I. Legal Basis
 
(I) Article 9 of the Foreign Trade Law of the People's Republic of China (Order of the President of the People's Republic of China No.15) specifies: "A foreign trade operator engaged in import and export of goods or technologies shall make filing and registration with the department in charge of foreign trade under the State Council or institutions entrusted by it; but those that are exempted from registration for record by laws, administrative rules and rules of the department in charge of foreign trade under the State Council shall be excluded. The detailed rules on the filing and registration shall be stipulated by the department in charge of foreign trade under the State Council. Customs shall not handle the declaration and clearance procedure for goods imported or exported by a foreign trade operator who fails to go through the filing and registration procedures in accordance with the rules."
 
(II) Article 4 of the Measures for the Archival Filing and Registration of Foreign Trade Operators (Order of the Ministry of Commerce [2004] No.14) specifies: "National network and territorial administration shall be conducted for the work of filing and registration of foreign trade operators. The MOC entrusts the competent local departments in charge of foreign trade (hereinafter referred to as the filing and registration authorities) to be responsible for handling the formalities of filing and registration of foreign trade operators in their own regions. The entrusted filing and registration authorities may not entrust other institutions to conduct filing and registration without authorization."
 
(III) Circular of the Ministry of Commerce on Issues concerning Further Delegating the filing and Registration Authority for Foreign Trade Operators (Shang Mao Han [2009] No.5)
 
II. Application Requirements
 
Enterprises incorporated according to law or individual businesses processing procedures for industrial and commercial registration according to law. Territorial administration is implemented for the filing and registration of foreign trade operators. As for enterprises registered with the administration for industry and commerce of Sichuan, the Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce will conduct the filing and registration for foreign trade operators; regarding those registered with the administrators for industry and commerce of cities and prefectures, the competent commercial departments of corresponding cities and prefectures will conduct the filing and registration for foreign trade operators.
 
III. Application Materials
 
(I) Initial filing and registration for foreign trade operators
 
1. Fill in, submit and print the Form of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator on the Internet.
 
Enter the foreign trade operator system → process filing and registration procedures → select "Sichuan" for "Province" → for an enterprise with its business license issued by the Sichuan Provincial Administration for Industry and Commerce, select "Sichuan" for "City", and for an enterprise with its business license issued by the administration for industry and commerce of a city or prefecture, select the city or prefecture where the enterprise is located for "City" → select "Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce" or the competent commercial department of the city or prefecture where the enterprise is located for filing and registration authority → click "Submit" → fill in relevant information → upon check and confirmation of no error, click "Submission for filing and registration" → click "Print the registration form" to print the Form of Filing and Registration successfully submitted (2 pages in total) → the legal representative of the enterprise affixes signature, fills in date and affixes corporate seal at the position of "Signature and seal of foreign trade operator" of the Form of Filing and Registration.
 
An applicant shall carefully fill in all the items, including English information, e-mail, Tel. and fax number, according to requirements in the Form of Filing and Registration, and ensure that all the contents filled in are authentic, accurate and complete.
 
Get the Form of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator ("the Registration Form"). A foreign trade operator may download the Registration Form at the official website of the Ministry of Commerce (http://www.mofcom.gov.cn), or get the Registration Form (its format attached below) at local filing and registration authority;
 
2. the copy of business license (an enterprise shall process procedures for a change in business scope with an industrial and commercial department, and have the business license with "unified social credit code" reissued, and the business scope shall include the import and export of goods or technologies);
 
3. the copy of organizational code certificate;
 
4. the copy of certificate of approval for foreign-invested enterprise, where the foreign trade operator is a foreign-invested enterprise; and
 
the property notarization certification issued by a legal notary organization for an individual business (sole proprietor) handling industrial and commercial registration according to law; or, the capital credit certificate issued by a legal notary organization for a foreign (regional) enterprise handling industrial and commercial registration according to law.
 
Note: other relevant documents:
 
(1) A foreign-invested enterprise shall also submit the Approval of Certificate for Foreign-invested Enterprise (original and copy);
 
(2) An individual business (sole proprietor) shall also submit the property notarization certification (original and copy) issued by a legal notary organization; a non-local (foreign) enterprise (original and copy) shall also submit the capital credit certificate issued by a legal notary organization.
 
(II) Change of filing and registration for foreign trade operators
 
In the event of any change in any item in the Form of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator, the foreign trade operator concerned shall go through corresponding change formalities within 30 days. A foreign trade operator may submit an application for change by two methods: first, the filing authority concerned may help it with modification as per change information; second, it may submit change information at the enterprise portal, and the filing authority concerned may examine and approve that under the function of "review of change information".
 
Paper materials to be submitted for the change of filing and registration for foreign trade operators:
 
1.the original of the Form of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator;
 
2.the Application for Change of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator (download path: the official website of the Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce (swt.sc.gov.cn) →  download the Application for Change of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator → fill in all change items → print it and affix seal); and
 
3. the copy of duplicate of business license (three certificates combined into one certificate) and the copies of ID cards of legal representative and handler. (Copies shall be affixed with corporate seal)
 
Note: The filing and registration for foreign trade operators shall be administered by business license filing regions. If an enterprise processes procedures of filing and registration for foreign trade operator with the Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce, it may, for the purpose of convenience, call the Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce to request the submission of electronic data to competent commercial bureau for modification.
 
(III) Re-issue of the Form of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator after loss
 
In the event of loss of the Form of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator, an enterprise shall consult the number of the lost form at the original filing and registration authority, and after a statement of loss in the newspaper, go through formalities for the re-issue of the Form of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator with the original filing and registration authority by virtue of necessary paper materials. An enterprise, which goes through formalities for the filing and registration for foreign trade operator with the Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce, shall make an announcement of loss in a provincial newspaper.
 
Paper materials to be submitted for the supplementary filing and registration for foreign trade operators:
 
1. the original of the newspaper where the announcement of loss is published;
 
2. the Application for Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator and the Application for Supplementary Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator (download address: the official website of the Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce (swt.sc.gov.cn) → download corresponding form → fill in the form item by item, and then print it and affix signature and seal on it); and
 
3. the duplicate of business license (three certificates combined into one certificate) (original and copy) and the copies of ID cards of legal representative and handler. (Copies shall be affixed with corporate seal)
 
IV. Handling Procedures
 
(I) An applicant shall make an application to the "Window for Department of Commerce" of the government affairs service platform of the Sichuan Provincial Government Affairs Service and Public Resources Exchange Service Center.
 
(II) If the Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce agrees upon filing upon examination, it shall distribute the Form of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator; if not, it shall give a reason.
 
(III) The receiving person of an enterprise shall get handling result by virtue of the ID card thereof and relevant notice of acceptance.
 
(IV) After the filing and registration for foreign trade operator, an enterprise shall go through relevant formalities necessary for the foreign trade with departments of taxation, customs, foreign exchange, inspection and quarantine and so on by virtue of the registration form within 30 days. If not, the registration form will lose efficacy automatically.
 
V. Period for Handling
 
Statutory period: 5 working days.
 
Commitment period: 3 working days.
 
VI. Charging Basis and Standards
 
Free of charge.
 
VII. Certificates Required for Examination and Approval
 
Form of Filing and Registration for Foreign Trade Operator
 
VIII. Quantitative Restriction
 
None.
 
IX. Contact Information
 
(I) Tel.: Window for the Department of Commerce (028) 86936855  86915614
 
2. Online affairs-handling halls
 
Sichuan Government Affairs Service Hall: www.sczwfw.gov.cn
 
Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce: swt.sc.gov.cn
 
(III) Complaint hotlines
 
Sichuan Provincial Office of Administrative Efficiency: 028-96960
 
Sichuan Provincial Government Affairs Service and Public Resources Exchange Service Center: 028-86936179
 
Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce: (028) 83220487  83221124
 
X. Matters Needing Attention
 
The foreign trade operators shall strictly observe the Foreign Trade Law of the People's Republic of China and supporting rules and regulations thereof. In case of any violation, they will bear all the legal liability.