China’s Action Plan for Stabilising and Upgrading Foreign Investment: What MOFCOM Document 2026 No. 97 Means for Investors
- The Action Plan for Stabilising and Upgrading the Use of Foreign Investment was issued by the Ministry of Commerce, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance as Shang Zi Fa [2026] No. 97, dated 16 June 2026, with the agreement of the State Council.
《利用外资固稳促优行动方案》由商务部、国家发展改革委、财政部以商资发〔2026〕97号印发，发文日期为2026年6月16日，经国务院同意。
- Market access opening centres on services: steadily expanding the pilot opening of vocational skills training institutions, vocational colleges and high-level science, engineering, agriculture and medical universities, and comprehensively upgrading the Mainland–Hong Kong and Mainland–Macao CEPA.
市场准入扩大聚焦服务业：稳步扩大职业技能培训机构、职业院校、高水平理工农医类大学对外开放试点，并推动全面升级内地与香港、澳门关于建立更紧密经贸关系的安排（CEPA）。
- Financial opening includes risk-management tools such as government bond futures, fund investment advisory business, facilitated cross-border financing quotas, a “document preparation on behalf of the client” settlement service and pre-communication on listing applications.
金融业开放包括国债期货等风险管理工具、基金投资顾问业务、跨境融资便利化额度、”代客制单”国际结算单证服务，以及交易所上市申报前预沟通服务。
- On pharmaceuticals and healthcare, the plan requires implementation rules for segmented drug production, an expansion of the pilot regions for biotechnology and wholly foreign-owned hospitals, and wider commercial-insurance cover for innovative drugs and medical devices.
在医药等领域，方案要求研究出台药品分段生产实施细则、进一步扩大生物技术及外商独资医院领域开放试点区域范围，并支持将更多创新药械纳入商业保险保障范围。
- The merger chapter commits to accelerating the revision of the rules on the acquisition of domestic enterprises by foreign investors, and allows qualified foreign equity investment institutions to participate as strategic investors in securities issuance by listed companies in unrelated industries.
外资并购制度方面，方案提出加快修订出台关于外国投资者并购境内企业的规定，并允许符合条件的外资股权投资机构以战略投资者身份参与非相关行业上市公司证券发行。
- On cross-border data, it supports free trade pilot zones and services-opening pilot cities in building scenario-based, field-level negative lists, and promotes national standards for important-data identification catalogues across eight sectors.
数据跨境流动方面，方案支持自由贸易试验区、国家服务业扩大开放试点城市制定场景化、字段级数据出境负面清单，并推动八个行业领域重要数据识别目录国家标准制定。
- Local implementation followed in mid-to-late September 2026, with briefings such as the Gansu session on 28 September and supporting measures issued by the Chongqing Municipal Commission of Commerce on 18 September.
2026年9月中下旬各地集中传达学习，例如甘肃省9月28日的培训会、重庆市商务委员会9月18日印发的配套举措。
China’s Action Plan for Stabilising and Upgrading Foreign Investment: What MOFCOM Document 2026 No. 97 Means for Investors | 利用外资固稳促优行动方案：三部门 2026 年 97 号文对外资投资者的含义
Overview
China’s Action Plan for Stabilising and Upgrading the Use of Foreign Investment (《利用外资固稳促优行动方案》) was issued by the Ministry of Commerce, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance as Shang Zi Fa [2026] No. 97, dated 16 June 2026, with the agreement of the State Council. Through mid-to-late September 2026, provincial commerce departments organised briefings to communicate and study the document.
The plan is organised around two operational chapters that matter most to foreign investors: expanding market access and improving the convenience of foreign investment. Within those chapters sit commitments on services and financial opening, pharmaceuticals, the merger-and-acquisition regime and cross-border data flows.
Market access: services, finance and pharmaceuticals
Services. The plan requires steadily expanding the pilot opening of vocational skills training institutions, vocational colleges and high-level science, engineering, agriculture and medical universities. It supports Beijing in raising the level of its national comprehensive demonstration zone for expanding the opening of the services sector, and in pushing ahead with early and pilot opening measures in modern-services priority areas such as the digital economy and medical and health. It also promotes the comprehensive upgrading of the Mainland and Hong Kong / Mainland and Macao Closer Economic Partnership Arrangements (CEPA), giving Hong Kong and Macao investors earlier opening in the services sector.
Finance. The plan supports more foreign institutions in using risk-management tools including government bond futures, and supports foreign institutions in conducting fund investment advisory business in accordance with law. It calls for optimising cross-border business management and providing facilitated cross-border financing quotas for key foreign-invested enterprises, and for guiding domestic banks to offer large foreign-invested enterprises a “document preparation on behalf of the client” (代客制单) international settlement documentary service. It also calls for optimising pre-communication services before listing applications on the exchanges and supporting qualified key foreign-invested enterprises in listing and raising funds domestically.
Pharmaceuticals and healthcare. The plan requires promptly studying and issuing implementation rules for segmented drug production, and promptly studying and submitting for approval an expansion of the pilot regions for opening in biotechnology and wholly foreign-owned hospitals. It supports insurers in bringing more innovative drugs and medical devices into the scope of commercial insurance cover, and calls for building industry collaboration platforms so that drugs produced by foreign-invested enterprises can more easily enter pharmaceutical retail channels.
The merger regime and cross-border data
Mergers and acquisitions. The plan commits to accelerating the revision and issuance of the rules on the acquisition of domestic enterprises by foreign investors, optimising merger-management procedures and consideration-payment requirements, and strengthening inter-departmental regulatory coordination. It further provides that qualified foreign equity investment institutions may participate, as strategic investors, in securities issuance by listed companies in unrelated industries.
Cross-border data. The plan supports free trade pilot zones and pilot cities for expanding the opening of the services sector in exploring scenario-based, field-level negative lists for outbound data in more areas. It also promotes the formulation of national standards for important-data identification catalogues in the sectors of industry, telecommunications, geographic information, automotive, pharmaceuticals, seed, aerospace and civil aviation.
The plan also addresses encouraging the reinvestment of foreign investment within China (促进外资境内再投资); the operational detail follows the official text.
Reinvestment and the tax-credit link
A related instrument sits alongside the plan: the State Taxation Administration Announcement 2025 No. 18 on matters concerning the tax-credit policy for foreign investors that make direct investment with distributed profits. It complements Ministry of Finance, State Taxation Administration and Ministry of Commerce Announcement 2025 No. 2 — a credit of 10% of the investment amount against the tax payable for the year, for investments made between 1 January 2025 and 31 December 2028.
At local level, Chongqing’s Measures for Improving the Service-Guarantee System for Foreign Investment (渝商务发〔2026〕42号, issued 18 September 2026, containing 14 measures) directs that the entities eligible for deferred tax on profit reinvestment, the tax credit and the import-equipment duty exemption be identified and supported through a “one-to-one” coaching mechanism.
Local implementation and what to watch
Through mid-to-late September 2026, provincial commerce departments organised briefings on the plan. Public examples include a Lanzhou foreign-investment work training session held by the Gansu Provincial Department of Commerce on 28 September, and supporting measures issued by the Chongqing Municipal Commission of Commerce on 18 September.
For foreign investors, the practical reading is that the plan’s value lies in its two operational chapters: where the door opens wider (services, finance, pharmaceuticals), and how the transactional machinery around it (mergers, data, reinvestment) is being adjusted. The commitments are directional — several are framed as matters to be studied and issued or submitted for approval — so the follow-through instruments will determine timing.
Sources
- 中华人民共和国商务部 — 政策发布（含《利用外资固稳促优行动方案》，商资发〔2026〕97号，2026年6月16日）: https://www.mofcom.gov.cn/zcfb/index.html
- 甘肃省商务厅 — 全省外资工作培训会（兰州市，2026年9月28日）: https://swt.gansu.gov.cn/swt/c108416/202609/174403745.shtml
- 重庆市商务委员会 — 《健全外商投资服务保障体系工作举措》（渝商务发〔2026〕42号，2026年9月18日印发）: https://sww.cq.gov.cn/zwgk_247/zfxxgkmlrk/zcwj/xzffxwj/202609/t20260920_16106973.html
- 中国政府网 — 国务院政策文件库（境外投资者以分配利润直接投资税收抵免相关政策）: https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/zhengceku/202508/content_7034845.htm
- 芜湖市商务局 — 外资政策落地动态与政策解读: https://swj.wuhu.gov.cn/openness/public/6596631/41327413.html
Related reading
- see also: China’s revised foreign M&A rules in 2026 (foreign-ma-rules-2026-update)
- see also: Foreign private equity as strategic investors in listed companies (foreign-pe-strategic-investment-2026)
- see also: Expansion of the biotechnology and wholly foreign-owned hospital pilot (biotech-wholly-owned-hospital-pilot-expansion)
- see also: Services-sector opening signals from CIFTIS (ciftis-services-opening-signals)
利用外资固稳促优行动方案：三部门 2026 年 97 号文对外资投资者的含义
概述
《利用外资固稳促优行动方案》由商务部、国家发展改革委、财政部以商资发〔2026〕97号印发，发文日期为2026年6月16日，经国务院同意。2026年9月中下旬，各地商务主管部门集中组织传达学习。
方案围绕两个对外资投资者最具操作意义的章节展开：扩大市场准入与提升外商投资便利度。这两章之下，分别落着服务业与金融业开放、医药产业、外资并购制度以及数据跨境流动等具体承诺。
市场准入：服务业、金融业与医药产业
服务业。 方案要求稳步扩大职业技能培训机构、职业院校、高水平理工农医类大学对外开放试点；支持北京提升国家服务业扩大开放综合示范区建设水平，推动数字经济、医药健康等现代服务业重点领域开放举措先行先试；推动全面升级内地与香港、澳门关于建立更紧密经贸关系的安排（CEPA），在服务业领域加大对港澳投资者率先开放力度。
金融业。 方案支持更多外资机构利用包括国债期货在内的风险管理工具，支持外资机构依法开展基金投资顾问业务；优化跨境业务管理，为重点外资企业提供跨境融资便利化额度；引导境内银行对大型外资企业推出“代客制单”国际结算单证服务；优化交易所上市申报前预沟通服务，支持符合条件的重点外资企业在境内上市融资。
医药等产业。 方案要求抓紧研究出台药品分段生产实施细则，抓紧研究报批进一步扩大生物技术、外商独资医院领域开放试点区域范围；支持保险公司将更多创新药械纳入商业保险保障范围；搭建行业协作平台，便利外资企业生产的药品进入药品零售渠道。
外资并购制度与数据跨境流动
外资并购。 方案提出加快修订出台关于外国投资者并购境内企业的规定，优化并购管理流程和对价支付要求，强化部门监管协同；并明确允许符合条件的外资股权投资机构以战略投资者身份参与非相关行业上市公司证券发行。
数据跨境流动。 方案支持自由贸易试验区、国家服务业扩大开放试点城市探索在更多领域制定场景化、字段级数据出境负面清单；推动制定工业、电信、地理信息、汽车、医药、种业、航天、民航等行业领域重要数据识别目录国家标准。
方案还就促进外资境内再投资作出安排；具体细节以官方全文为准。
境内再投资与税收抵免衔接
与方案相衔接的一份文件是国家税务总局关于境外投资者以分配利润直接投资税收抵免政策有关事项的公告（国家税务总局公告2025年第18号），其与财政部 税务总局 商务部公告2025年第2号配套——按投资额10%抵免当年应纳税额，适用于2025年1月1日至2028年12月31日期间的投资。
在地方层面，重庆《健全外商投资服务保障体系工作举措》（渝商务发〔2026〕42号，2026年9月18日印发，共14条）明确，梳理境外投资者利润再投资递延纳税、税收抵免、进口设备免税政策适用主体，建立“一对一”辅导机制。
地方落地与关注要点
2026年9月中下旬，各地商务主管部门集中组织传达学习。公开可见的例子包括甘肃省商务厅9月28日在兰州市举办的外资工作培训会，以及重庆市商务委员会9月18日印发的配套举措。
对外资投资者而言，实操要义在于：方案的价值落在两个操作性章节——门开得更大的领域（服务业、金融业、医药产业），以及围绕交易的机制（并购、数据、再投资）正在如何调整。方案中的承诺具有方向性，其中多项表述为”抓紧研究出台””抓紧研究报批”，后续配套文件的出台节奏将决定落地时点。
来源
- 中华人民共和国商务部 — 政策发布（《利用外资固稳促优行动方案》，商资发〔2026〕97号，2026年6月16日）: https://www.mofcom.gov.cn/zcfb/index.html
- 甘肃省商务厅 — 全省外资工作培训会（兰州市，2026年9月28日）: https://swt.gansu.gov.cn/swt/c108416/202609/174403745.shtml
- 重庆市商务委员会 — 《健全外商投资服务保障体系工作举措》（渝商务发〔2026〕42号，2026年9月18日印发）: https://sww.cq.gov.cn/zwgk_247/zfxxgkmlrk/zcwj/xzffxwj/202609/t20260920_16106973.html
- 中国政府网 — 国务院政策文件库（境外投资者以分配利润直接投资税收抵免相关政策）: https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/zhengceku/202508/content_7034845.htm
- 芜湖市商务局 — 外资政策落地动态与政策解读: https://swj.wuhu.gov.cn/openness/public/6596631/41327413.html
相关阅读
- 见：2026年外资并购规则修订（foreign-ma-rules-2026-update）
- 见：外资私募股权投资机构以战略投资者身份参与上市公司证券发行（foreign-pe-strategic-investment-2026）
- 见：生物技术与外商独资医院开放试点扩大（biotech-wholly-owned-hospital-pilot-expansion）
- 见：服贸会释放的服务业开放信号（ciftis-services-opening-signals）