Primasia Corporate Services Limited: May 2012

Thursday, 31 May 2012

China Updates- Employment Contract Law

A foreign national’s severance claim has been upheld under the Employment Contract Law (ECL) by a Shanghai court. Thus, the general employment law has been applied to foreign nationals rather than only, indeed in preference to, the separate national regulations on employment of foreigners. The decision by the Shanghai Jing’an District People’s Court in April 2010 was based on the principle that the ECL did not exclude foreigners and hence should be applied to them, assertions of freedom of contract notwithstanding .

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Primasia will post the updates of Hong Kong and China from time to time. Follow us on our Website/ Blogger/ LinkedIn and stay tunned for our updates!

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Please contact:
John Barclay -Email
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Primasia Corporate Services Limited
Tel: +852 2882 2088
Suite 1106-08, 11/F., Tai Yau Building, No. 181 Johnston Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong

Tuesday, 29 May 2012

Hong Kong Updates- Anti-Money Laundering Ordinance

The Anti-Money Laundering Ordinance came into effect on 1st April.

The key features include:

i. Supervisory and enforcement powers to four regulatory authorities (RAs), the Securities and Futures Commission, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the Insurance Authority and the Customs

and Excise Department.

ii. Codification into statutory obligations of previous due diligence and record-keeping obligations.

iii. Supervisory and criminal sanctions for non-compliance with the statutory requirements.

iv. Creation of a licensing regime and anti-money laundering framework for remittance agents and money changers.

The four RAs had already published (in January 2012) the Guideline on Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing. Each of them has a slightly modified version. The Inland Revenue Department (IRD) has imposed a new reporting requirement for employers in respect of payments in lieu of notice made to employees on or after 1 April 2012.

In other words, they are now being treated by the IRD as taxable: previously, the IRD treated payments in lieu of notice as not taxable and therefore did not require them to be reported.

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Primasia will post the updates of Hong Kong and China from time to time. Follow us on our Website/ Blogger/ LinkedIn and stay tunned for our updates!

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