State Council, Anti-subsidy Regulations

Promulgated: December 26 2001
Effective: January 1 2002
Applicability: For the purposes of the Regulations, "subsidy" means any financial assistance or any form of income or price support by the government or any public body in the exporting country (region) that confers a benefit to its recipient (Article 3).

Main contents: The Regulations state that where subsidies are being granted to an import product that cause or threaten to cause material injury to an established domestic industry or that cause material barriers to the establishment of a domestic industry, investigation shall be initiated and anti-subsidy measures shall be taken in accordance with the Regulations (Article 2). Such actionable subsidy must be specific; for example, specific to certain enterprises or industries in the exporting country (region) or contingent upon export performance or upon the use of domestic over imported products (Article 4). Investigation and determination of subsidy shall be handled by the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC), whereas investigation and determination of injury shall be handled by the State Economic and Trade Commission (SETC) (Articles 5 and 7). Investigation on any alleged subsidy shall be initiated upon the application by or on behalf of the domestic industry, namely, if it is supported by those domestic producers whose collective output constitutes over 50% of the total production of the like product produced by that portion of the domestic industry expressing either support for or opposition to the application (Articles 13 and 17). If, in special circumstances, MOFTEC has sufficient evidence to believe the existence of subsidies, injury and a causal link, it may initiate an investigation following consultation with SETC without having received such application (Article 18). Provisional anti-subsidy measures in the form of anti-subsidy duties guaranteed by cash deposits or bonds may be applied if a preliminary affirmative determination has been made that subsidies exist and that there is injury to a domestic industry by subsidized imports (Article 29). The application of provisional anti-subsidy measures shall be limited to a period not exceeding four months (Article 31). If, after unsuccessful consultation with the relevant parties, a final determination has been made that the subsidy exists and that the subsidized imports are causing injury, an anti-subsidy duty may be imposed (Article 38). The anti-subsidy duty shall be terminated within five years but may be continued after that period if MOFTEC, having reviewed the case, determines that the continued imposition of the anti-subsidy duty is warranted (Article 47).
Related legislation: PRC, Foreign Trade Law (Revised), Apr 6 2004, CLP 2004 No.4 p34
Repealed legislation: Provisions on anti-subsidy measures in the PRC, Anti-dumping and Anti-subsidy Regulations, Mar 25 1997, CLP 1997 No.4 p17