• Document Number：Order No.3 [2009] of the Ministry of Commerce
• Area of Law： Contract
• Level of Authority： Departmental Rules
• Date issued：02-01-2009
• Effective Date：03-01-2009
• Issuing Authority： Ministry of Commerce
• Status： Effective

Order of the Ministry of Commerce
(No.3 [2009])
According to the Regulation of China on Technology Import and Export Administration,the Administrative Measures for the Registration of Technology Import and Export Contracts, as revised, are hereby promulgated and shall come into force 30 days after promulgation. The Administrative Measures for the Registration of Technology Import and Export Contracts (Order No.17 [2001] of the former Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation) shall be abolished simultaneously.
Minister Chen Deming
February 1, 2009
Administrative Measures for the Registration of Technology Import and Export Contracts
Article 1 To regulate the administration of technologies that may be freely imported and exported, establish a technology import and export information management system and promote the development of technology import and export of China, these Measures are formulated according to the Regulation of the People's Republic of China on Technology Import and Export Administration.
Article 2 Technology import and export contracts shall include a patent assignment contract, a contract for assigning the right to apply for a patent, a contract for licensing the implementation of a patent, a contract for licensing a technological secret, a technical service contract and other contracts concerning technology import and export.
Article 3 The administrative department of commerce shall be the administrative department for the registration of technology import and export contracts.
Contracts on freely imported and exported technologies shall become effective upon their legal formation.
Article 4 The Ministry of Commerce shall be responsible for the registration administration of the technology import and export contracts under the projects subject to the verification and approval or examination and approval of the State Council or the competent department of investment of the State Council within the Catalogue of Investment Projects Subject to the Government Verification and Approval and among the projects with government investment.
Article 5 The administrative departments of commerce of all provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government and cities under separate state planning shall be responsible for the registration administration of contracts on freely imported and exported technologies other than those specified in Article 4 of these Measures. The contracts on freely imported and exported technologies of centrally governed enterprises shall be registered with the administrative departments of commerce of the provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government and cities under separate state planning according to the territorial jurisdiction principle.
The administrative department of commerce of a province, autonomous region, municipality directly under the Central Government or city under separate state planning may authorize the administrative department of commerce at the next lower level to administer the registration of contracts on freely imported and exported technologies.
Article 6 A technology importer or exporter shall handle the contract registration formalities within 60 days after the contract becomes effective, unless the contract provides for drawing a percentage as the mode of payment.
Article 7 For a contract providing for drawing a percentage as the mode of payment, the technology importer or exporter shall handle the contract registration formalities within 60 days after the initial base amount for drawing a percentage is formed, and thereafter, shall handle the contract modification formalities each time after the base amount for drawing a percentage is formed.
When handling the contract registration or modification formalities, a technology importer or exporter shall provide the relevant evidentiary documents on the base amount for drawing a percentage.
Article 8 The state shall apply the on-line registration management to contracts on freely imported and exported technologies. A technology importer or exporter shall log on the “Information Management System for Technology Import and Export Contracts” on the governmental website of the Ministry of Commerce (jsjckqy.fwmys.mofcom.gov.cn) to register its contract, and shall handle the contract registration formalities at the competent administrative department of commerce upon the strength of an application form for technology import or export contract registration, a duplicate of the technology import or export contract (including the Chinese version thereof) and the certificates on the legal status of both parties to the contract. The competent administrative department of commerce shall, within three workdays after receiving the above-mentioned documents, check the contract registration contents and issue a Technology Import Contract Registration Certificate or a Technology Export Contract Registration Certificate to the technology importer or exporter.
Article 9 Where the application materials fail to meet the requirements prescribed in Articles 18 and 40 of the Regulation of the People's Republic of China on Technology Import and Export Administration or the registration record is inconsistent with the contents of the contract, the competent administrative department of commerce shall, within three workdays after receiving the application materials, notify the technology importer or exporter to supplement or modify the application materials, and shall, within three workdays after receiving the supplemented application materials, check the contract registration contents and issue a Technology Import Contract Registration Certificate or a Technology Export Contract Registration Certificate.
Article 10 The major registration contents of a contract on freely imported or exported technology shall be:
1. the contract number;
2. the contract name;
3. the technology supplier;
4. the technology recipient;
5. the technology user;
6. a brief introduction to the contract;
7. the contract value;
8. the mode of payment; and
9. the term of validity of the contract.
Article 11 The state shall apply the standard code management to the serial numbers of contracts on freely imported and exported technologies. A technology importer or exporter shall follow the following rules when making the serial number of a technology import or export contract:
1. the total length of the contract number shall be 17 digits; and
2. the first 9 digits shall be fixed ones: the first two digits indicate the year of signing of the contract (last two digits of the year), the second two digits indicate the importing or exporting country (two-digit GB code), the third two digits indicate the region of location of the import or export enterprise (two-digit GB code), the seventh digit indicates a sign for a technology import or export contract (Y for import and E for export), and the eighth and the ninth digits indicate the industry category of the imported or exported technology (two-digit GB code). The last 8 digits shall be defined by the enterprise. For example: 01USBJE01CNTIC001.
Article 12 Where it is necessary to modify any registered content prescribed in Article 10 of these Measures of a registered contract on freely imported and exported technology, the technology importer or exporter shall handle the contract modification formalities.
To handle the contract modification formalities, the technology importer or exporter shall log on the “Information Management System of Technology Import and Export Contracts” to fill out a contract data modification record, and handle the modification formalities at the competent administrative department of commerce upon the strength of the contract modification agreement and the contract data modification record. The competent administrative department of commerce shall handle the contract modification formalities within three days after receiving complete application materials for modification.
The technology importer or exporter shall handle contract modification formalities under Article 7 of these Measures upon the strength of a modification application and a contract data modification record.
Article 13 Where a registered contract on freely imported or exported technology is suspended or terminated for any reason in the process of execution, the technology importer or exporter shall file a report on it with the competent administrative department of commerce upon the strength of the technology import or export contract registration certificate and other materials.
Article 14 A technology importer or exporter shall, after losing its technology import or export contract registration certificate, make a public declaration of the loss, and handle the formalities for re-issuance at the competent administrative department of commerce upon the strength of a certificate on declaration of loss, an application for re-issuance and other certificates issued by the relevant departments.
Article 15 The competent administrative departments of commerce at all levels shall strengthen the administration of the administrative departments for the registration of technology import and export contracts and the staff thereof, establish and enhance a job responsibility system for contract registration, and reinforce the business training and performance evaluation.
Article 16 For a technology import contract which is attached to the bylaw of a Sino-foreign equity joint venture enterprise, a Sino-foreign cooperative joint venture enterprise or a wholly foreign-owned enterprise at the time of formation of the enterprise, with the technology being contributed for shares in the enterprise, the relevant formalities shall be handled according to the relevant laws governing foreign-funded enterprises.
Article 17 The Ministry of Commerce shall be responsible for collecting statistics about the import and export of technologies across the country and regularly release statistics. The local competent administrative departments of commerce at all levels shall be responsible for collecting statistics about the import and export of technologies within their respective administrative regions.
Article 18 These Measures shall come into force 30 days after the date of promulgation, and the Administrative Measures for the Registration of Technology Import and Export Contracts (Order No.17 [2001] of the former Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation) shall be abolished simultaneously.