China Company Formation & Market Entry

With over 20 years of experience and local offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, Primasia gives clients genuinely local expertise coupled with international standards. We guide you through China's regulatory system, handle the detail, and set the business up for long-term success, whether you need a Wholly Foreign-Owned Enterprise, a Joint Venture or another foreign-invested entity.

China is one of the world's largest consumer and industrial markets, so a local presence often makes obvious commercial sense. The reality is that incorporating there is far more involved than in Hong Kong: regulations vary by city and by industry, and procedures change frequently. Registration usually takes six to twelve weeks.

Three offices in the cities that matter. Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou: teams on the ground who can attend the authorities in person rather than guessing remotely.

Twenty years of China experience across trading, manufacturing, professional services and technology, so we know how each industry is treated in practice rather than only on paper.

Cross-border support in one firm. As a Hong Kong corporate services group with China expertise in-house, we handle clients who need both a Hong Kong holding or trading vehicle and a mainland operating entity.

Wholly Foreign-Owned Enterprise (WFOE): the first choice for most foreign investors because it gives 100% ownership and control. A strong fit for consulting and service businesses, trading companies, manufacturing operations, and technology or e-commerce ventures.

Joint Venture (JV): required in certain restricted industries, and often valuable where a local partner brings distribution, licences or manufacturing capacity to the table.

Representative Office (RO): a liaison presence that cannot generate revenue. Useful for market scoping, supplier liaison and establishing a first footprint before committing to a full operating entity.

A Representative Office is the lightest mainland presence: it can conduct market research, liaison and promotion for its foreign parent, but it cannot invoice, trade or generate revenue. Registration requires a parent company with at least two years of trading history, and the office is taxed on a deemed-profit basis despite having no income.

It suits groups that need staff on the ground and a legal presence before committing to an operating entity. Where invoicing in RMB is required, a WFOE is the correct structure from the outset.

A WFOE gives full foreign ownership, the ability to trade and invoice, and direct control of hiring and profit repatriation. A joint venture is worth its complexity only when the local partner brings licences, distribution or capacity you cannot otherwise obtain. An RO is a presence, not a business.

Business scope wording constrains what the entity may lawfully invoice, so it is drafted against the commercial plan before the licence application, as amending it later is slower than getting it right first.

Run profit making operations in mainland China

Get official invoices called fapiao

Hire local and foreign staff, without needing some middleman

Take RMB profits and convert them into foreign currency to send back home

Really protect your intellectual property and have control over your operations

A Chinese WFOE is probably the best option for businesses that are looking for a long term presence in China and want full ownership of their operations, rather than just working through distributors or rep offices.

Direct control over the management and operations means you get to call all the shots

You can trade, manufacture or offer services (subject to getting the right licenses) – of course the scope will vary depending on what you want to do

Continuation of your WFOE (the future)

Weve been around for over two decades providing corporate services, and our experience of supporting clients in mainland China goes back over 20 years. So you can be sure to get practical, commercially focused advice that actually makes a difference.

Post incorporation compliance to keep you in line

Cross border structuring with Hong Kong entities to help you make the most of your operations

If you’re thinking of setting up a WFOE you really need to understand the WFOE in China requirements first – and these can vary depending on where you’re setting up shop and what sort of business you’re in. Generally speaking, though, you’ll need to get the following sorted:

Legal Representatives and Supervisors – and you’ll need to make sure you get the right people in post

Industry-Specific Licenses – some businesses need extra permits before or after incorporation of a Chinese company

We make sure all the WFOE registration in China documentation we put together is accurate and gets to the right people, so you don’t have to worry about delays.

So you’ve got your eye on setting up a WOFE in China ? Then here are the core WFOE in China requirements you need to consider:

They have to approve your company name

And of course you need to submit the shareholder documentation

Once you’ve completed all the paperwork for your China WFOE registration , you’ll be committing to a whole range of ongoing chores like

keeping all your company finances on file according to Chinese accounting rules

and that means audits in some cases

and also dealing with all the regulations around employment and social insurance in china

Consulting and service businesses ; they can really flourish with the freedom to operate

Manufacturing operations – get up and running quickly with no partners to navigate

And of course tech & e-commerce businesses ; they love the flexibility and freedom