The classification screen

4 questions before you choose the route.

This page identifies the right question and evidence. It does not determine the legal outcome on a reader’s facts.

01

Which list edition and FTZ overlay?

Currency.

Edition
02

Prohibited vs restricted?

Consequence.

Status
03

NSR also plausible?

Parallel gate.

NSR
04

Entity form still viable?

WFOE/JV.

Form

Working rule: China’s foreign-investment negative list (national and FTZ variants) states where foreign investment is restricted or prohibited.

What changes the answer

The signal ledger.

These facts move the question beyond a label and into a product, money-flow and control analysis.

Signal
Ask the operating question
Why it changes the route
Broader FDI & National Security analysis needed
Do the facts extend beyond the threshold China Foreign Investment Negative List question?
Do not.
Ignore FTZ list differences
Wrong map.
Check.
Treat NSR as the same as negative list
Different statute.
NSR page.
Prepare before you escalate

Bring a compact evidence docket—not a pitch deck.

Give a compliance team or counsel the operating facts that reveal the perimeter.

01Sector/business scope draftWhat you want to do.
02Current list extractDated.
03Proposed equity structureForeign %.
Common confusions

Questions people ask before they build.

Short answers for orientation. The right result can change with the service model and current rules.

Is the FTZ list always lighter?

Often shorter, not a blank cheque. Read both.

Where is NSR?

Use the linked specialist resource when China Foreign Investment Negative List turns on detailed evidence, procedure or risk assessment.

Primary authorities

Reviewed sources support orientation, not a fact-specific assessment.

SAMR
NDRC / MOFCOM FDI & NSR channels
National laws database (NPC)
Company registration / SAMR enterprise systems