By Neal Stender, Forrest Ye and Cindy Gong of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe (Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai).
Tax Preference Guideline Provides Objective Scrutiny for High/New-tech Enterprises
China has further clarified tax preferences for high- and new-technology enterprises (HNTEs) in a recent Working Guideline. Applicants that can satisfy tougher and more precise qualification criteria will benefit from clear and objective evaluation procedures, but must be prepared for broad scrutiny of their tax and legal compliance. HNTE status can be lost through business changes including mergers or acquisitions.

