The “Administrative Measures for the Accreditation of Qualifications of Price Assessment Institutions” have been discussed and approved at the Office Meeting of the Director of the National Development and Reform Commission. They are hereby promulgated and shall take effect as of July 1, 2005.

Director of the National Development and Reform Commission: Ma Kai

June 22, 2005

Administrative Measures for the Accreditation of Qualifications of Price Assessment Institutions

Article 1: In order to strengthen the qualification management of price appraisal institutions, standardize the procedures for recognizing their qualifications, ensure and supervise their lawful practice, and promote the gradual establishment of self-regulatory operating mechanisms by these institutions, these Measures are formulated in accordance with the Price Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Administrative Licensing Law of the People’s Republic of China, and the Decision of the State Council on Setting Administrative Licenses for Administrative Approval Items That Must Be Retained.

Article 2: This Regulation applies to the qualification certification and management of price appraisal institutions engaged in the valuation of various tangible properties, intangible assets, and paid services. Before registering with the Administration for Industry and Commerce, a price appraisal institution must obtain qualification certification. Where otherwise provided by national laws and regulations, such provisions shall prevail.

Article 3: The qualifications of price appraisal institutions shall be graded. Based on the conditions that price appraisal institutions meet, they shall be classified into Grade A, Grade B, and Grade C.

Class-A price appraisal institutions may carry out price appraisal services nationwide; Class-B price appraisal institutions may conduct price appraisal services within the administrative region at the provincial level (referring to provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government—same hereinafter) where the institution is located; Class-C price appraisal institutions may conduct price appraisal services within the city (or prefecture) and county where the institution is located.

Article 4: The qualification accreditation of Class A and Class B price appraisal agencies shall be受理 and initially reviewed by the price authorities of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government, and approved by the National Development and Reform Commission. The qualification accreditation of Class C price appraisal agencies shall be approved by the price authorities of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government and filed with the National Development and Reform Commission.

Article 5: Class C price appraisal institutions shall meet the following conditions:

(1) Basic requirements for having the legal status of a corporate entity registered with the Administration for Market Regulation;

(2) Possess the corresponding articles of association and necessary management systems;

(3) Having a fixed workplace;

(4) At least five price appraisal professionals who have obtained the “People’s Republic of China Certificate of Qualification for Price Appraisers” through the qualification certification process conducted by price appraisers accredited by the National Development and Reform Commission;

(5) Technical personnel with intermediate or senior professional titles in fields such as economics, accounting, and related engineering technologies shall account for no less than 30% of the enterprise’s total actual workforce.

(6) The registered capital shall not be less than 200,000 RMB.

Article 6: A Class B price appraisal agency, in addition to meeting the conditions stipulated in items (1), (2), and (3) of Article 5 of these Measures, shall also meet the following conditions:

(1) There shall be no fewer than seven price appraisal professionals who have obtained the “People’s Republic of China Certificate of Qualification for Price Appraisers” after passing the qualification certification for price appraisers administered by the National Development and Reform Commission.

(2) Technical personnel with intermediate or senior professional titles in fields such as economics, accounting, and related engineering technologies shall account for no less than 50% of the enterprise’s total actual workforce.

(3) The registered capital shall not be less than 500,000 RMB.

Article 7: In addition to meeting the conditions stipulated in items (1), (2), and (3) of Article 5 of these Measures, Class-A price appraisal institutions shall also meet the following conditions:

(1) At least ten price appraisal professionals who have obtained the “People’s Republic of China Certificate of Qualification for Price Appraisers” through the qualification certification process conducted by the Price Appraisal Personnel of the National Development and Reform Commission;

(2) Technical personnel with intermediate and senior professional titles in economics, accounting, and related engineering technologies shall account for no less than 60% of the enterprise’s total actual workforce, among which those with senior professional titles shall account for no less than 15% of the enterprise’s total actual workforce.

(3) The registered capital shall not be less than one million RMB.

Article 8: To apply for the qualification accreditation of a price appraisal agency, the following materials shall be submitted:

(1) The completed “Application Form for Administrative Licensing Matters of the National Development and Reform Commission of the People’s Republic of China (Application for Qualification Accreditation of Price Appraisal Agencies)”;

(2) Documents proving that the entity meets the requirements for being a legally registered business entity;

(3) Documentation proving the professional qualifications and technical titles of practitioners at the price appraisal agency:

(4) Articles of Association and Relevant Systems of the Price Assessment Agency:

(5) Application for Qualification Certification of Price Appraisal Institutions.

Article 9: In addition to the materials specified in Article 8, applicants seeking qualification certification as a Class B or Class A price appraisal agency must also provide materials documenting more than five typical price appraisal cases and a certificate of qualification as a Class C or Class B price appraisal agency.

Article 10: If the application materials submitted by the applicant for qualification certification of a price appraisal agency are complete and meet the requirements stipulated in these Measures, the preliminary review authority shall deem the application as accepted from the date on which it receives the application materials. If the application materials are incomplete or do not meet the prescribed requirements, the preliminary review authority shall, on the spot or within five working days, notify the applicant once of all the items that need to be corrected. If the authority fails to provide such notification within the specified time limit, the application shall be deemed accepted from the date on which it receives the application materials.

The initial review authority shall issue a written document stamped with the official seal of its administrative agency and dated, whether it accepts or rejects an applicant’s application for qualification certification.

Article 11: The preliminary review authority responsible for the qualification certification of Class A and Class B price appraisal institutions shall complete the preliminary review within twenty working days from the date on which it accepts the application submitted by the applicant for qualification certification.

Article 12: The authority responsible for reviewing and approving the qualifications of Class A and Class B price appraisal institutions shall, within twenty working days from the date of receiving the preliminary review opinion from the primary reviewing authority, make a decision to grant or deny the qualification approval. If a decision cannot be made within twenty working days, with the approval of the leadership of the authority responsible for reviewing and approving the qualifications of price appraisal institutions, the deadline may be extended by ten working days, and the applicant shall be informed of the reasons for the extension.

Article 13: If the authority responsible for the accreditation and approval of price appraisal institutions makes a decision to grant accreditation, it shall issue and deliver to the applicant, within ten working days from the date of such decision, the “People’s Republic of China Certificate of Qualification for Price Appraisal Institutions” corresponding to the approved level. If, in accordance with the law, a written decision is made not to grant accreditation, the authority shall state the reasons therefor and inform the applicant of their right to file an administrative reconsideration or bring an administrative lawsuit in accordance with the law.

Article 14: The “Qualification Certificate for Price Assessment Institutions of the People’s Republic of China” shall be uniformly printed by the National Development and Reform Commission.

Article 15: The validity period of the qualification certificate for price appraisal institutions is three years. Thirty days before the expiration date, the price appraisal institution shall, in accordance with regulations, reapply to the qualification accreditation authority for renewal procedures. During the re-accreditation process, the applicant for qualification accreditation must provide a work report for the past three years, an update on the current staffing situation, and supporting documentation comprising five or more typical examples of price appraisal cases.

Article 16: Any changes to the registration information of a price appraisal agency must be promptly reported to the qualification accreditation authority for amendment procedures.

Article 17: The National Development and Reform Commission and the price authorities of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government shall publicly display at their offices the basis, conditions, procedures, time limits for the accreditation of price appraisal institutions, as well as a catalog of all materials to be submitted and a sample application form. Decisions approving the accreditation of price appraisal institutions shall be published through media such as the websites of the National Development and Reform Commission and the price authorities of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government.

Article 18: The government’s price administration authorities shall strengthen supervision and inspection of the practice of price appraisal institutions and promptly rectify any illegal or non-compliant conduct in their operations.

Article 19: When the government’s price administration authority conducts supervision and inspection of price appraisal agencies in accordance with the law, it shall record the details of such supervision and inspection as well as the outcomes of any actions taken. The public has the right to review these records.

Article 20: When the government’s price administration department conducts supervision and inspection of price appraisal agencies in accordance with the law, it may review or request the price appraisal agencies to provide truthful information and materials.

Article 21: When the government’s price authorities carry out supervision and inspection in accordance with the law, they shall not impede the normal business activities of price appraisal institutions, shall not solicit or accept property from such institutions, and shall not seek any other form of benefit.

Article 22: Individuals and organizations that discover illegal activities by price appraisal institutions have the right to report such activities to the government’s price regulatory authority. The government’s price regulatory authority shall, in accordance with its administrative jurisdiction, promptly verify and handle these reports.

Article 23: In any of the following circumstances, the National Development and Reform Commission and the price authorities of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government, within their respective powers, may revoke the decision approving the qualification certification of a price appraisal agency, withdraw the "Qualification Certificate for Price Appraisal Agencies of the People's Republic of China," and publish the relevant information on media such as the websites of the National Development and Reform Commission and the price authorities of the provincial, autonomous region, and municipality-level people's governments:

(1) Making a decision to approve the qualification accreditation of a price appraisal agency for applicants who do not meet the statutory requirements, or making such a decision beyond the scope of statutory authority;

(2) A price appraisal agency that obtains a decision approving its qualification as a price appraisal agency through improper means such as deception or bribery:

(3) Other circumstances under which the decision to grant qualification certification to a price appraisal agency may be revoked in accordance with the law.

Article 24: If any of the following circumstances exist, the authority responsible for the approval of qualification accreditation for price appraisal institutions shall, in accordance with the law, carry out the cancellation procedures for the relevant qualifications of such institutions:

(1) The validity period of the qualification certificate of the price appraisal agency has expired and has not been re-certified as required;

(2) The legal person status of the price appraisal agency has been terminated in accordance with the law;

(3) The decision to grant qualification accreditation to a price appraisal agency has been revoked in accordance with the law;

(4) Other circumstances prescribed by laws and regulations.

Article 25: If the qualification certification authority for price assessment institutions and its staff violate the provisions of these Measures and fall into any of the following circumstances, they shall be ordered to make corrections by their superior administrative authorities or supervisory organs; in cases of serious violations, the directly responsible principal personnel and other directly liable personnel shall be given administrative disciplinary actions in accordance with the law; if their actions constitute a crime, they shall be prosecuted for criminal liability in accordance with the law:

(1) Applications for the qualification certification of price appraisal institutions that meet the statutory requirements shall not be accepted;

(2) Failing to make a decision approving the qualification accreditation of a price appraisal agency within the statutory time limit for applicants who meet the statutory requirements;

(3) Making a decision to approve the qualification certification of a price appraisal agency for applicants who do not meet the statutory requirements, or making such a decision beyond the scope of statutory authority;

(4) Failing to publicly display materials that are required by law to be made public in the office premises;

(5) Failing to fulfill the statutory duty of notification to the applicant and interested parties during the process of accepting, reviewing, and deciding on the qualification accreditation of price appraisal institutions;

(6) The application materials submitted by the applicant are incomplete or do not conform to the statutory format, and the applicant is not informed in one go of all the items that must be corrected;

(7) Failing to provide, in accordance with the law, explanations for rejecting applications for qualification accreditation of price appraisal institutions or for not granting such accreditation.

Article 26: If staff members of the authority responsible for the accreditation of price appraisal institutions solicit or accept property from others or seek other benefits when handling the accreditation of such institutions or conducting supervision and inspection, and their actions constitute a crime, they shall be held criminally liable in accordance with the law. If their actions do not yet constitute a crime, they shall be subject to administrative disciplinary action in accordance with the law.

Article 27: If the authority responsible for accrediting the qualifications of price appraisal institutions imposes fees without authorization when carrying out such accreditation, the higher-level administrative authority or the supervisory authority shall order it to refund the illegally collected fees. In addition, the directly responsible principal and other persons directly liable shall be given administrative disciplinary actions in accordance with the law.

Article 28: If an applicant for the qualification certification of a price appraisal agency conceals relevant information or provides false materials when applying for such certification, the authority responsible for issuing the qualification certification shall not accept the application nor grant the certification, and shall issue a warning to the applicant.

Article 29: If a price appraisal agency engages in any of the following behaviors, the authority responsible for the approval of its qualification certification shall impose administrative penalties in accordance with the law:

(1) An applicant for the qualification certification of a price appraisal agency who obtains the decision approving its qualification certification through improper means such as deception or bribery;

(2) Altering, reselling, leasing, lending, or illegally transferring the “Qualification Certificate for Price Appraisal Institutions of the People’s Republic of China”;

(3) Practicing beyond the scope of practice as certified;

(4) Concealing relevant information from the administrative authority responsible for supervision and inspection, providing false materials, or refusing to provide authentic materials reflecting its activities;

(5) Other illegal acts prescribed by laws, regulations, and rules.

Article 30: For any organization that collects valuation fees for valuation services requiring administrative licensing without obtaining the necessary administrative license, the government’s price regulatory authority shall take measures in accordance with the law to put a stop to such activities and impose administrative penalties in accordance with the law. If the conduct constitutes a crime, criminal liability shall be pursued in accordance with the law.

Article 31: The funds required for the qualification accreditation and management of price appraisal institutions shall be applied for from the financial department at the same level in accordance with regulations.

Article 32: The qualification accreditation and management of Class C price appraisal institutions shall be carried out by the price authorities of the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government, in accordance with these Measures. The price authorities of the people's governments of each province, autonomous region, and municipality directly under the central government may formulate implementing rules based on these Measures.

Article 33: The National Development and Reform Commission shall be responsible for interpreting these Measures.

Article 34: These Measures shall take effect as of July 1, 2005. In case of any inconsistency between the former regulations issued by the former State Planning Commission and these Measures, these Measures shall prevail.