Processing FIE Complaints

In September 2006, the PRC Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) issued the Tentative Measures on Complaints from Foreign-invested Enterprises (商务部外商投资企业投诉工作暂行办法)(Measures), which outline detailed procedures for MOFCOM or its branches to deal with complaints from foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) or foreign investors (the Complainants) against administrative authorities. Before the issuance of the Measures, local MOFCOM branches had issued FIE complaint processing rules and established local complaint centres. The Measures attempt to unify the procedures at the national level and formally provide a new route for filing complaints against alleged abuses of power by administrative authorities. However, the effectiveness of the complaint processing mechanism may be questionable due to the ambiguous nature of the procedural and enforcement provisions.