Guangzhou has relaxed its requirements for real estate certification for businesses from Macao, Hong Kong, Taiwan and overseas, according to multiple media reports.
The change, which is intended to help shore up property investment in the city, was announced during a meeting held by the Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Planning and Natural Resources on 25 December. The measure will ease the registration process by simplifying the required documentation and streamlining other procedures.
Prior to the policy shift, banks in Macao and Hong Kong that were dealing with real estate mortgage registration in the nine mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area had to offer proof of identity by forwarding notarised incorporation and registration documents.
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Overseas legal persons or non-incorporated companies were also required to provide additional documentation on top of this, including approval documents and registration certificates for the establishment of a presence in China.
Applicants will now be required to submit only one set of documents instead of both. They will also no longer need to have the Chinese translation of their application documents notarised.
Faced with sluggish post-pandemic economic growth, Chinese cities such as Guangzhou and Shanghai have been implementing various measures to promote foreign investment, as well as increase property sales.
