China to lower government admin fees

BEIJING -- China will lower administrative fees charged by 14 government departments, effective from October 1 this year, the country's top economic planner announced on Tuesday.

The move is expected to help enterprises and individuals save about 200 million yuan ($32.26 million) every year, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and Ministry of Finance said in a joint statement posted on the NDRC website.

The NDRC said charges will be reduced for 20 government services. For example, the application fee for a trademark registration will be cut to 800 yuan from the previous 1,000 yuan while that for plant quarantine will be 20 percent lower.

The country will also lower government administrative fees for automobile mortgage registration, private visa re-application, notarization and the examination cost for patent agent qualification, it said.