when going through the procedure for examination and approval in
accordance with the stipulations of the Detailed Rules.
Article 22
Amendments to the provisions relating to the goal-directed technology
content, price, term and keeping-confidential time-limits of an approved
technology import contract shall be made by consultations between
contracting parties upon a written consent of the original competent
authority for examination and approval. If amendments are inconsistent
with the approved content of goal-directed technology or exceed the
approved amount of foreign exchange, the procedure for reexamination and
re-approval shall be gone through in accordance with the provisions of
Article 4 and article 11 of the Regulations and Article 6 of the Detailed
Rules.
Article 23
The examining and approving organs other than MFERT shall submit
copies of Approval Certificate for a Technology Import Contract and other
relevant documents to MFERT for record within 10 days from the date the
technology import contract is approved.
Article 24
In the course of the implementation of the contract, the Approval
Certificate for a Technology import Contract or its copy must be presented
to the organs concerned in accordance with the relevant stipulations for
purposes of bank guarantee, letter of credit, payment, exchange
settlement, Customs declaration and tax payment, etc. In case of failure
of presentation, refusals may be made by the banks, Customs and tax
authorities.
Article 25
The authority to interpret and revise the Detailed Rules resides in
MFERT.
Article 26
The Detailed Rules shall enter into force on the date of
promulgation. The Procedure for Examination and Approval of Technology
Import Contracts promulgated on September 18, 1985 by MFERT shall cease to
be in force simultaneously.
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