Published by ChinaMNC · Shanglin

China's Government Information Disclosure Rules: A Practical Guide for Foreign Founders

A concise overview of China's Government Information Disclosure Regulations, explaining how foreign founders can access government information, what must be disclosed, and how to file requests when setting up or running a company in China.

Why Government Information Disclosure Matters for Foreign Founders

When establishing or operating a company in China, foreign founders often need reliable information about local regulations, permits, and administrative processes. China's Government Information Disclosure Regulations (originally issued in 2007 and revised in 2019) set out how government agencies should make information public and how individuals and organizations—including foreign-invested enterprises—can request it. Understanding these rules can help you navigate interactions with Chinese authorities more effectively.

What Counts as Government Information?

Under the regulations, "government information" refers to information that administrative agencies create or obtain while performing their administrative functions, and that is recorded or preserved in some form. This broad definition covers a wide range of documents and data that may be relevant to your business, from licensing requirements to local policies.

The regulations apply to all levels of government. County-level and above local government offices are designated as the competent departments for information disclosure in their jurisdictions, responsible for promoting, guiding, coordinating, and supervising the work.

Key Principles: Disclosure as the Norm

Administrative agencies are required to adopt the principle that disclosure is the norm and non-disclosure is the exception. They must follow principles of fairness, equity, legality, and convenience for the public. If agencies discover false or incomplete information that could affect social stability or disrupt economic management, they must release accurate government information to clarify the situation.

Governments at all levels are also tasked with standardizing and digitalizing government information resources, strengthening online disclosure platforms, and integrating these platforms with government service platforms to improve online processing.

Who Is Responsible for Disclosure?

Generally, the agency that creates the information is responsible for disclosing it. If an agency obtains information from citizens, legal persons, or other organizations, the agency that stores it is responsible. If an agency obtains information from another agency, the agency that created or initially obtained it is responsible. Laws and regulations may provide otherwise.

Additionally, if an agency's dispatched offices or internal departments perform administrative functions in their own name according to law, they may handle disclosure related to those functions.

What Information Must Be Proactively Disclosed?

Agencies must proactively disclose information that involves adjustments to public interests, that the public needs to widely know, or that requires public participation in decision-making. For city and county governments, this includes information on municipal construction, public services, public welfare undertakings, land expropriation, housing expropriation, public security management, and social assistance. Township governments must also disclose information on agriculture and rural policies, irrigation projects, rural land contracting, homestead use, and social assistance.

Proactive disclosure should be made through government gazettes, websites, other online government media, press conferences, newspapers, radio, and television. Governments must also establish unified disclosure platforms with search, viewing, and download functions. Reading rooms should be set up in national archives, public libraries, and government service venues.

For information that falls within the scope of proactive disclosure, it should be released within 20 working days from the date it is formed or changed, unless otherwise provided by laws or regulations.

How to Request Government Information

Beyond proactively disclosed information, citizens, legal persons, and other organizations—including foreign founders and their companies—can apply to local governments at various levels and to county-level and above government departments that perform administrative functions in their own name. This includes dispatched offices and internal departments mentioned above.

Applications should be submitted to the agency's government information disclosure work office in writing, including by letter or electronic data message. If written form is genuinely difficult, applicants can make an oral request, and the office will fill out the application form on their behalf.

If the application content is unclear, the agency must provide guidance and explanation, and within 7 working days of receiving the application, inform the applicant once of the needed corrections, specifying what needs to be corrected and a reasonable deadline. The response period starts from the date the corrected application is received. If the applicant fails to correct without justified reason, the application is deemed abandoned.

For applications submitted by mail, the date the agency signs for receipt is the date of receipt. For ordinary mail that does not require a signature, the disclosure office should confirm with the applicant on the day the application is received, and the confirmation date is the date of receipt.

What Information Is Not Disclosed?

Certain information is exempt from disclosure: information determined by law to be state secrets, information prohibited from disclosure by laws or administrative regulations, and information that could endanger national security, public safety, economic security, or social stability if disclosed. Agencies must review proposed disclosures under the State Secrets Law and other relevant laws.

Information involving trade secrets or personal privacy that would harm the lawful rights of third parties must not be disclosed, unless the third party consents or the agency determines that non-disclosure would significantly affect the public interest. Process information such as discussion records, drafts, correspondence, and request reports formed during administrative functions, as well as administrative enforcement case files, may be withheld, unless laws or regulations require disclosure.

If an agency is unsure whether information can be disclosed, it should report to the relevant competent department or secrecy administration for a determination.

Dynamic Adjustment and Coordination

Agencies must establish a dynamic adjustment mechanism for government information management, regularly reviewing information they have not disclosed. If circumstances change and information can now be disclosed, it should be made public. They must also establish coordination mechanisms; when disclosure involves other agencies, they must consult and confirm to ensure accuracy and consistency. Disclosure guides should include classifications, arrangement systems, access methods, and contact details of the disclosure office.

Practical Takeaways for Foreign Founders

• Identify the correct agency: usually the one that created the information you need, or the one that stores it if it was obtained from third parties.
• Check proactive disclosure channels first: government websites, gazettes, and reading rooms may already have the information you need.
• Submit written requests to the agency's disclosure office, and be as specific as possible to avoid delays from unclear applications.
• Remember that certain information is exempt, including state secrets, trade secrets, and personal privacy, unless public interest outweighs.
• Use the 20-working-day standard for proactive disclosure as a guide for when to expect publicly available information.

This summary is based on information published by the relevant Chinese government website and is general information, not legal or tax advice.