Content

Chapter I: General Provisions

Chapter II: Office Properties of Macao-funded Enterprises in the Cooperation Zone

Chapter III: Commercial Operations of Macao-funded Enterprises in the Cooperation Zone

Chapter IV: Development of Macao-funded Enterprises in the Cooperation Zone

Chapter V: Safeguarding and Supervision

Chapter VI: Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I

General Provisions

Article 1

Purpose of the Measures

The Support Measures have been formulated by the Executive Committee of the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin (hereinafter referred to as "the Executive Committee") with consideration of the reality on the ground in order to follow through with the Master Plan of the Development of the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin (hereinafter referred to as "the Master Plan") to build the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin (hereinafter referred to as "the Cooperation Zone") into a new platform that boosts the moderately diversified growth of Macao's economy, a new space that makes work and life more convenient for Macao residents, a new example that enriches the practice of "one country, two systems", and a new pacesetter for the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. It also aims to back the growth of Macao-funded enterprises in the Cooperation Zone, set up special funds to benefit Macao players, create a favorable business environment, and lower the operational costs for these enterprises.

Article 2

Scope and Conditions of Application

The Support Measures are applicable to Macao-funded enterprises whose place of business registration, place of tax registration, and place of statistics are in the Cooperation Zone, who have opened business deposit account in banks of the Cooperation Zone, and have substantive operations there. These Macao-funded enterprises shall meet the following conditions:

(i) Legal persons or professional service institutions without legal personality set up in the Cooperation Zone;

(ii) Investors should be Macao residents or legal persons lawfully incorporated in Macao and engaged in business operation for at least two years. They should hold an aggregate of 25% or higher of the shares in a direct or indirect manner with the exclusion of entrusted shareholding.

(iii) Industries that meet the requirements of the Master Plan and promote the moderately diversified growth of Macao's economy. Policies governing the financial sector shall be formulated by competent departments separately.

(iv) Make a commitment not to move out of the Cooperation Zone or change their tax obligations in the Cooperation Zone within the five years since receiving the subsidies.

(v) Not included in the list of enterprises with abnormal operations in the Cooperation Zone at the time of application for subsidies in the Support Measures.

(vi) For the same investor who establishes multiple Macao-funded enterprises in the Cooperation Zone, the investor may identify as no more than two Macao-funded enterprises to apply for the subsidies and rewards stipulated in the Support Measures.

Macao residents who have engaged in commercial operations in the Cooperation Zone and have been lawfully registered as individual industrial and commercial households are also eligible for the Support Measures.

Article 3

Definitions

(i) "Substantive operation" herein refers that the de facto management unit of the enterprise should be located in the Cooperation Zone and exercising substantive management and control over its production and operations, personnel, accounts, assets, etc. Enterprises that do not meet the requirements for substantive operations are not eligible for the Support Measures.

(ii) "Office properties" herein refers to newly built properties that are designated as offices (including for cultural innovation, scientific and educational R&D, and high and new tech) in the Cooperation Zone and that have acquired a real property ownership certificate (including certificates of ascription of right in a building or real property ownership). "Office properties" should be self-owned properties with an area of at least 3,000 square meters.

(iii) "Commercial properties" herein refers to newly built properties that are used for commercial functions with the approval of the planning authority in the Cooperation Zone and for which a certificate of real property ownership (including certificates of ascription of right in a building or real property ownership) has been obtained since January 1, 2015.

(iv) "Business revenue" herein refers to enterprises' revenue from its main business and other businesses, subject to the data included in the statistical category of the Cooperation Zone.

(v) "Macao residents" herein refers to Macao residents with permanent or temporary residency.

(vi) The mentioned "no lower than", "no less than", "up to", and "above" in the Support Measures all include the number per se.

Article 4

Information Collection and Verification

Owners or entrusted management units of the "office properties" and "commercial properties" are required to complete the information collection, verification, and public announcement at the Economic Development Bureau of the Cooperation Zone.

Chapter II

Office Properties of Macao-funded Enterprises in the Cooperation Zone

Article 5

Rent Subsidies for Office Properties

Macao-funded enterprises that rent office properties in the Cooperation Zone with a lease agreement of no less than three years (including lease term executed by enterprises in the Cooperation Zone before the Support Measures came into effect) may be granted rent subsidies from the Executive Committee with reference to the evaluated price provided by third-party institutions. If the evaluated price is higher than the actual rental, subsidies shall be made based on the actual rental according to the corresponding standard. No subsidy shall be granted during the rent-free period.

The rent subsidy is based on a maximum of 70% of the evaluated rental and shall not exceed 70 yuan per square meter per month. The subsidized area shall not be higher than 15 square meters per capita based on the number of employees who have signed employment contracts with the enterprise and who pay personal income tax, participate in social insurance, and work in the Cooperation Zone. Each enterprise can be subsidized for an area of up to 1,000 square meters and for a maximum period of 36 consecutive months.

Office properties must be rented directly by the property owner or the entrusted party. Re-let or sub-let properties are not eligible for the rent subsidies in the Support Measures. Macao-funded enterprises that have acquired the usage rights for state-owned construction lands to build industrial, office, or commercial projects are not eligible for the rent subsidies herein.

Chapter III

Commercial Operations of Macao-funded Enterprises in the Cooperation Zone

Article 6

Rent Subsidies for Commercial Properties

Macao-funded enterprises that rent commercial properties in the Cooperation Zone with a lease agreement of no less than three years (including lease term executed by enterprises in the Cooperation Zone before the Support Measures came into effect) may be granted rent subsidies from the Executive Committee with reference to the evaluated price provided by third-party institutions. If the evaluated price is higher than the actual rental, subsidies shall be made based on the actual rental according to the corresponding standard. No subsidy shall be granted during the rent-free period.

The rent subsidy is based on a maximum of 70% of the evaluated rental and shall not exceed 70 yuan per square meter per month. Each enterprise can be subsidized for an area of up to 1,000 square meters and for a maximum period of 36 consecutive months.

Commercial properties must be rented directly by the property owners. Re-let or sub-let properties are not eligible for the rent subsidies in the Support Measures. Macao-funded enterprises that have acquired the usage rights for state-owned construction lands to build industrial, office, or commercial projects are not eligible for the rent subsidies herein.

Article 7

Subsidies for Commercial Properties Renovation

Macao-funded enterprises that use commercial properties for commercial activities in the Cooperation Zone may be granted a renovation subsidy equivalent to 70% of the renovation expenditure and no higher than 1,000 yuan per square meter to a maximum of 1 million yuan per enterprise. The subsidy will be paid in two years with 50% of the subsidy amount paid each year.

Macao-funded enterprises that have acquired the usage rights for state-owned construction lands to build industrial, office, or commercial projects are not eligible for the renovation subsidies herein.

Article 8

Brand Settlement Rewards

"Macao Classic Brand" may be rewarded a one-off settlement reward of 300,000 yuan after at least one year of actual operation since the opening of their first shop in the Cooperation Zone; "Macao Distinctive Shops" and Macao enterprises selected by "Macao Ideas" may be rewarded a one-off settlement reward of 150,000 yuan after at least one year of actual operation since the opening of their first shop in the Cooperation Zone.

If Macao catering enterprises, Macao residents, or Macao legal persons listed in the latest edition of the "Michelin Guide" cooperates with catering enterprises listed in the latest "Michelin Guide" in other areas and open their first restaurant in the Cooperation Zone with an area of no less than 200 square meters, and at least one year of actual operation may be rewarded a one-off settlement reward of 500,000 yuan, 1 million yuan, and 2 million yuan respectively if the entity opening the restaurant has obtained Michelin1, 2, or 3 stars at the time of opening; Bib Gourmand restaurants in Macao may be rewarded a one-off settlement reward of 300,000 yuan if their first restaurant in the Cooperation Zone has an area of no less than 100 square meters and at least one year of actual operation.

Macao catering enterprises selected by the latest edition of Meituan's "Black Pearl Restaurant Guide" may be rewarded a one-off settlement reward of 300,000 yuan when their first restaurant in the Cooperation Zone has an area of no less than 100 square meters and at least one year of actual operation.

Brands identified as "Macao Classic Brand", "Macao Distinctive Shops" or those selected by "Macao Ideas", "Michelin Guide", or "Black Pearl Restaurant Guide" should authorize Macao-funded enterprise to use the trade name, trademark, logo and other brand information of the brand.

Macao-funded enterprises that meet two or more of the above requirements shall apply for the highest brand settlement reward only.

Chapter IV

Development of Macao-funded Enterprises in the Cooperation Zone

Article 9

Operation Rewards

Above-scale Macao-funded enterprises newly included in the Online Statistics Reporting Platform after the Supporting Measures came into effect may be rewarded a one-off reward of 600,000 yuan in the same year of the inclusion; those whose revenue grows by 50% or more year-on-year in the following year of the inclusion may be rewarded 300,000 yuan; those whose year-on-year increase in revenue reaches 50% or higher in the third year may be rewarded 300,000 yuan; each enterprise shall be rewarded a maximum of 1.2 million yuan in total.

Above-scale Macao-funded enterprises that had been included in the Online Statistics Reporting Platform before the implementation of the Support Measures may apply for rewards in accordance with the preceding paragraph if their business revenue growth in the next year and the third year conforms to the provisions of the previous paragraph.

Article 10

R&D Subsidies

Macao-funded enterprises with de facto operational and R&D activities in the Cooperation Zone may be granted R&D subsidies when their annual R&D expenditure exceeds 500,000 yuan after verification. The subsidy is equivalent to 10% of the verified R&D expenditure in the previous year, and the cumulative subsidy granted for each enterprise shall not exceed 5 million yuan per year.

Article 11

Conference and Exhibition Subsidy

Macao-funded enterprises may be granted subsidy equivalent to 90% of the booth fee when they participate in international conferences and exhibitions organized or initiated by the Cooperation Zone or professional conferences and exhibitions held by the national government, Guangdong provincial government, Zhuhai municipal government, Macao SAR Government or other local authorities. The cumulative subsidy granted for each enterprise shall not exceed 150,000 yuan per year.

Article 12

Legal Consultation Service

Macao-funded enterprises are entitled to free legal consultation services regarding enterprise incorporation, operation, and management during the first year after their settlement in the Cooperation Zone.

Chapter V

Safeguarding and Supervision

Article 13

Source of Funds

Support funds in the Support Measures shall implement budget management and are arranged in the special Macao-funding budget of the Cooperation Zone on an annual basis.

Article 14

Applicability

Applying for the support or benefits covered in the Support Measures does not affect the applicant's eligibility for other national or Guangdong provincial policy support or benefits unless otherwise stipulated by laws or regulations.

Should there is repetition or overlap between the Support Measures with other policies introduced by the Cooperation Zone (or inherited from the Hengqin New Area), Macao enterprises may choose the highest reward to apply for. After applying for the support and benefits stipulated in the Support Measures, they shall not apply for any support or benefits of the same type in other policies introduced by the Cooperation Zone (or inherited from the Hengqin New Area).

Article 15

Application Procedures

The Economic Development Bureau of the Cooperation Zone will process the applications every half year (refer to the application notices for specific dates). Macao-funded enterprises should submit their application on time. Failure to do so will be viewed as voluntary abandonment of the rights. After reviewing the applications and publishing the list on the official website of the Cooperation Zone, the Economic Development Bureau of the Cooperation Zone will allocate the funds if there is no objection.

Article 16

Fund Supervision

Applicants should ensure the integrity, authenticity, accuracy, and legality of their application materials, and shall bear relevant legal responsibility for such materials. In case of any false materials for the purposes of defrauding the government of the support aids, the case will be inspected strictly according to relevant regulations; for severe cases, the applicants shall be held accountable before the law. In case of being subject to criminal penalties or fines, forfeiture of illegal income, confiscation of illegal possessions and restrictions on production and business activities, orders for business suspension or termination, or administrative punishment with restrictions on business operationdue to violation of laws and regulations of China, the enterprises are prohibited from applying for the subsidies stipulated in the Support Measures.

For property owners or their entrusted management units who executed false contracts with the reporting subject to obtain subsidies fraudulently, the filing requests of the owner (management) will not be accepted within three years and it will also be prohibited from applying for any support funds provided by the Cooperation Zone, and shall receive severe punishments in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

Chapter VI

Supplementary Provisions

Article 17

Operational Guidebook

The Operational Guidebook of the Support Measures will be formulated and put into practice by the Economic Development Bureau of the Cooperation Zone.

Article 18

Right of Interpretation

The interpretation of the Support Measures is at the sole discretion of the Executive Committee.

Article 19

Period of Validity

The Support Measures shall come into effect on January 1, 2023, and shall remain valid until December 31, 2025.

(All information published in this section is authentic in Chinese. English is provided for reference only.)