Administrative Measures for the Recognition of High-Tech Enterprises

Chapter 1 General Provisions
Article 1: In order to support and encourage the development of high-tech enterprises, and in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Enterprise Income Tax Law of the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the “Enterprise Income Tax Law”) and the Implementation Regulations of the Enterprise Income Tax Law of the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the “Implementation Regulations”), these Measures are hereby formulated.

Article 3: The management of the recognition of high-tech enterprises shall adhere to the principles of highlighting the enterprise’s primary role, encouraging technological innovation, implementing dynamic management, and upholding fairness and impartiality.
Article 4: High-tech enterprises recognized under these Measures may, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Corporate Income Tax Law and its Implementation Regulations, the Tax Collection and Administration Law of the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the “Tax Collection and Administration Law”), and the Implementing Rules for the Tax Collection and Administration Law of the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the “Implementing Rules”), apply to enjoy tax preferential policies.
Article 5: The Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, and the State Administration of Taxation are responsible for guiding, managing, and supervising the nationwide recognition of high-tech enterprises.

Chapter 2: Organization and Implementation
Article 6: The Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, and the State Administration of Taxation shall establish a National Leading Group for the Identification and Management of High-Tech Enterprises (hereinafter referred to as the “Leading Group”). Its primary responsibilities are:
(1) Determine the direction for the national management of high-tech enterprise recognition and review the report on the management of high-tech enterprise recognition.
(2) Coordinate and resolve major issues arising in the implementation of certification management and related policies;
(3) Adjudicate major disputes arising from the administration of high-tech enterprise recognition, supervise and inspect the recognition and management work in various regions, and provide guidance on rectifying any issues identified.
Article 7: The leading group shall have an office under it, composed of personnel from the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, and the State Administration of Taxation. The office shall be located at the Ministry of Science and Technology, and its primary responsibilities are:
(1) Submit the management report on the recognition of high-tech enterprises and propose policy improvement recommendations based on research findings.
(2) Provide guidance on the recognition and management of high-tech enterprises in various regions, organize and carry out supervision and inspection of the recognition and management work for high-tech enterprises, and put forward recommendations for rectification and handling of any issues identified.
(3) Responsible for the filing and management of the certification process for high-tech enterprises in various regions, publishing the list of certified high-tech enterprises, and issuing high-tech enterprise certificate numbers.
(4) Build and manage the “High-Tech Enterprise Recognition and Management Web Platform”;
(5) Complete other tasks assigned by the leading group.
Article 8: The science and technology administrative departments of each province, autonomous region, directly administered municipality, and city under separate planning shall, together with the corresponding finance and tax authorities, establish a regional high-tech enterprise certification and management agency (hereinafter referred to as the “Certification Agency”). The Certification Agency shall have an office under it, composed of personnel from the provincial and separately planned city-level science and technology, finance, and tax authorities. The office shall be located within the provincial or separately planned city-level science and technology administrative authority. The primary responsibilities of the Certification Agency are:
(1) Be responsible for the identification of high-tech enterprises within this administrative region and submit an annual report on the management of high-tech enterprise identification in this region to the Office of the Leading Group.
(2) Be responsible for filing the identified high-tech enterprises with the Leading Group Office as required, and issuing high-tech enterprise certificates to those enterprises that have been approved for filing.
(3) Be responsible for selecting the review experts (including technical experts and financial experts) involved in the certification process, and strengthen supervision and management.
(4) Be responsible for conducting supervision and inspection of enterprises that have already been certified; accept, verify, and handle review applications and related complaints; and implement the corrective recommendations put forward by the leading group and its office.
(5) Complete other tasks assigned by the Leading Group Office.
Article 9: The qualification of high-tech enterprises that have been certified shall be valid for a period of three years from the date of issuance of the certificate.
Article 10: After an enterprise obtains the qualification of a high-tech enterprise, it shall enjoy tax incentives starting from the year in which the High-Tech Enterprise Certificate is issued. The enterprise may, in accordance with the provisions of Article 4 of these Measures, go to the competent tax authority to handle the procedures for obtaining such tax incentives.
    
Chapter 3: Eligibility Criteria and Procedures
Article 11: To be recognized as a high-tech enterprise, the following conditions must be met simultaneously:
(1) Enterprises applying for recognition must have been registered and established for more than one year.
(2) Enterprises obtain ownership of intellectual property rights that play a core supporting role in the technology of their primary products (services) through independent research and development, acquisition, donation, mergers and acquisitions, or other means.
(3) The technologies that play a core supporting role in the enterprise’s main products (services) fall within the scope specified in the “National Key Areas of High Technology Supported by the State”;
(4) The proportion of scientific and technological personnel engaged in R&D and related technological innovation activities to the enterprise’s total number of employees in the current year shall not be less than 10%. ；
(5) The total amount of research and development expenses incurred by the enterprise over the past three fiscal years (for enterprises with an actual operating period of less than three years, the actual operating period shall apply; the same applies hereinafter) shall account for a proportion of the total sales revenue during the same period that meets the following requirements:
    1. In the past year, the proportion of enterprises with sales revenue of less than or equal to 50 million yuan shall be no less than 5%.
2. Enterprises with annual sales revenue between 50 million yuan and 200 million yuan (inclusive) in the past year shall account for no less than 4%.
3. Among enterprises with annual sales revenue exceeding 200 million yuan in the past year, the proportion of those meeting this criterion should be no less than 3%.
Among these, the total amount of research and development expenses incurred by the enterprise within China must account for no less than 60% of the total research and development expenses.
(6) In the past year, the proportion of revenue from high-tech products (services) to the enterprise’s total revenue for the same period shall not be less than 60%.
(7) The enterprise’s innovation capability assessment shall meet the corresponding requirements.
(8) The enterprise must not have experienced any major safety accidents, major quality incidents, or serious environmental violations in the year prior to applying for certification.
Article 12: The procedure for the recognition of high-tech enterprises is as follows:
(1) Enterprise Application
Enterprises shall conduct self-assessment in accordance with these Measures. Those deemed to meet the qualification criteria shall register on the “High-Tech Enterprise Recognition and Management Website” and submit a recognition application to the designated certification body. The following materials must be submitted with the application:
1. Application for Recognition as a High-Tech Enterprise;
2. The registration and filing documents proving that the enterprise has been established in accordance with the law;
3. Materials related to intellectual property rights, proof of approval for scientific research projects, commercialization of scientific and technological achievements, and organizational and management materials for research and development;
4. Relevant materials including key technologies and technical specifications of the enterprise’s high-tech products (services), production batch approvals, certification and accreditation documents, relevant qualification certificates, and product quality inspection reports;
5. Statement on the status of enterprise employees and technical personnel;
6. A special audit or attestation report on the enterprise’s research and development expenses for the past three accounting years and high-tech product (service) revenue for the past one accounting year, issued by a qualified intermediary agency, accompanied by supporting documentation describing the research and development activities.
7. The financial accounting reports (including financial statements, notes to financial statements, and a statement of financial position) for the enterprise’s most recent three fiscal years, certified by a qualified intermediary agency;
8. Annual corporate income tax returns for the past three accounting years.
(2) Expert Review
The certification body shall randomly select experts who meet the evaluation requirements to form an expert panel. The expert panel will review the enterprise’s submitted materials and provide evaluation comments.
(3) Review and Determination
Based on the review opinions of the expert panel, the certification body shall conduct a comprehensive review of the applicant enterprises, formulate a certification opinion, and submit it to the Leading Group Office. The certified enterprises will be publicly announced for 10 working days on the “High-Tech Enterprise Certification Management Website” by the Leading Group Office. If no objections are raised during this period, the enterprises will be officially registered and announced on the same website. The certification body will then issue a uniformly printed “High-Tech Enterprise Certificate” to the enterprises. In the event of objections, the certification body will verify and address them accordingly.
Article 13: After obtaining the qualification of a high-tech enterprise, enterprises shall, before the end of May each year, submit to the “High-Tech Enterprise Recognition and Management Website” an annual report detailing their development status for the previous year, including intellectual property rights, scientific and technological personnel, R&D expenses, and operating income.
Article 14: For enterprises handling classified information, the certification process shall be organized in accordance with national regulations on confidentiality work, provided that the security of classified information is ensured.
    
Chapter Four: Supervision and Management
Article 15: The Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, and the State Administration of Taxation shall establish a mechanism for random spot checks and targeted inspections to strengthen supervision and inspection of the management of high-tech enterprise recognition across various regions. For recognition agencies found to have problems, corrective opinions shall be issued with a specified deadline for rectification. In cases of serious issues, such agencies will receive public criticism; those failing to make corrections within the prescribed deadline will have their recognition management work temporarily suspended.
Article 16: If, during routine management, the relevant authorities discover that a high-tech enterprise that has already been certified no longer meets the certification criteria, they shall submit a request to the certification body for a review. Upon review and confirmation that the enterprise no longer meets the certification criteria, the certification body shall revoke its high-tech enterprise status and notify the tax authorities to recover any tax benefits it has enjoyed since the year in which it ceased to meet the certification criteria.
Article 17: If a high-tech enterprise undergoes a name change or experiences any significant changes related to the qualification criteria (such as spin-offs, mergers, reorganizations, or changes in business operations), it shall report such changes to the accreditation body within three months. If the accreditation body reviews and confirms that the enterprise still meets the qualification criteria, its high-tech enterprise status will remain unchanged. In the case of a name change, a new accreditation certificate will be reissued, with the same certificate number and validity period. If the enterprise no longer meets the qualification criteria, its high-tech enterprise status will be revoked starting from the year of the name change or the occurrence of the significant change.
Article 18: For high-tech enterprises that undergo a complete relocation across the administrative jurisdiction of different certification bodies, their high-tech enterprise status shall remain valid as long as the relocation is completed within the validity period of their current high-tech enterprise qualification. For enterprises that relocate only partially across the administrative jurisdiction of different certification bodies, the certification body in the place of relocation shall re-certify them in accordance with these Measures.
Article 19: If a high-tech enterprise that has already been recognized engages in any of the following behaviors, its high-tech enterprise qualification shall be revoked by the certifying authority:
(1) Those who have engaged in serious fraudulent activities during the application and recognition process;
(2) In the event of a major safety accident, a major quality incident, or serious environmental violations;
(3) Failure to report in a timely manner significant changes related to the qualification criteria, or failure to submit the annual development status report for two consecutive years.
For enterprises whose high-tech enterprise qualification has been revoked, the certifying authority shall notify the tax authorities to recover the tax benefits enjoyed by these enterprises from the year in which the aforementioned conduct occurred onward, in accordance with the Tax Collection and Administration Law and relevant provisions.
Article 20: All institutions and personnel involved in the certification process for high-tech enterprises are obligated to act with integrity, comply with applicable regulations, and maintain confidentiality regarding their assigned tasks. Those who violate the requirements and discipline pertaining to the certification of high-tech enterprises shall be subject to appropriate disciplinary measures.

Chapter 5: Supplementary Provisions
Article 21: The Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, and the State Administration of Taxation shall separately formulate the “Guidelines for the Identification and Management of High-Tech Enterprises” based on these Measures.
Article 22: These Measures shall be interpreted by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, and the State Administration of Taxation.
Article 23: These Measures shall take effect as of January 1, 2016. The original “Administrative Measures for the Recognition of High-Tech Enterprises” (Guo Ke Fa Huo [2008] No. 172) shall be repealed concurrently.

    Attachment: High-tech fields that receive key national support