Guangdong-Macao

Guangdong-Macao
In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin

Within the strategic framework of the national 14th Five-Year Plan and the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), the GBA stands as a major national development strategy. It carries the historic mission of building a world-class city cluster and an international center for scientific and technological innovation.
While benchmarking against globally leading regions such as the San Francisco Bay Area, the Greater Bay Area still faces notable gaps in areas such as technological innovation, industrial synergy, and institutional openness. However, it also possesses unique advantages and potential.

Under the framework of the national innovation-driven development strategy, the central government has explicitly supported Macao in cultivating emerging industries. The issuance of the Overall Development Plan for the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin in 2021 marked an institutional breakthrough for promoting the diversified development of Macao’s economy. Centered on the goal of supporting Macao’s moderately diversified economic growth, the Cooperation Zone in Hengqin is vigorously developing scientific research and advanced manufacturing, along with Macao-branded industries such as traditional Chinese medicine, as well as sectors including culture, tourism, conventions and exhibitions, commerce and trade, and modern finance.
A series of key supporting policies under the Overall Development Plan have been successively implemented, including the “double 15%” preferential income tax rates for enterprises and individuals, the “Macao tax for Macao residents” policy, a catalog of 185 incentive industries, the “Thirty Financial Measures,” the management measures for high-end and urgently-needed talents, and facilitation policies for foreign professionals residing in Macao to enter and exit the Cooperation Zone. Meanwhile, the Cooperation Zone in Hengqin continues to strengthen policy innovation, expand policy supply, and improve its policy system. More than ten specialized policies have already been introduced, such as the 25 tax measures supporting high-quality development in the Cooperation Zone, the special support
measures for the development of Macao-invested enterprises, the financial support measures for promoting industrial development, the support policies for small, medium, and micro enterprises, the incentive measures to encourage enterprises to go public, the measures to promote the development of the integrated circuit industry, the measures to support the development of the biomedicine and health industry, and the rules for the recognition of substantive business operations of enterprises.

Nuno Simões & Associados – Lawyers and Notary has long been at the forefront in Macao, with in-depth knowledge of compliance matters and support policies within the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin. We provide comprehensive services ranging from company establishment to operational compliance assessments, integrating industry-specific regulations and best practices to tailor compliance plans for each client. By building a three-pronged approach of “Macao Rules + Greater Bay Area Resources + Portuguese-speaking Network,” we help Macao-based and foreign-invested enterprises seamlessly access the Hengqin and Mainland China markets through Macao. We offer one-stop legal services across Mainland China and the Macao Special Administrative Region, leveraging our seamless cross-jurisdictional capabilities to assist clients in capitalizing on the development opportunities in the Cooperation Zone in Hengqin and fully benefiting from preferential policies for rapid growth. At the same time, we provide expert tax and financial advisory services, taking a deep understanding of each client’s unique needs to deliver customized business models.

Macao has been entrusted with the important mission of developing into “One Center, One Platform, and One Base.” As a key node in China’s dual-cycle opening-up strategy, Macao is leveraging the institutional advantages of “One Country, Two Systems” to actively explore new pathways for moderately diversified economic development through deeper integration with the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Nuno Simões & Associados – Lawyers and Notary is also committed to establishing a leading hub for legal services related to Portuguese-speaking countries within China’s foreign-related legal framework, contributing to Hengqin-Macao in-depth cooperation and foreign-related legal services for Portuguese-speaking countries.