Subsidy and Incentive Policies
Subsidy and Incentive Policies
Subsidy and Incentive Policies of Nine Mainland Cities of the Greater Bay Area
Business start-up subsidies
Incentive subsidies for technology industries
| City | Name of Policy | Summary |
| Guangzhou | Circular of the Guangzhou Municipal Science and Technology Bureau on the Detailed Implementation Rules for Policies and Regulations on Encouraging Venture Capital to Promote Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development in Guangzhou | |
| Shenzhen | Circular of the Science, Technology and Innovation Commission of Shenzhen Municipality and the Shenzhen Tax Service of the State Taxation Administration on the Administrative Measures for Matters Concerning Tax Concessions for Technical Contracts in Shenzhen | In addition to turnover tax exemption (transition from business tax to value-added tax) provided in the Administrative Measures, eligible technical contracts are also entitled to a reduction or exemption in corporate income tax for technical transfer, extra pre-tax deductions for research and development expenses, and a reduction or exemption in individual income tax for technological personnel who have received cash incentives for the transformation of technological achievements, among others. |
| Circular on the Administrative Measures for Special Technological Research Projects in Shenzhen | For projects approved and funded before implementation, the competent science and technology department of Shenzhen shall sign a contract or project charter with the project undertaker and relevant parties, which shall set forth the objectives, budget utilisation, performance evaluation indicators, intellectual property ownership and other details of the project. The fund shall amount to no more than 50% of the total budget of the project, and will be granted by tier based on the results of the project review. The funding amount shall not exceed RMB 5 million per general project, RMB 10 million per public call project, RMB 10 million per key project, and RMB 30 million per major project. ‘Milestone funding’ refers to the issuance of funds to one leading applicant per project, which is subject to a ‘milestone’ assessment at each phase. The assessment will cover several areas of the project, including the technical plan, preliminary research results, and financial conditions. The first instalment amounting to 30% of the total fund will be given at the initial approval stage of the project (at no more than RMB 3 million). |
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| Circular of the Science, Technology and Innovation Commission of Shenzhen Municipality on the Administrative Measures on Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Macao Science and Technology Projects in Shenzhen | The Shenzhen-Hong Kong or Shenzhen-Macao joint funding projects launched via co-operation agreements between the Shenzhen and Hong Kong or Macao governments shall be jointly solicited, assessed and funded by the Science, Technology and Innovation Commission of Shenzhen, Innovation and Technology Commission of Hong Kong, and Science and Technology Development Fund of Macao. The applicants from Shenzhen and Hong Kong or Macao must first submit separate applications to the local science and technology departments, and the fund will be granted by the said departments of the two cities concerned following their joint assessment and approval. The maximum fund that can be approved by Shenzhen is RMB 3 million per project. | |
| Zhuhai | Circular on the Administrative Measures for Zhuhai-Hong Kong-Macao Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Projects in Zhuhai | Support will be provided in three aspects for Zhuhai-Hong Kong-Macao science and technology innovation cooperation projects in Zhuhai, namely: the establishment of branches in Zhuhai by national key laboratories based in Hong Kong and Macao, transformation of Hong Kong and Macao’s scientific and technological achievements in Zhuhai, and facilities for Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao science and technology cooperation projects and international science and technology co-operation projects involving relevant units from Hong Kong and Macao. A maximum subsidy of RMB 2 million will be granted for each branch established for the national key laboratories, a maximum subsidy of RMB 200,000 per achievement of no more than 10 transformation projects of Hong Kong and Macao’s scientific and technological achievements, and a maximum subsidy of RMB 500,000 for the facilities per Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao science and technology co-operation project. |
| Foshan | Circular of the Office of Foshan Municipal People’s Government Concerning Amendment to the Funding for Technology and Innovation Teams | Technology and innovation teams which plan to establish or have already established companies in Foshan may apply for the fund. Teams who pass the application review will receive a fund of between RMB 2 million and 20 million. |
| Dongguan | ||
| Circular of the Science and Technology Bureau of Dongguan City on Amendments to the Administrative Measures of Dongguan for Special Funds for Incentivising Accredited National High-tech Enterprises in 2020 | For companies that have submitted an application for national high-tech enterprise accreditation in 2020 and have been accepted by the Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong Province, a maximum incentive of RMB 20,000 will be given upon application and a maximum incentive of RMB 10,000 will be given upon accreditation. | |
| Huizhou | Circular of the Huizhou Science and Technology Bureau on Support Measures for Promoting Development of New R&D Institutions | Financial support: a) For new provincial R&D institutions which have passed the accreditation, the municipal finance department will grant a one-off incentive of RMB 1 million. b) For new R&D institutions at the municipal level or above which have passed accreditation, or Huizhou-registered enterprises founded through an investment platform with the institutions’ controlling stake, with their own technological research achievements and participating stake at over 10%, a certain subsidy will be granted, after review by experts, to the best new R&D institutions with high-tech enterprise accreditation for the first time after incubation, depending on the number of the accredited enterprises. A subsidy of RMB 100,000 will be given to each high-tech enterprise that is incubated, with a maximum grant of RMB 500,000 to a single institution. In the case of enterprises jointly established by several new R&D institutions, the application can only be submitted under the name of one institution. c) Subsidies will be granted after a comprehensive assessment. For new R&D institutions at the municipal level or above which must report their construction progress and operations as required, the comprehensive assessment will be conducted based on their performance in areas such as technology transfer, technical development, relevant technical consultation and technical services they provided in the previous year, and the assessment results are classified into Grade A and Grade B: a subsidy of RMB 500,000 for Grade A institutions and RMB 300,000 for Grade B institutions. The new R&D institutions that have received the said subsidy for the previous year are allowed to apply in the following year only when they have recorded a horizontal revenue increase of 10% or above. |
| Zhongshan | Notice on the Publication of the Management Methods of Special Funds for Science and Technology Talents Development in Zhongshan | A subsidy for accredited new high-tech enterprises: for new high-tech enterprises that have passed the accreditation the previous year, a one-off subsidy of RMB 100,000 will be granted to enterprises with a business revenue of no less than RMB 20 million and a one-off subsidy of RMB 50,000 to enterprises with a business revenue of less than RMB 20 million. A one-off subsidy of RMB 1 million will be granted to high-tech enterprises which have been newly relocated to the city with an annual business revenue of over RMB 20 million, and promise not to move out and maintain an annual business revenue of over RMB 20 million within three years. Post-R&D subsidy for enterprises: For enterprises with R&D expenses in the previous year accounting for no less than 2% of their business revenue over the same period and extra deduction of R&D expenses amounting to RMB 1 million or above, a subsidy will be granted for up to 3% of the extra deduction of R&D expenses before tax in the previous year as provided by tax authorities. Municipal benchmarking innovative enterprises will be granted a subsidy of up to 6% of the extra deduction of R&D expenses before tax in the previous year as provided by tax authorities. Post-R&D subsidy shall be given to eligible enterprises based on the principle that ‘the higher amount prevails’, and the actual subsidy ratio will depend on the municipal fiscal budget of the year. The post-R&D subsidy granted to the same enterprise for the same year shall not exceed RMB 10 million. Subsidy for enterprises’ counselling on management upgrades: to support productivity (promotion) centres and other sci-tech service institutions from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan in providing local enterprises with counselling services for management upgrades, a subsidy up to RMB 300,000 based on a maximum of 60% of the counselling fees will be granted to enterprises counselled by productivity (promotion) centres and other sci-tech service institutions from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Subsidy for provincial innovation vouchers: enterprises that have already redeemed their provincial innovation vouchers will receive a subsidy for 50% of the provincial subsidy amount. Subsidy for national and provincial science and technology awards: a subsidy for 100% of the amount of national and provincial science and technology awards will be granted to the winning units. |
| Jiangmen | Circular of the Jiangmen Science and Technology Bureau on Issuing the Implementation Measures for Funding the Establishment of Technology Innovation Centres (Jiang Ke [2021] No. 67) | National technology innovation centres will receive one-off post-completion funding of up to RMB 30 million based on 100% of the subsidy amount granted by the central government. Provincial technology innovation centres will receive one-off post-completion funding of up to RMB 10 million based on 50% of the subsidy amount granted by the provincial government. |
| Circular of the Jiangmen Science and Technology Bureau and Jiangmen Finance Bureau on Issuing the Implementation Measures for Major Science and Technology Projects of Jiangmen (Jiang Ke [2020] No.115) | For each project with funding of RMB 10 million or above, a post-completion subsidy of RMB 1 million and RMB 500,000 will be granted to the application units that have received funding from the Ministry of Science and Technology and from the Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong Province respectively. For each project with initial funding of RMB 5 million or above, a post-completion subsidy of RMB 500,000 and RMB 200,000 will be granted to the application units that have received the funding from the Ministry of Science and Technology and from the Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong Province respectively. For enterprise applicants, funding for 20% of the self-raised funds of the project will be granted; for non-enterprise applicants, funding for 30% of the self-raised funds of the project will be granted. The maximum funding for each project is RMB 1 million and shall be granted to no more than 5 projects in the city each year. |
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| Circular of the Jiangmen Science and Technology Bureau, Jiangmen Talent Bureau and Jiangmen Finance Bureau on Issuing the Implementation Measures for Funding the Establishment of Technology Innovation Platforms in Jiangmen | Key laboratories, technology innovation centres, new R&D institutions and offshore R&D institutions that have been accredited (or approved) by the Ministry of Science and Technology will receive one-off establishment funding of RMB 5 million, RMB 5 million, RMB 3 million and RMB 3 million respectively. Key laboratories, new R&D institutions, technology innovation centres, offshore R&D institutions, engineering research centres and academic workstations that have been accredited (or approved) by the Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong Province will receive one-off establishment funding of RMB 2 million, RMB 2 million, RMB 2 million, RMB 1 million, RMB 500,000 and RMB 500,000 respectively. New R&D institutions, academic workstations, science and technology commissioner workstations and engineering research centres that have been accredited by the Jiangmen Science and Technology Bureau will receive a one-off establishment subsidy of RMB 200,000, RMB 200,000, RMB 150,000 and RMB 100,000 respectively. The funding will be issued in the form of post-completion subsidies. |
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| Zhaoqing | Circular of the Science and Technology Bureau of Zhaoqing Municipality on Issuing the Administrative Measures for Financial Subsidies for Research and Development of Enterprises in Zhaoqing | The enterprises must have established a support account or special account for R&D expenses, have applied to the tax department for the extra deduction of R&D expenses in the previous year, and have invested not less than RMB 2 million annually in R&D. The subsidy granted to each enterprise shall not exceed the income tax paid by the enterprise to the local treasury in the year of the occurrence of the extra deduction of R&D expenses. The annual total of subsidies granted to each enterprise shall not exceed RMB 500,000 million. |
Office rental subsidies
| Item | City | Name of Policy | Summary |
| Office rental subsidies | Guangzhou | Implementation Measures of Huangpu District, Guangzhou Development District, Guangzhou to Support Hong Kong and Macao Youth in Innovation and Entrepreneurship | Qualified enterprises or institutions established by Hong Kong and Macao youths as the incubation carrier for the innovation and entrepreneurship of Hong Kong and Macao youths will receive an office rental subsidy for 100% of the rent in the first two years and 50% of the rent in the third year. Each enterprise or institution will be subsidised at a maximum of RMB 500,000 in total. |
| Shenzhen | Circular of the Shenzhen Municipal People’s Government on Issuing the Work Plan on Enhancing the Construction of Entrepreneurship Bases for Hong Kong and Macao Youth | Hong Kong and Macao institutions that have set up makerspaces, incubators, accelerators and other incubation carriers in Qianhai for the first time will receive a one-off subsidy for the start-up capital and office rental. | |
| Dongguan | Implementation Measures of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Motivation Programme Dongguan Songshan Lake Hi-tech Zone for Talents from Hong Kong and Macao | Macao enterprises that have established cross-border offices in pilot cross-border office buildings will receive a rental subsidy of up to RMB 80 per square metre per month from the Hengqin New Area Administrative Committee, and the subsidised area must satisfy the requirements for rental area per person. The subsidy shall be applied on a quarterly basis and enjoyed for a cumulative period of no more than 36 months. | |
| Foshan | Circular of the Office of Foshan Municipal People’s Government on the Implementation Plan for Establishing Start-Up Incubation Bases for Hong Kong and Macao Youth in Foshan | Eligible Hong Kong and Macao residents shall equally enjoy various support policies for employment and entrepreneurship, including the entrepreneurial training subsidy, one-off business start-up subsidy, subsidy for start-ups stimulating employment, rental subsidy, and capability enhancement training for start-up operators. | |
| Zhongshan | Notice on the Publication of the Management Methods of Special Funds for Science and Technology Talents Development in Zhongshan | Approved eligible enterprises will receive a subsidy for 50% of the actual monthly rental and up to RMB 5,000 per quarter for a maximum of one year. | |
| Jiangmen | Guidelines on Subsidy Application by Hong Kong and Macao Residents | Hong Kong and Macao projects that have been established in innovation and entrepreneurship bases for Hong Kong and Macao youths in Jiangmen will receive a full subsidy for the balance after rental exemption for a cumulative period of up to three years. | |
| Zhaoqing | Circular of the Office of CPC Zhaoqing Municipal Committee and the Office of Zhaoqing Municipal People’s Government on Issuing 10 Documents Including the Implementation Plan for Introducing in Innovative and Entrepreneurship Groups and Leading Talent to Xijiang Talent Program of Zhaoqing | Innovative and entrepreneurship groups and leading talent introduced to Xijiang Talent Program of Zhaoqing will be exempt from office rental payment for three years. |
Notes:
1. Mainland policies are updated from time to time and are subject to the latest mainland laws and regulations.
2. The above list only covers the major measures. For more details, please refer to the announcements by respective mainland departments.
3. The above measures are presented as a summary; for full texts, please refer to the hyperlinks provided.