十三屆全國人大二次會議8日下午在北京人民大會堂舉行第二次全體會議，聽取全國人大常委會副委員長王晨關于中華人民共和國外商投資法草案的說明。之后，各代表團分別對該草案進行審議。

The foreign investment law, once adopted, will become a new and fundamental law for China's foreign investment, says the explanation delivered by Wang Chen, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, to deputies attending an NPC plenary session.
全國人大常委會副委員長王晨在關于中華人民共和國外商投資法草案的說明指出，外商投資法通過后，將成為我國外商投資領域新的基礎性法律。

關于外商投資的界定，草案做了如下界定，

外商投資（foreign investment）即外國的自然人、企業或者其他組織直接或者間接在中國境內進行的投資活動（investment activities directly or indirectly conducted by foreign natural persons, enterprises and other organizations），包括以下四類具體情形：

一是外國投資者單獨或者與其他投資者共同在中國境內設立外商投資企業（a foreign investor establishes a foreign-funded enterprise independently or together with any other investor）；

二是外國投資者取得中國境內企業的股份、股權、財產份額或者其他類似權益（a foreign investor acquires shares, equities, property shares or any other similar rights and interests of an enterprise within the territory of China）；

三是外國投資者單獨或者與其他投資者共同在中國境內投資新建項目（a foreign investor invests in any new construction project independently or together with any other investor）；

四是法律、行政法規或者國務院規定的其他方式的投資（investments stipulated in laws, administrative regulations, or defined by the State Council）。

草案指出，

The foreign investment law is a comprehensive and fundamental set of legal standards for foreign investment activities in China under new circumstances, and shall play a leading role as an overarching law in this field.
外商投資法是新形勢下國家關于外商投資活動全面的、基本的法律規范，是外商投資領域起龍頭作用、具有統領性質的法律。

It is a full testament to China's determination and confidence in opening wider to the outside world and promoting foreign investment in the new era.
制定外商投資法，就是要在新的歷史條件下通過國家立法表明將改革開放進行到底的決心和意志，展現新時代中國積極的對外開放姿態。

草案分為6章，包括總則、投資促進、投資保護、投資管理、法律責任、附則，共41條，對新的外商投資法律制度作出了基本的、明確的規定。

以下是部分要點摘錄：

The state shall guarantee that foreign-invested enterprises are able to participate in standard-setting work on an equal footing in accordance with law, and mandatory state standards shall apply equally to them, according to the document.
國家保障外商投資企業依法平等參與標準制定工作，國家制定的強制性標準平等適用于外商投資企業。

The state shall guarantee that foreign-invested enterprises can take part in government procurement activities through fair competition in accordance with law, and government procurement shall afford, in accordance with law, equal treatment to products of foreign-invested enterprises produced in China, it says.
國家保障外商投資企業依法通過公平競爭參與政府采購活動。政府采購依法對外商投資企業在中國境內生產的產品平等對待。

The conditions for technological cooperation in an investment project shall be negotiated in a fair and equal manner and agreed upon by all parties to the investment, and government bodies and their employees shall be prohibited from using administrative measures to force technology transfer.
外商投資過程中技術合作的條件由投資各方遵循公平原則平等協商確定，行政機關及其工作人員不得利用行政手段強制轉讓技術。

Sectors not on the entry negative list for foreign investment will be managed in accordance with the principle of equal treatment for domestic and foreign capital.
外商投資準入負面清單以外的領域，按照內外資一致的原則實施管理。

Competent authorities shall review foreign investors' license applications with the same conditions and procedures as those for domestic investors, unless otherwise stipulated in other laws or administrative regulations, according to the document.
有關主管部門應當按照與內資一致的條件和程序，審核外國投資者的許可申請，法律、行政法規另有規定的除外。

The draft also makes it clear that the state shall manage foreign investment according to the system of pre-establishment national treatment plus a negative list.
國家對外商投資實行準入前國民待遇加負面清單管理制度。

【名詞解釋】

準入前國民待遇（pre-establishment national treatment），是指在投資準入階段給予外國投資者及其投資不低于本國投資者及其投資的待遇。

負面清單（negative list），是指國家規定在特定領域對外商投資實施的準入特別管理措施。

外商投資法草案審議通過并正式實施之后，《中華人民共和國中外合資經營企業法》、《中華人民共和國外資企業法》、《中華人民共和國中外合作經營企業法》將同時廢止。

【相關詞匯】

外商投資 foreign investment

外商直接投資 foreign direct investment (FDI)

境外投資 outbound investment

中外合作經營企業 Chinese-foreign contractual joint venture

中外合資經營企業 Chinese-foreign equity joint venture

外商獨資企業 wholly foreign-owned enterprise

投資環境 investment environment

營商環境 business environment

（中國日報網英語點津 Helen）