China NDRC Drafts Rules to Tighten Individual Offshore Investment Oversight by Sept. 20
Updated
Updated · South China Morning Post · Aug 25
China NDRC Drafts Rules to Tighten Individual Offshore Investment Oversight by Sept. 20
2 articles · Updated · South China Morning Post · Aug 25
Summary
Friday’s draft revision would bring Chinese individuals under outbound-investment rules long applied to companies, covering direct offshore moves such as overseas property purchases, company setups and foreign acquisitions.
The NDRC said comments will run through Sept. 20, with the changes aimed at closing loopholes that let wealthy investors shift assets abroad through offshore shell companies and other grey-area structures.
Lawyers said market-linked portfolio channels should remain largely intact, but direct individual offshore investments would face more reporting requirements and far less room to operate outside explicit regulation.
The proposal follows a year of tougher Chinese enforcement against illegal cross-border financial activity and tax evasion, as offshore property, overseas businesses and holding platforms stayed popular with high-net-worth investors.