- Since the Foreign Investment Law (2020), acquiring a domestic firm is no longer a commerce-approval event; it runs through the negative list, information reporting, plus merger control and security review where triggered.
自《外商投资法》（2020）以来，并购境内企业不再是商务审批事件——经负面清单、信息报告办理，并在触发时通过经营者集中与安全审查。- Merger-control thresholds (State Council Order No. 773, effective 26 Jan 2024): worldwide turnover >RMB 12bn with two parties each >RMB 800m in China, OR China aggregate >RMB 4bn with two parties each >RMB 800m in China.
经营者集中门槛（国务院第773号令，2024年1月26日施行）：全球合计超120亿元且两方中国各超8亿元，或中国合计超40亿元且两方中国各超8亿元。- SAMR cleared 706 concentrations in 2025 (up 9.8%); 83% closed at the 30-day preliminary stage, with a “double 20-day” simplified track for straightforward cases.
市场监管总局2025年审结经营者集中706件（增长9.8%）；83%在30天初步审查阶段结案，简易案件推行”双20天”审查目标。- Security review is mandatory where the target is in a covered sensitive sector and the foreign investor obtains actual control — and its control test is broader than merger control’s.
当目标位于受涵盖敏感领域且外国投资者取得实际控制权时须通过安全审查——其控制标准宽于经营者集中标准。- The 2024 strategic-investment rules (six-agency Order No. 3, effective 2 Dec 2024) ease listed-company investment: foreign natural persons allowed, lower asset thresholds, tender offers added, lock-up cut to 12 months, no commerce approval.
2024年战投规则（六部门第3号令，2024年12月2日施行）放宽上市公司投资：允许外国自然人、降低资产门槛、新增要约收购、锁定期降至12个月、无需商务审批。- Run merger control, security review and sector licensing in parallel; do not close until every mandatory clearance is in hand, and begin both reviews at term-sheet stage.
将经营者集中、安全审查与行业许可并行推进；未获所有强制核准前不得交割，并在条款书阶段启动两项审查。
Foreign M&A in China in 2026: Review Map and Timelines | 2026年外资并购中国：审查地图与时间线
The post-2020 deal frame
Acquiring a Chinese company as a foreign investor now sits inside the Foreign Investment Law regime rather than the older approval-based M&A rules. The behavioural shift is decisive: the deal is no longer a commerce-department approval event by itself. Instead, the investor incorporates or transfers under company law, clears any negative-list condition, files foreign-investment information, and — where triggered — separately clears merger control (antitrust) with the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) and national security review with the NDRC-led mechanism. Understanding which gates actually apply, and running them in parallel, is the core of a smooth closing.
Gate 1 — the negative list and information reporting
The 2024 national negative list for foreign investment contains 29 items and took effect on 1 November 2024. If the target’s sector is on the list, the acquisition must satisfy its conditions (equity caps, Chinese-control requirements, etc.); if off the list, the deal is treated on equal terms with domestic M&A. Cross-border share swaps are permitted but conditioned — generally the foreign equity used as consideration should be in a listed overseas company, though the 2024 strategic-investment rules relaxed this for certain directed-issue and tender-offer structures. Post-deal, the foreign investor files investment information rather than seeking approval.
Gate 2 — merger control (antitrust) filing
A foreign acquirer must notify SAMR before implementing a concentration that meets the thresholds. Under the revised State Council regulation (Order No. 773, effective 26 January 2024), a concentration must be notified where, in the prior fiscal year, the worldwide aggregate turnover of all parties exceeds RMB 12 billion and at least two parties each had China turnover above RMB 800 million; OR the parties’ aggregate China turnover exceeds RMB 4 billion and at least two parties each had China turnover above RMB 800 million. Banking, insurance, securities and futures are calculated with sector-specific rules.
The 2024 revision raised the prior levels (RMB 10bn / RMB 2bn / RMB 400m) to RMB 12bn / RMB 4bn / RMB 800m, which SAMR estimated would cut notifiable deals by about 30% and reduce transaction costs. A deal must not close before clearance; “gun-jumping” draws penalties. SAMR runs a simplified track with a “double 20-day” target (acceptance and review) for straightforward cases, and has moved pilot delegated review with provincial bureaus to formal delegated review (trial delegation转为正式委托 in August 2025, refined by an announcement in March 2026).
The throughput is real: in 2025 SAMR lawfully concluded 706 concentration cases, up 9.8% year-on-year, with 83% closing at the 30-day preliminary-review stage. In key fields such as automotive, photovoltaics and lithium batteries, the agency applies “fast review without lowering quality” to support restructuring.
Gate 3 — national security review
Where the acquisition is in a covered sensitive sector and the foreign investor acquires actual control, security review is required before implementation. The *Measures for Foreign Investment Security Review* (NDRC and MOFCOM, issued 19 December 2020, effective 18 January 2021) define the covered scope: national defence and surrounding areas; and important agriculture, energy and resources, major equipment manufacturing, important infrastructure, important transport services, important culture, important IT and internet products/services, important financial services, key technologies and other important areas — where the investor obtains actual control.
The “actual control” test is broader than merger control’s: it includes holding 50%+ equity; holding under 50% but with voting rights that materially influence board/shareholder resolutions; or other circumstances where the investor materially influences business decisions, personnel, finance or technology. Procedure runs preliminary (15 working days to decide whether to review) → general review (30 working days) → special review (60 working days, extendable); the decision is final and may prohibit, condition or clear the deal. Because it can override a cleared merger filing, security review is the gate an acquirer must screen first — and, as the 2026 Meta–Manus prohibition showed, it is actively enforced (see the dedicated article in this series).
Listed-company strategic investment (2024 update)
Where the target is a listed company, the foreign investor must also comply with the revised *Measures for the Administration of Strategic Investment in Listed Companies by Foreign Investors* (six agencies, Order No. 3, 2024; published 1 November 2024, effective 2 December 2024). The revision materially lowers the bar: foreign natural persons are allowed; asset thresholds are eased (non-controlling investors need only USD 50m owned or USD 3bn managed; controlling investors need USD 100m owned or USD 500m managed); cross-border share swaps are eased for directed issues and tender offers; the strategic-investment methods add tender offers; the holding-ratio requirement for agreement-transfer/tender-offer is cut from 10% to 5% (and eliminated for directed issues); and the lock-up is cut from three years to twelve months (or longer if other rules require). Importantly, strategic investment no longer requires commerce-department approval — it is handled through information reporting and securities-market rules, with security-review and merger-control interfaces preserved.
A realistic timeline
A straightforward, unrestricted, below-threshold acquisition can complete in roughly 2–4 months: due diligence and SPA, the foreign-investment information report and company-law filings, and any sector licence. Add merger control where thresholds are met — the simplified track targets about 20 days for review plus filing time; the standard track can run longer. Add security review where scope and control are present — the 15 + 30 + 60 working-day path (plus extensions) can extend well beyond a year for sensitive cases. The three workstreams should run in parallel, but closing is gated by the slowest mandatory clearance.
Do not sequence the clearances serially. Begin merger-control and security-review analyses at term-sheet stage, because the documents and substantive analysis overlap with diligence; locking the structure before the reviews are scoped risks a late redesign. Build the long-stop date around the special-review maximum, not the preliminary-review minimum.
What to do next
- Screen the target sector against the 2024 negative list; if restricted, confirm the equity/control condition can be met before signing.
- Run a merger-control threshold test early (worldwide >RMB 12bn & two parties >RMB 800m China; or China aggregate >RMB 4bn & two parties >RMB 800m China).
- Test security-review scope and “actual control” (50%+ equity, material voting influence, or material influence on decisions/personnel/finance/tech).
- For listed targets, apply the 2024 strategic-investment rules and route through information reporting, not commerce approval.
- Run merger control, security review and sector licensing in parallel; do not close until every mandatory clearance is in hand.
- Set the long-stop around the special-review maximum, and begin both reviews at term-sheet stage.
Common misreads
Three mistakes recur. First, sequencing the clearances serially (merger control, then security review, then licence) when they should run in parallel — serial handling is the usual cause of a missed long-stop. Second, assuming that because a deal is below the merger-control thresholds no ex-ante review applies at all; security review can still be triggered by a covered sector and control, independent of size. Third, underestimating “actual control” for security review — a minority stake with veto rights can count — which leads teams to skip the screen and discover the gap late. Scoping both reviews at term-sheet stage is the single best defence.
2026年外资并购中国：审查地图与时间线
2020年后的交易框架
外国投资者收购中国公司现今置于《外商投资法》框架下，而非旧有的审批式并购规则。行为变化是决定性的：交易本身不再是商务部门审批事件。投资者依据公司法设立或转让，清除任何负面清单条件，报送外商投资信息，并在触发时分别通过市场监管总局（SAMR）的经营者集中（反垄断）审查与发改委牵头机制的国家安全审查。厘清究竟哪些关口适用并并行推进，是顺利交割的核心。
关口一——负面清单与信息报告
2024年全国外资负面清单含29条，于2024年11月1日施行。若目标行业在清单上，收购须满足其条件（股权上限、中方控股要求等）；若不在清单上，则与境内并购平等对待。跨境换股允许但有条件——一般作为对价的外国股权应为境外上市公司股权，不过2024年战投规则对特定定向发行与要约收购结构有所放宽。交易后，外国投资者报送投资信息而非申请审批。
关口二——经营者集中（反垄断）申报
外国收购方须在实施达到门槛的集中前通知SAMR。依修订后的国务院规定（第773号令，2024年1月26日施行），上一会计年度所有当事人全球合计营业额超120亿元且至少两方中国境内各超8亿元，或当事人中国境内合计营业额超40亿元且至少两方中国境内各超8亿元，须申报。银行、保险、证券、期货按行业特别规则计算。
2024年修订将原有标准（100亿/20亿/4亿）提高至120亿/40亿/8亿元，SAMR估计可使申报量减少约30%、降低交易成本。交易不得在未获核准前实施；”抢跑”受罚。SAMR对简易案件设”双20天”目标（受理与审查各20天），并将试点委托地方审查转为正式委托（2025年8月试点转正式，2026年3月公告完善）。
成效实在：2025年SAMR依法审结经营者集中706件，同比增长9.8%，83%在30天初步审查阶段结案。在汽车、光伏、锂电池等重点领域，该局”快审不降质”以支持重组。
关口三——国家安全审查
当收购位于受涵盖敏感领域且外国投资者取得实际控制权时，须在实施前通过安全审查。《外商投资安全审查办法》（发改委、商务部，2020年12月19日发布，2021年1月18日施行）界定范围：国防及周围地区；以及重要农产品、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、重要信息技术和互联网产品与服务、重要金融服务、关键技术等重要领域——且投资者取得实际控制权。
“实际控制”标准宽于经营者集中：包括持股50%以上；持股不足50%但表决权对董事会/股东会决议产生重大影响；或其他对经营决策、人事、财务、技术产生重大影响的情形。程序为初步（15个工作日决定是否审查）→一般审查（30个工作日）→特别审查（60个工作日，可延长）；决定具终局性，可禁止、附条件批准或准予。因其可推翻已通过的经营者集中，安全审查是收购方须首先筛查的关口——且如2026年Meta–Manus禁止案所示，它正被积极执行（详见本系列专文）。
上市公司战略投资（2024更新）
若目标为上市公司，外国投资者还须遵守修订后的《外国投资者对上市公司战略投资管理办法》（六部门，第3号令，2024；2024年11月1日公布，2024年12月2日施行）。修订大幅降低门槛：允许外国自然人；资产门槛放宽（非控股者实有5000万美元或管理3亿美元；控股者1亿美元或管理5亿美元）；跨境换股对定向发行与要约收购放宽；战略投资方式新增要约收购；协议转让/要约收购持股比由10%降至5%（定向发行取消比例要求）；锁定期由3年降至12个月（其他规则有更长要求从其规定）。重要的是，战略投资不再需商务审批——经信息报告与证券市场规则办理，安全审查与经营者集中接口保留。
现实时间线
一项简单、无限制、未达门槛的收购约2–4个月可完成：尽调与SPA、外商投资信息报告与公司法律文件、以及行业许可。若达门槛则叠加经营者集中——简易案件审查约20天加申报时间；标准案件更久。若涉范围且取得控制权则叠加安全审查——15+30+60工作日路径（含延期）对敏感案件可远超一年。三项工作流应并行，但交割受最慢的强制核准制约。
切勿串行处理核准。应在条款书阶段即启动经营者集中与安全审查分析，因其文件与实质分析与尽调重叠；在审查范围确定前锁定结构，可能导致后期重构。长停日应围绕特别审查上限设定，而非初步审查下限。
下一步
- 将目标行业对照2024年负面清单筛查；若受限，签约前确认股权/控制条件可满足。
- 尽早做经营者集中门槛测试（全球超120亿且两方中国各超8亿；或中国合计超40亿且两方中国各超8亿）。
- 测试安全审查范围与”实际控制”（50%以上股权、重大表决影响、或对决策/人事/财务/技术重大影响）。
- 对上市公司目标，适用2024年战投规则，经信息报告而非商务审批路径。
- 经营者集中、安全审查与行业许可并行；未获所有强制核准前不得交割。
- 长停日围绕特别审查上限设定，并在条款书阶段即启动两项审查。
常见误读
三类错误反复出现。其一，将核准串行处理（先经营者集中、再安全审查、再许可），而它们本应并行——串行是错过长停日的常见原因。其二，以为交易未达经营者集中门槛便无需任何事前审查；安全审查可因受涵盖领域与控制独立触发，与规模无关。其三，低估安全审查的”实际控制”——具否决权的少数股权亦可能计入——导致团队跳过筛查、后期才发现缺口。在条款书阶段即并行界定两项审查，是最佳防御。
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