One of the focuses during the ongoing China’s Two Sessions, the country’s most important political meetings, is the draft law on foreign investment, which is expected to address a wide range of issues regarding foreign investment in China, such as protection of intellectual property and easier access for foreign investors.

The draft law has been submitted and is currently under deliberation. Once adopted, the law will replace three existing laws on Chinese-foreign equity joint ventures, non-equity joint ventures (or contractual joint ventures), and wholly foreign-owned enterprises, Xinhua reported.

National People’s Congress (NPC) deputy Wang Suilian, also the chairman of the Industry and Commerce Federation of Shandong, pointed out that the most significant move might be the pre-establishment national treatment, ensuring a more equal and convenient investment environment for foreign companies.

The draft law also highlights the protection of intellectual property rights of foreign enterprises, as current foreign investments mainly focus on new technologies and business models. The law is expected to strengthen intellectual property protection and help guarantee equal treatment and stable returns in China, according to NPC deputy Wang Ruijun, also head of Guangdong Science and Technology Department.

The draft law will promote the optimization of China’s business environment, attract foreign investment, and expand the diversification of foreign investment entities, fields, and industrial structure, said NPC deputy Zhang Sujun, vice president of China Law Society.

“In response to questions raised by foreign investors and foreign-invested companies, the draft law will provide a more unified and powerful legal guarantee for the effective utilization of foreign capital in China. It also demonstrates the nation’s determination as well as confidence in expanding its opening-up,” Zhang said.

The draft law is also believed to bring opportunities and challenges for domestic companies, which are under pressure to improve products and service quality, and jointly stimulate regional economic development through communication with foreign companies, said NPC deputy Wang Yuling, also head of the Wuhan branch of People’s Bank of China.