Doing business in Thailand

Manufacturing Outside China: It’s Thailand’s Time

With all that has been happening with China lately on trade, Thailand is emerging as a very attractive investment destination. Thailand has consistent and well-defined investment policies, increasing regional connections, and a government committed to improving its transportation infrastructure. It also (for the most part) has had long-term political and economic stability. Thailand is emerging

china law blog

How China Drove Out Mister Softee: This is China

China Law Professor Donald Clarke sent me a great article this week from New York Magazine, entitled, How China Drove Out Mister Softee. Professor Clarke’s email with the link said the following: Thought you might like this. Interestingly, it is NOT a story of “guy skirts rules, naively trusts Chinese partner, gets screwed.” It’s “guy does

China licensing lawyers

Selling, Licensing and Distributing Products and Services into China

I have been writing too much about foreign companies looking to leave China and not enough about foreign companies looking to get into China. For the last few months, the work lives of the international lawyers at my law firm have been tilted towards those looking to leave China, rather than to get into China,

Shutting down a China WFOE

China, the United States and the New Normal

I got an angry email yesterday in response to my having predicted a decline in manufacturing orders from China. The email accused me of “hating China” and wanting “to impede its peaceful” rise and of being “jealous of its progress.” All this because we have lately been writing how many of our law firm’s clients

China Repres

Forming a China Subsidiary: Needed or Not

If I were to list the ten biggest/most common mistakes my law firm’s China lawyers see, not forming a China subsidiary when necessary and forming a China subsidiary when not unnecessary would both be on that list. We write constantly about the risks of doing business in China without a subisidiary. See Doing Business in

China WFOE formation

Doing Business in China Without a WFOE: Will the Defendant Please Rise

I do mean to sound alarmist here. Almost since this blog’s inception, we have written about how if you are doing business in China you need a Chinese legal entity, be it a Wholly Foreign Owned Entity (WFOE), a Joint Venture (JV) or a Representative Office (RO). And pretty much each time, our writings on

China WFOE formation and business scope

Forming a China WFOE: Scope is Key

When it comes to company formations, China is from Mars and the Western world is from Venus. For most things related to doing business in China, I often stress the similarities. But when it comes to forming a China Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprises (WFOE) I make it a point to stress the differences. I do

China WFOE Rules

China WFOE Registered Capital Rules

We hear so many half-truths and misconceptions about registered capital that it’s hard to keep track of them all, let alone dispel them. Not for lack of trying, though: see e.g. China Company Law Myths: Registered Capital and Personal Liability and China WFOE Minimum Capital Requirements: The Goldilocks Rule. Without further ado, following please find

China product sourcing

Hiring China Employees DURING WFOE Formation

The basic rule for foreign companies hiring an employee in China is that you cannot do so unless and until you have a Chinese legal entity (e.g., a WFOE), and violating this rule can (and nearly always does) cause problems. See Doing Business in China with Deportation or Worse Hanging Over Your Head. What though

China Stock Options and SIPs

Share Incentive Plans for Your China Employees

Companies often use share incentive programs to motivate their employees. It is possible for a PRC employee of a foreign company’s Chinese subsidiary to participate in the foreign company’s employee share incentive plan (“SIP”). However, due to China’s currency controls, whether such an employee can actually “cash out” on the benefits of such a program