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Notice to Service Suppliers
Ref : WT 324/9/5/7
27 January 2004
Notice to Service Suppliers No. 1/2004
Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic
Partnership Arrangement (CEPA)
Procedures for Obtaining Preferential Treatment from
the Mainland in Respect of the Legal Services Sector
This notice is to inform service suppliers in the legal services sector that representatives stationed in the Mainland representative offices of Hong Kong law firms (offices) can enjoy automatically the preferential treatment in residency requirement as provided by the Mainland under Annex 4 to CEPA.
- Among the preferential treatment granted by the Mainland under Annex 4 to CEPA, the minimum residency requirement is waived for all Hong Kong representatives stationed in the Mainland representative offices of Hong Kong law firms (offices) located in Shenzhen and Guangzhou. For the Hong Kong representatives stationed in the Mainland representative offices of Hong Kong law firms (offices) located in places other than Shenzhen and Guangzhou, their minimum residency requirement is two months each year. Confirmation has just been received from the Ministry of Justice of the People's Republic of China that representatives stationed in the Mainland representative offices of Hong Kong law firms (offices) can enjoy the above preferential treatment in residency requirement automatically. For details, please refer to Decree No. 84 issued by the Ministry of Justice of the People's Republic of China - "Decision of the Ministry of Justice on Amending the Measures for the Management of Representative Offices Set Up by Law Firms of the Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions in the Mainland" (in Chinese only) (website address: http://www.legalinfo.gov.cn/ggl/2003-12/01/content_62478.htm). In this regard, Hong Kong law firms (offices) are not required to apply to this Department for Certificates of Hong Kong Service Suppliers in relation to the above preferential treatment.
Yours faithfully,
(H M LAI)
for Director-General of Trade and Industry
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