One-Stop Government Service for Foreign Business: The Chancheng International Service Zone

2026-08-30 One-stop Window / 一站式窗口

  • Foshan’s Chancheng district has opened the first district-level government international service zone in Foshan, a one-stop counter covering 96 high-frequency foreign-related services for foreign companies and expatriate talent.
    佛山市禅城区开设佛山市首个区级政务国际服务专区，一站式受理外资企业与外籍人才高频涉外业务 96 项。
  • The zone is run by 14 government departments — organisation, administration, economy & science, public security, market regulation, taxation, social security, customs and others — under a “3+1” international service framework built around foreign investment, expatriate employment, cross-border trade and talent settlement.
    专区由区委组织部、行政服务中心联动经科、公安、市监、税务、社保、海关等 14 个职能单位共建，围绕外商投资、外籍就业、跨境贸易、人才安居四大场景搭建”3+1″国际化服务体系。
  • In 2026 the zone has handled over 1,800 foreign-related transactions, and the time to set up a foreign-invested enterprise has been cut by more than 40%.
    2026 年以来，专区累计办理涉外业务超 1800 宗，外资企业开办时限压缩超 40%。
  • Corporate services span the full life cycle — setup registration, equity changes, foreign-investment filing and import-export tax refunds — while expatriate services cover work permits, residence permits, social insurance, talent housing and professional-title evaluation.
    企业服务覆盖全生命周期——设立登记、股权变更、外资备案、进出口退税等；外籍人才服务覆盖工作许可、居留许可、社保申领、人才安居、职称评审等。
  • A bilingual (English, German and more) service team provides one-on-one accompaniment and point-to-point policy answers, with dedicated “Xiaochan” liaisons paired with foreign-invested enterprises.
    双语（含英语、德语等）服务团队提供一对一陪同办理与点对点政策答疑，”小禅”专员与外资企业结对服务。
  • For foreign companies, the practical value is a single accountable window: instead of navigating multiple departments, setup, licensing, employment and tax matters can be handled in one place, with regular Monday-to-Friday availability for the highest-frequency work-permit and residence items.
    对外资企业，实操价值在于一个”找得到人”的窗口：设立、许可、用工与税务事项可在一处办理，最高频的工作许可与居留业务已实现周一至周五常态化一站式服务。

One-Stop Government Service for Foreign Business: The Chancheng International Service Zone | 外资一站式政务服务：禅城国际服务专区

What the zone is

In 2026, Foshan’s Chancheng district opened the first district-level government international service zone in the city — a single physical counter where foreign-invested enterprises and expatriate talent can handle 96 high-frequency foreign-related matters. The zone is built by the district’s organisation department and administrative service centre together with 14 functional departments — economy and science, public security, market regulation, taxation, social security, customs and others — under a “3+1” international service framework. It is organised around four core scenarios: foreign investment, expatriate employment, cross-border trade and talent settlement, and it operationalises a set of “one thing” (yi jian shi) integrated reforms for foreign-related services. The model matters because it moves the burden of navigation from the user to the government: where a foreign company previously had to learn which department handled which step, the zone assembles the departments behind one counter.

What the zone covers

The service scope splits into three layers. For foreign-invested enterprises, the zone covers the full life cycle: company setup registration, equity changes, foreign-investment information filing and import-export tax refunds, alongside other registration and licensing matters. For expatriate talent, it covers the highest-frequency items: the foreigner work permit, work-type residence permits, social insurance enrolment, talent housing applications and professional-title evaluation. For both, the zone offers accompaniment services: a bilingual (English, German and other languages) team provides one-on-one assistance during the process and point-to-point policy answers, and dedicated “Xiaochan” liaisons are paired with individual foreign-invested enterprises for ongoing support. The highest-frequency items — work permits, residence permits and professional-title evaluation — are available every working day (Monday to Friday) as routine one-stop services.

Results so far

The numbers show the model working. In 2026 the zone has handled more than 1,800 foreign-related transactions, and the time needed to set up a foreign-invested enterprise has been cut by more than 40%. The gains come from two directions: the “one thing” integration collapses multiple visits into one (registration, licensing and employment matters that previously required separate trips to separate departments), and the dedicated bilingual staff reduce the failure-and-retry cycle that foreign applicants often face with language and unfamiliar procedures. Similar models are spreading across China — from the Lingang special area in Shanghai to border cities like Heihe, where a “one thing” reform package for foreign enterprises has helped 18 foreign companies set up in 2026, up 80% year on year, with a “rapid clearance plus licence” channel for Russian investors.

Why it matters for foreign companies

For a foreign company entering a Chinese city for the first time, the practical value of such a zone is accountability: there is a single physical place, with staff who speak a shared language, that owns the setup process end to end. The traditional pattern — business registration at the market-regulation bureau, work permits at the HRSS department, residence permits at the immigration office, tax registration at the tax bureau, customs filing at customs — multiplies the number of unfamiliar counters a new investor must find. A one-stop zone compresses that into one visit and, just as importantly, provides an ongoing point of contact after setup: the “Xiaochan” pairing means a company has a named liaison inside the government for follow-up questions on licensing, incentives or compliance.

Practical guidance for foreign companies

Foreign companies should use such zones deliberately. (1) Route the setup through the zone: check whether the city where you are registering has an international service zone or equivalent one-stop window, and use it as the primary channel rather than going department by department. (2) Bundle the employment steps: where work permits and residence permits are offered as a routine combined service, file both together to avoid residence gaps. (3) Use the accompaniment service: even with English support, bring prepared documentation (passport pages, apostilled corporate documents, translations) to cut the retry cycle. (4) Keep the liaison: after setup, maintain the contact with the assigned liaison or service team — they are the fastest route to answers on annual reporting, changes and incentives. (5) Check what is actually on the list: zones vary in scope (96 items in Chancheng), so confirm that the specific matter you need — e.g. professional-title evaluation or customs filing — is in scope before relying on it.

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外资一站式政务服务：禅城国际服务专区

专区是什么

2026 年，佛山市禅城区开设佛山市首个区级政务国际服务专区——一个让外资企业与外籍人才集中办理 96 项高频涉外业务的实体窗口。专区由区委组织部、行政服务中心联动经科、公安、市监、税务、社保、海关等 14 个职能单位共建，搭建”3+1″国际化服务体系，围绕外商投资、外籍就业、跨境贸易、人才安居四大核心场景，落地多项涉外”一件事”集成改革。这个模式的意义在于把”找部门”的负担从办事人转移到政府：过去外资企业要弄清楚每个环节归哪个部门，现在专区把所有部门聚合到一个窗口后面。

专区覆盖什么

服务范围分三层。对外资企业，专区覆盖全生命周期：公司设立登记、股权变更、外资备案、进出口退税，以及其他登记与许可事项。对外籍人才，覆盖最高频事项：外国人来华工作许可、工作类居留许可、社保申领、人才安居申请与职称评审。对两者，专区都提供陪同服务：双语（含英语、德语等）团队在办理过程中一对一协助、点对点答疑，”小禅”专员与外资企业结对提供持续支持。最高频的工作许可、居留许可与职称评审业务已实现每个工作日（周一至周五）常态化一站式办理。

迄今的成绩

数字说明模式奏效。2026 年以来，专区累计办理涉外业务超 1800 宗，外资企业开办时限压缩超 40%。成效来自两个方向：”一件事”集成把多次跑动合并为一次（登记、许可、用工事项过去要分别跑不同部门），而专职双语人员减少了外国申请者常因语言与流程陌生而陷入的”失败—重试”循环。类似模式正在全国扩散——从上海临港新片区到黑河等边境城市，黑河的”一件事”改革已帮助 2026 年 18 家外资企业落户、同比增长 80%，并为俄罗斯投资者开通”极速通关+办照”通道。

为什么对外资企业重要

对外资企业，这类专区的实操价值是”找得到人”：一个实体地点、一群会说共同语言的员工、对设立流程端到端负责。传统模式——市场监管局办登记、人社部门办工作许可、出入境办居留、税务局办税务登记、海关办报关备案——让新投资者必须找到多个陌生窗口。一站式专区把这一切压缩为一次到访，更重要的是它提供了设立后的持续联系点：”小禅”结对意味着企业在政府内部有一个具名联系人，可随时跟进许可、激励或合规问题。

给外资企业的实操建议

外资企业应有意识地利用这类专区。（1）把设立流程走专区：注册前先查所在城市是否有国际服务专区或等效一站式窗口，把它作为主渠道而不是逐部门跑。（2）捆绑用工事项：凡提供工作许可与居留许可常规联办的城市，两项一起办，避免居留空档。（3）用好陪同服务：即使有英语支持，也备好材料（护照页、加签的公司文件、翻译件）以减少重试。（4）保留联系人：设立后持续联系对接专员或服务团队——这是获取年报、变更与激励政策答案最快的渠道。（5）核对清单范围：专区覆盖范围因城而异（禅城 96 项），依赖之前先确认所需事项（如职称评审或海关备案）确实在清单内。

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