- Any FIE that has related-party transactions, or meets the country-by-country reporting test, must file the annual related-party transaction return (the “Associated Party Business Reporting Form”) by 31 May.
凡是存在关联交易或符合国别报告条件的外商投资企业，均须于5月31日前报送年度关联业务往来报告表（关联申报）。- Three contemporaneous-documentation files — master file, local file, and specified-matters file — are required once quantitative thresholds are met, prepared within 12 months of the entity’s year-end.
达到量化门槛后，须准备主体文档、本地文档与特殊事项文档三类同期资料，并在企业会计年度终了之日起12个月内准备完毕。- The master file threshold is cross-border related transactions with a prepared group master file, or aggregate related-party transaction value above RMB 1 billion; the local file triggers at RMB 200m+ of other related transactions.
主体文档门槛为发生跨境关联交易且集团已准备主体文档，或关联交易总额超10亿元；本地文档在其他关联交易合计超4000万元时触发。- Loss-making tolling or distribution entities must prepare a local file for the loss year regardless of threshold, and advance pricing arrangements can be streamlined under a simplified procedure.
从事来料加工或分销且亏损的实体，无论是否达标均须就亏损年度准备本地文档；符合条件的企业可申请适用简易程序谈签单边预约定价安排。- Non-compliance carries penalties under the Tax Administration Law and exposes the group to special-tax-adjustment and mutual-agreement risks.
未合规将依《税收征收管理法》承担处罚，并使集团面临特别纳税调查调整与相互协商程序风险。- FIEs should build a year-round documentation calendar linking transfer-pricing policy, the related-party return, and contemporaneous files to avoid year-end scrambles.
外商投资企业应当建立贯穿全年的文档时间表，将转让定价政策、关联申报与同期资料衔接，避免年末突击。
Related-Party Disclosure and Contemporaneous Documentation for Foreign-Invested Enterprises (2026) | 外商投资企业关联申报与同期资料合规（2026）
Why this matters now
Foreign-invested enterprises in China almost always transact with offshore affiliates — for procurement, royalties, services, financing, or contract manufacturing. Those related-party dealings sit squarely inside China’s transfer-pricing and disclosure regime. For an FIE, the annual compliance cycle is not optional: it spans the related-party transaction return (关联申报), three tiers of contemporaneous documentation (同期资料), and — for larger groups — country-by-country reporting. Get it wrong and the consequences range from late-filing penalties to a special tax adjustment that re-prices years of intercompany dealings.
The framework is stable but unforgiving. The core documents — SAT Announcement 2016 No. 42, Announcement 2017 No. 6, and Announcement 2018 No. 14 — remain in force, and tax authorities continue to sharpen cross-border related-party scrutiny.
The related-party disclosure (关联申报)
A FIE that is an audit-based resident enterprise, or a non-resident enterprise with an establishment in China that declares enterprise income tax on an actual basis, must file the *Annual Associated Party Business Reporting Form (2016 edition)* together with its annual CIT return if, during the year, it had business dealings with a related party, or it had no such dealings but meets the country-by-country reporting conditions in Announcement 2016 No. 42, Article 5.
The disclosure captures the group’s related-party matrix, transaction types, and pricing methods. Where the FIE is the ultimate parent or is designated as the CbC reporting entity, the three CbC tables must be completed in both Chinese and English. The filing deadline is 31 May following the tax year.
The three contemporaneous files (同期资料)
Contemporaneous documentation is the transfer-pricing defence file that must exist at the time the transaction occurs. There are three documents, each with its own trigger:
- Master file (主体文档). Required if the FIE had cross-border related transactions and the group has prepared a master file, or if aggregate related-party transaction value exceeded RMB 1 billion in the year.
- Local file (本地文档). Required where tangible-asset ownership transfers exceeded RMB 200m, financial-asset transfers exceeded RMB 100m, intangible-asset transfers exceeded RMB 100m, or other related transactions exceeded RMB 40m.
- Specified-matters file (特殊事项文档). Required for cost-sharing agreements, and for capital-weakening (thin-capitalisation) cases where the debt-to-equity ratio exceeds the standard and the taxpayer must show the arrangement meets the arm’s-length principle.
Preparation deadlines: the master file within 12 months of the group’s ultimate-parent year-end; the local and specified-matters files by 30 June of the following year. Documents are kept (not routinely filed) for ten years and produced within 30 days when the tax authority requests them. Entities dealing only with domestic related parties may be exempt from all three.
Special rule for loss-makers
A tolling or distribution FIE that is loss-making must prepare a local file for the loss year regardless of whether it crosses the quantitative thresholds. Tax authorities expect such entities to maintain a reasonable profit level; a persistent loss combined with related-party dealings is a classic transfer-pricing audit trigger.
Advance pricing arrangements (APA)
Where uncertainty is high, a FIE may seek an APA — a forward-looking agreement with the tax authority on the transfer-pricing method. SAT Announcement 2021 No. 24 introduced a simplified procedure for unilateral APAs for taxpayers meeting scale and track-record conditions (generally related-party transaction value above RMB 40m in each of the three prior years, plus one of three qualifying circumstances). An APA provides certainty and can reduce audit risk, though it requires disciplined documentation.
A practical compliance calendar
- Q1–Q2: Confirm related-party relationships and transaction categories; begin master-file inputs from the group.
- Pre-year-end: Refresh the local file’s benchmarking (typically a three-year window) and functional analysis.
- By 31 May: File the annual CIT return with the associated-party disclosure; complete CbC tables if in scope.
- By 30 June: Finalise local and specified-matters files.
- Within 12 months of parent year-end: Finalise the master file.
- Ongoing: Keep the economic analysis current; respond to information requests within 30 days.
Documentation to keep
FIEs should retain the reporting form, the three contemporaneous files, the benchmarking study, intercompany agreements, allocation of shared-service costs, and any APA correspondence. Treating this as a documented, year-round programme — not a May scramble — is the cheapest insurance against a transfer-pricing adjustment.
Related reading
- See our articles on corporate tax residency and CFC rules, and on tax-inspection voluntary disclosure, for the broader FIE tax-compliance picture.
外商投资企业关联申报与同期资料合规（2026）/ Related-Party Disclosure and Contemporaneous Documentation for Foreign-Invested Enterprises (2026)
为何当下重要
在中国的外商投资企业几乎都与境外关联方发生交易——采购、特许权使用费、服务、融资或合同制造。这些关联交易正处于中国转让定价与披露框架的核心。对外商投资企业而言，年度合规周期并非可选项：它涵盖关联申报、三个层级的同期资料，以及（对较大集团）国别报告。处理不当，后果从逾期申报处罚到重新定价多年关联交易的特别纳税调整不等。
该框架稳定但并不宽容。核心文件——国家税务总局公告2016年第42号、2017年第6号、2018年第14号——依然有效，税务机关也持续加强对跨境关联交易的审查。
关联申报
实行查账征收的居民企业，或在中国境内设立机构、场所并据实申报缴纳企业所得税的非居民企业，若在年度内与关联方发生业务往来，或虽未发生但符合国家税务总局公告2016年第42号第五条国别报告条件的，应在报送年度企业所得税纳税申报表时附送《中华人民共和国企业年度关联业务往来报告表（2016年版）》。
申报内容涵盖集团关联关系表、交易类型与定价方法。若外商投资企业是最终控股企业或被指定为国别报告报送企业，须以中英双语填写三张国别报告表。申报截止日为次年5月31日。
三类同期资料
同期资料是在关联交易发生时即应存在的转让定价证明文档，分三种，各有触发条件：
- 主体文档。 年度发生跨境关联交易且集团已准备主体文档，或关联交易总额超过10亿元的企业须准备。
- 本地文档。 有形资产所有权转让超2亿元、金融资产转让超1亿元、无形资产所有权转让超1亿元，或其他关联交易合计超4000万元时须准备。
- 特殊事项文档。 签订或执行成本分摊协议，或关联债资比超限且须说明符合独立交易原则（资本弱化）时须准备。
准备期限：主体文档在集团最终控股企业会计年度终了之日起12个月内；本地文档与特殊事项文档于次年6月30日前。资料保存（而非日常报送）10年，税务机关要求后30日内提供。仅与境内关联方交易的企业可不准备三类文档。
亏损企业的特殊规则
从事来料加工或分销且亏损的外商投资企业，无论是否达到量化门槛，均须就亏损年度准备本地文档。税务机关期望此类实体保持合理利润水平；持续亏损叠加关联交易是经典的转让定价稽查触发点。
预约定价安排
不确定性较高时，外商投资企业可申请预约定价安排（APA）——与税务机关就转让定价方法达成的前瞻性协议。国家税务总局公告2021年第24号对符合条件的纳税人引入单边APA简易程序（通常前三个年度关联交易额每年超4000万元且符合三种情形之一）。APA提供确定性并降低稽查风险，但要求严谨的文档支撑。
实用合规时间表
- 第一季度至第二季度： 确认关联关系与交易类别，启动集团主体文档输入。
- 年末前： 更新本地文档的基准分析（通常三年窗口）与功能分析。
- 5月31日前： 随年度所得税申报报送关联申报；如适用完成国别报告表。
- 6月30日前： 定稿本地文档与特殊事项文档。
- 母公司年末起12个月内： 定稿主体文档。
- 持续： 保持经济分析更新，30日内响应信息请求。
应留存的文件
外商投资企业须保留报告表、三类同期资料、基准研究、关联交易协议、共享服务成本分摊及任何APA往来函件。将其视为贯穿全年的文档化项目而非五月突击，是防范转让定价调整最经济的保障。
延伸阅读
- 请参阅我们关于企业税收居民与受控外国企业规则、税务稽查自愿披露的文章，了解更完整的外资企业税务合规图景。
Sources
- 国家税务总局《外商投资项目全周期涉税服务指引（对外资）》— 关联申报、同期资料与预约定价安排政策依据与适用主体：<https://www.chinatax.gov.cn/chinatax/n810219/n810744/n1671176/n2884609/c5245410/5245410/files/2025-12-2%20%E5%A4%96%E5%95%86%E6%8A%95%E8%B5%84%E9%A1%B9%E7%9B%AE%E5%85%A8%E5%91%A8%E6%9C%9F%E6%B6%89%E7%A8%8E%E6%9C%8D%E5%8A%A1%E6%8C%87%E5%BC%95%EF%BC%88%E5%AF%B9%E5%A4%96%EF%BC%89.pdf>
- 国家税务总局河北省税务局《关于2025年度关联申报及同期资料准备的提示》— 援引国家税务总局公告2016年第42号、2017年第6号、2018年第14号：<http://hebei.chinatax.gov.cn/xaxq/tzgg/tzgg/202605/t20260512_3652200.html>
- 国家税务总局《关于完善关联申报和同期资料管理有关事项的公告》（国家税务总局公告2016年第42号）：<https://www.chinatax.gov.cn/>