- Foreign investments that may affect national security must be self-filed with the working mechanism office before implementation; the office may also require filing.
可能影响国家安全的外商投资，须在实施前主动向工作机制办公室申报；办公室亦可要求当事人申报。- The mandatory filing scope centres on military/defence-related fields and on acquiring controlling interest in important sectors such as key infrastructure, important information technology and internet, and important financial services.
强制申报范围聚焦军工国防领域，以及取得重要农产品、重要基础设施、重要信息技术与互联网、重要金融服务等领域实际控制权的投资。- Review has two stages — general (30 working days) and special (60 working days, extendable) — during which the investor may not close the deal.
审查分一般审查（30 个工作日）与特别审查（60 个工作日，可延长）两阶段，审查期间不得实施投资。- Outcomes are pass, prohibition, or conditional pass; a prohibition requires unwinding to the pre-investment state.
结论分为通过、禁止、附条件通过；禁止类须限期处分股权资产、恢复到投资前状态。- The 2026 “stabilise and optimise foreign investment” action plan reaffirms improving the foreign M&A management regime, signalling tighter coordination between market-entry and security review.
2026 年《利用外资固稳促优行动方案》重申完善外资并购管理制度，预示准入与安审的协同将更紧密。- The Manus case (April 2026) is the first prohibition decision under the 2020 rules for an AI-sector inbound deal, a clear warning on tech-export and data-export overlap.
2026 年 4 月 Manus 案是 2020 年办法下首例针对人工智能领域 inbound 交易的「禁止投资」决定，凸显技术出口与数据出境的叠加风险。
Foreign Investment Security Review in China: What Investors Must File and When (2026) | 外商投资安全审查：投资者必须申报什么、何时申报（2026）
China operates a standing foreign investment security review mechanism. The *Measures for the Security Review of Foreign Investment* (NDRC and MOFCOM Order No. 37, 2020; in force since 18 January 2021) set the framework. A working mechanism, with its office hosted at the NDRC and led by the NDRC and MOFCOM, organises, coordinates and guides reviews.
Which investments must be filed? The investor (or relevant domestic party) must proactively file before implementation when the deal falls in the declared scope: (1) investment in military, military-support or adjacent sensitive areas; or (2) investment in important agriculture, energy and resources, major equipment manufacturing, important infrastructure, important transport, important cultural products and services, important information technology and internet products and services, important financial services, key technologies and other important fields, where the foreign investor obtains actual control. “Actual control” includes holding over 50% equity, holding less but able to materially influence board/shareholder resolutions, or otherwise materially influencing operations, finance or technology. The office may also require filing for any investment in scope.
The timeline is strict. Upon receiving a complete filing, the office decides within 15 working days whether a review is needed; during this period the deal must not proceed. If a review is opened, general review completes within 30 working days. If the office finds a possible national-security effect, it launches special review, which completes within 60 working days (extendable). Throughout, the investor may not implement the investment. Outcomes: pass; prohibition (with unwinding to the pre-investment state); or conditional pass where added conditions can eliminate the effect and the investor accepts them in writing.
Enforcement is real. In April 2026 the foreign investment security review working mechanism issued its first “prohibit investment” decision against an inbound acquisition of a Chinese-background AI agent company, citing overlap with export-control, data-security and security-review laws. The transaction had to be unwound. This is a strong signal that deals touching sensitive algorithms, data and key technologies will face heightened scrutiny, and that “re-domiciliation” does not remove the need for compliance.
The 2026 *Action Plan for Stabilising and Optimising Foreign Investment* (Commerce, NDRC and Finance ministries, No. 97 [2026]) reinforces the environment: it commits to revising the rules on foreign investors’ acquisition of domestic enterprises, optimising merger procedures and payment terms, and strengthening inter-agency coordination. For dealmakers, security review is no longer a back-office afterthought — it is a gating item that should be assessed at term-sheet stage alongside antitrust merger control.
外商投资安全审查：投资者必须申报什么、何时申报（2026）
中国建立了常态化的外商投资安全审查机制。《外商投资安全审查办法》（国家发展改革委、商务部令第 37 号，2020 年；2021 年 1 月 18 日起施行）确立框架。国家建立工作机制，办公室设在国家发展改革委，由国家发改委、商务部牵头，组织、协调、指导安审工作。
哪些投资必须申报？当事人在下列范围内应在实施前主动申报：（一）投资军工、军工配套等国防安全领域，以及在军事设施周边地域投资；（二）投资重要农产品、重要能源资源、重大装备制造、重要基础设施、重要运输服务、重要文化产品与服务、重要信息技术与互联网产品与服务、重要金融服务、关键技术等重要领域，并取得所投资企业的实际控制权。「实际控制」包括持股 50% 以上、持股不足 50% 但能重大影响董事会/股东会决议，或能以其他方式重大影响经营、财务、技术。工作机制办公室也可要求当事人申报。
时限严格。办公室收到齐备材料后 15 个工作日内决定是否审查，期间不得实施投资。决定审查的，一般审查 30 个工作日内完成；认为可能影响国家安全的，启动特别审查，60 个工作日内完成（可延长），期间亦不得实施。结论：通过；禁止（须限期处分股权资产、恢复至投资前状态）；或附条件通过（附加条件能消除影响且当事人书面承诺接受）。
执法是实打的。2026 年 4 月，外商投资安全审查工作机制对一宗涉及中国背景 AI 智能体企业的 inbound 收购作出首例「禁止投资」决定，理由指向与《出口管制法》《数据安全法》及安审办法的叠加。交易须复原。这强烈提示：触及敏感算法、数据与关键技术的交易将面临更高审查，且「迁册」不能免除合规义务。
2026 年《利用外资固稳促优行动方案》（商务部、发改委、财政部，商资发〔2026〕97 号）强化了这一环境：提出加快修订外国投资者并购境内企业的规定、优化并购流程与对价支付、强化部门协同。对交易方而言，安审不再是后台事项，而是应在 term sheet 阶段与反垄断经营者集中审查并列评估的「闸口」。
How Deal Teams Should Operate
Treat security review as a gating item, not a formality. At term sheet, screen the target’s business against the mandatory-scope fields and ask whether the deal confers actual control. If both are true, build the filing into the signing and long-stop mechanics; do not sign a deal that closes unconditionally before clearance. The 15-working-day triage, then 30 (or 60) working days of review, must be priced into the timeline.
Coordinate with merger control. A deal can be both notifiable to SAMR for antitrust and to the security-review office; the two run on different statutory clocks and can overlap. A combined project plan — with one owner tracking both — avoids the classic mistake of assuming “antitrust cleared” means “investment allowed.” Where the target is in a sensitive tech or data field, also check export-control and data-export angles early, as the Manus case shows they can converge.
Finally, use the consultation channel. Parties may consult the working-mechanism office before filing, and may modify or withdraw the investment during review. Designing the structure to be adjustable — and documenting a clean national-security narrative — materially improves the odds of a pass or a conditional pass rather than a prohibition.
交易团队应如何操作
把安全审查视为闸口，而非形式。在 term sheet 阶段即将标的业务对照强制申报领域，并判断交易是否取得实际控制；若两者皆然，须将申报嵌入签约与长停机制，切勿签署一个在获批前无条件交割的交易。15 个工作日初筛、再 30（或 60）个工作日审查，必须计入时间表。
与经营者集中审查协同。一宗交易可能既须向 SAMR 作反垄断申报，又须向安审办公室申报；两者法定期限不同且可重叠。设单一负责人统筹两者的合并计划，可避免「反垄断过了就等于投资获批」的典型误判。若标的处敏感技术或数据领域，还应早查出口管制与数据出境，正如 Manus 案所示，它们可能汇合。
善用商谈渠道。当事人可在申报前咨询工作机制办公室，并在审查中修改或撤销投资。将结构设计为可调整、并备好清晰的国家安全叙事，能显著提升「通过」或「附条件通过」而非「禁止」的概率。
Practitioner Quick Reference
- Filing duty: self-file before implementation when in scope; office may also require filing.
- Mandatory scope: military/defence fields; acquiring control in important agriculture, energy, infrastructure, IT/internet, financial services, key tech.
- Control test: >50% equity, or <50% but material board/shareholder influence, or other material influence.
- Clock: 15 working days triage; 30 (general) / 60 (special, extendable) working days review; no closing during review.
- Outcomes: pass; prohibition (unwind); conditional pass (written acceptance).
- Recent signal: April 2026 first prohibition under the 2020 rules for an AI inbound deal.
- Coordinate: run security review alongside merger control and (if relevant) export-control/data-export checks.
实务速查
- 申报义务： 在范围内须实施前主动申报；办公室亦可要求申报。
- 强制范围： 军工国防领域；取得重要农业、能源、基础设施、信息技术与互联网、金融服务、关键技术控制。
- 控制测试： 持股超 50%，或不足 50% 但重大影响董事会/股东会，或其他重大影响。
- 时限： 15 工作日初筛；30（一般）/60（特别，可延）工作日审查；审查期间不得交割。
- 结论： 通过；禁止（复原）；附条件通过（书面接受）。
- 近期信号： 2026 年 4 月 2020 办法下首例 AI inbound 交易禁止。
- 协同： 安审与经营者集中及（如适用）出口管制/数据出境一并考量。
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