Against the backdrop of deepening cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative, Chinese enterprises are increasingly inclined to invest in ASEAN countries. From the perspective of outbound direct investment (ODI) regulation in China, overseas investment by Chinese enterprises generally involves three key steps: (i) approval by the competent commerce authority for the overseas investment activity, (ii) verification/approval or filing with the competent development and reform authority for the overseas investment project, and (iii) bank foreign exchange registration. For state-owned enterprises, outbound investment also requires completing the filing and approval procedures with the relevant State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC).
At the host-country review stage, the authorities will assess market entry for foreign investment in accordance with local laws and regulations. Such review typically covers, without limitation, investment list/negative list screening, foreign ownership (or foreign individual) equity caps, and conditions for acquiring real property, among others.