- Limited liability companies must fully pay all subscribed capital within five years of incorporation. 有限责任公司须自公司成立之日起五年内缴足全体股东认缴的出资额。
- The five-year subscription system took effect on 1 July 2024 under the newly revised Company Law. 修订后的《中华人民共和国公司法》于 2024 年 7 月 1 日施行，正式确立五年认缴制。
- Companies incorporated before 1 July 2024 receive a State Council-mandated transition period to adjust their timelines. 2024 年 7 月 1 日前设立的存量公司享有国务院规定的过渡期，用以调整出资期限。
- Accelerated contribution allows the company or a creditor to demand early payment when due debts cannot be settled. 公司不能清偿到期债务时，公司或已到期债权人有权要求未届出资期限的股东提前缴纳出资。
- Foreign-invested LLCs are fully subject to the same five-year subscription rule as domestic firms. 外资有限责任公司与内资企业同样适用公司法注册资本五年认缴规定。
- Shareholders who miss contribution deadlines bear liability to the company and risk corrective orders or fines. 未按期出资的股东须对公司及其他股东承担违约责任，并可能被登记机关责令改正或罚款。
Five-Year Capital Subscription Under the New Company Law: What FIEs Must Know | 新公司法下注册资本五年认缴：外资企业须知
Overview
China’s Company Law was substantially revised on 29 December 2023 and entered into force on 1 July 2024. The most consequential change for investors is the reintroduction of a mandatory paid-in timeline: limited liability companies (LLCs) must now bring all subscribed capital fully into the company within five years of incorporation. This article explains the rule, the transition arrangements for companies already in existence, the accelerated-contribution mechanism, and the specific points that foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) need to manage when setting up or restructuring in China.
The five-year subscription rule
Under the revised Company Law, the total capital subscribed by all shareholders of a limited liability company must be paid in full within five years from the date of the company’s establishment, in accordance with the schedule set out in the company’s articles of association. In other words, the “subscription” of capital and its eventual “payment” are no longer open-ended. The five-year clock starts on the incorporation date recorded by the registration authority.
This represents a clear departure from the previous regime, which allowed companies to set very long—even decades-long—contribution periods. The new rule brings legal certainty to creditors about when capital will actually be available to the company, while still giving founders a defined window to fund the business rather than requiring immediate full payment at registration.
The articles of association remain the governing internal document: the specific installment dates and amounts are fixed there, but they must collectively fit within the five-year outer limit. Shareholders should therefore align their capital-raising and cash-flow plans with the timetable recorded in the articles.
Transition for legacy companies
Companies established before 1 July 2024—often called “legacy” or “existing” companies—are treated separately. Where a legacy company’s originally registered contribution period exceeds the new statutory maximum, that period must be adjusted. The State Council is tasked with prescribing how the remaining subscribed capital is brought within a five-year framework, and legacy companies may complete payment step by step during the transition window.
In practice, this means a pre-2024 company that previously committed to contributing capital over, for example, twenty years must bring its schedule into compliance with the five-year ceiling. The widely understood outer boundary is that legacy companies should complete payment no later than 30 June 2032 under the State Council’s transition framework, though companies should follow the specific provisions issued by the State Council rather than assuming any single fixed date.
The key compliance action for legacy companies is to review their current articles and registered contribution timeline, identify any period that exceeds the allowed limit, and amend the articles of association and registration accordingly within the transition period.
Accelerated contribution
A particularly important provision is the accelerated-contribution mechanism. Where a company is unable to satisfy its due debts, the company itself—or a creditor whose claim has matured—may require shareholders who have subscribed capital but have not yet reached their contribution deadline to pay that capital early. This is set out in Article 54 of the Company Law.
The practical effect is that the five-year schedule is not an absolute shield. If the company becomes unable to pay its debts as they fall due, the protection of a future contribution date can be pierced, and creditors can reach unpaid subscribed capital to satisfy claims. Investors should therefore treat subscribed-but-unpaid capital as real exposure once the company is operating and incurring obligations, not merely a distant administrative commitment.
FIE specifics
Foreign-invested enterprises are governed first by the Foreign Investment Law, which took effect on 1 January 2020. That law replaced the old case-by-case approval model for foreign investment with an information-reporting system: foreign investors submit information reports through the commerce authorities’ system rather than obtaining individual project approvals for each investment.
Crucially, the form of organization matters. A foreign-invested limited liability company is still a limited liability company under the Company Law, and therefore the five-year subscription rule applies to it in the same way as to a domestic LLC. The shift to information reporting does not exempt an FIE LLC from the capital-timeline requirements.
Registration of market entities, including FIEs, is handled by the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) and its local counterparts, under the 2026 edition of the registration document standards. At the same time, foreign-investment information reporting is submitted through the system operated by the commerce authorities. FIEs must therefore coordinate two workstreams: the SAMR registration (which records the company, its capital, and its contribution schedule) and the commerce-side information report (which captures the foreign-investment particulars).
Practical steps
For a new FIE LLC, the practical sequence is as follows. First, determine the total registered capital and a realistic five-year funding plan, since the full amount must be paid within five years of incorporation. Second, draft the articles of association so that the installment schedule fits inside that five-year window. Third, complete SAMR registration under the current registration document standards, ensuring the contribution period is recorded correctly. Fourth, file the foreign-investment information report through the commerce authorities’ system. Fifth, fund the company according to the articles, and keep evidence of remittance and verification.
For a legacy FIE, the priority is to review the existing contribution timeline against the five-year ceiling, adopt the State Council transition framework, amend the articles and registration if the old period exceeds the limit, and continue contributing step by step during the transition period. Throughout, monitor the company’s solvency, because the accelerated-contribution rule means unpaid subscribed capital can be called early if debts go unmet.
Shareholders who fail to contribute on time bear liability for breach of contract toward the company and the other shareholders, and the registration authority may order correction or impose a fine. Timely, documented contribution is therefore both a compliance and a risk-management imperative.
Related reading
Investors should consult the primary sources: the Company Law text as revised and promulgated by the National People’s Congress; the State Council’s transitional provisions on adjusting contribution periods for legacy companies; and SAMR’s registration document standards for market entities. The following sources section links the official portals that publish these materials.
新公司法下注册资本五年认缴：外资企业须知
概述
《中华人民共和国公司法》于 2023 年 12 月 29 日修订通过，并于 2024 年 7 月 1 日起施行。对投资者而言，最重大的变化是重新引入了强制性的实缴期限：有限责任公司须自公司成立之日起五年内缴足全体股东认缴的出资额。本文说明该规则、对已设立公司的过渡安排、认缴出资加速到期机制，以及外资企业在华设立或重组时需要把握的具体要点。
五年认缴制
根据修订后的公司法，有限责任公司全体股东认缴的出资额，由股东按照公司章程的规定，自公司成立之日起五年内缴足。换言之，”认缴”与”实缴”之间不再是无期限的。五年的起算时点，是公司登记机关记录的成立日期。
这与此前允许公司设定极长——甚至长达数十年——出资期限的旧制度明显不同。新规则让债权人对资本何时真正到位有了明确预期，同时又给予创始人在一段确定期限内筹集资金、而非在登记时一次性缴足的空间。
公司章程仍是核心的内部治理文件：具体的分期缴纳日期与金额由章程约定，但整体上必须落在五年的上限之内。因此，股东应将筹资与现金流安排，与章程中记载的时间表保持一致。
存量公司的过渡安排
2024 年 7 月 1 日前已设立的有限责任公司（即存量公司）适用单独处理。对于出资期限超过法定上限的存量公司，其出资期限应当调整。国务院负责规定剩余认缴出资期限如何调整至五年之内，存量公司可在过渡期内逐步缴足。
实践中，这意味着一家在 2024 年前设立、原承诺在例如二十年内出资的公司，必须把时间表调整到符合五年上限。普遍理解的框架是，存量公司最迟应于 2032 年 6 月 30 日前缴足（依据国务院过渡规定）；但企业应遵循国务院发布的具体规定，而不应自行假定某一固定日期。
存量公司的关键合规动作是：审查现行章程与登记的出资期限，识别超出法定上限的部分，并在过渡期内相应修改章程与登记。
认缴出资加速到期
一项尤为重要的规定是认缴出资加速到期。公司不能清偿到期债务的，公司或者已到期债权的债权人有权要求已认缴但尚未届出资期限的股东提前缴纳出资。该规定见于公司法第五十四条。
其实际效果是：五年期限并非绝对保护伞。当公司不能清偿到期债务时，未来出资日期所提供的保护可被击穿，债权人可就未缴的认缴出资主张权利以清偿债务。因此，投资者应将”已认缴但未缴”的资本视为真实风险敞口，而非一项遥远的行政义务。
外资企业特别事项
外资企业首先受《外商投资法》规范，该法自 2020 年 1 月 1 日起施行，将外资逐案审批改为信息报告制：外国投资者通过商务主管部门系统报送信息报告，而无需就每个投资项目单独获得审批。
关键在于组织形式。外资有限责任公司仍是公司法项下的有限责任公司，因此五年认缴制与其适用于内资有限责任公司的方式相同。信息报告制的转变，并不使外资有限责任公司免于资本期限要求。
包括外资企业在内的市场主体登记，由国家市场监督管理总局（SAMR）及其地方机构负责，依据 2026 版登记文书规范。同时，外商投资信息报告通过商务主管部门系统报送。因此，外资企业须协调两条工作线：一是 SAMR 登记（记载公司、资本及出资期限），二是商务侧的信息报告（记载外商投资事项）。
实务步骤
对于新设外资有限责任公司，实务顺序如下：第一，确定注册资本总额与切实可行的五年出资计划，因为全额须在成立后五年内缴足。第二，起草公司章程，使分期缴纳安排落入五年窗口内。第三，依据现行登记文书规范完成 SAMR 登记，确保出资期限正确记载。第四，通过商务主管部门系统报送外商投资信息报告。第五，按章程出资，并保留汇付与验资证据。
对于存量外资企业，优先事项是依据五年上限审查现有出资期限，适用国务院过渡框架，若旧期限超出上限则修改章程与登记，并在过渡期内逐步缴足。全程应监控公司偿债能力，因为加速到期规则意味着若债务无法清偿，未缴认缴资本可被提前追缴。
股东未按期出资的，对公司及其他股东承担违约责任，并可能被登记机关责令改正或处以罚款。因此，及时、留痕的出资既是合规要求，也是风险管理要务。
延伸阅读
投资者应查阅一手来源：全国人民代表大会修订通过的公司法文本；国务院关于存量公司出资期限调整的过渡规定；以及 SAMR 的市场主体登记文书规范。下列来源部分链接了发布这些材料的官方门户。
Sources
- https://www.npc.gov.cn/ （全国人民代表大会，公司法修订通过机关）
- https://www.samr.gov.cn/ （国家市场监督管理总局，市场主体登记与注册资本监管）
- https://www.gov.cn/ （国务院，公司法配套规定与注册资本相关部署）