天下无不散之筵席。很多外国人在中国待了一段时间后，会选择离开中国，或因寻求更好的发展，或因没能适应中国的生活。
Everything comes to an end. Some foreigners might choose to leave China after staying for a period of time, either because they want to seek better development, or because they are not accustomed to the life in this country.
尽管原因各异，但外籍人士在离开之前一定处理好自己在中国的一切关系，尤其是在中国注册了公司的朋友。
Although the reasons vary, expats must bring a good end to all their business in China before leaving, especially those with registered companies in China.
这一步很重要，不仅可以让你的公司在你离境之后保持合规经营，对于你本人也有一定的好处。
Importantly, these steps will not only help the company stay compliant, but will also have personal benefits to the person leaving.
首先，变更公司的法人代表或股东。
Frist, change legal representative or shareholder.
很多外国人会在中国担任公司法人代表或者是公司股东，居其位承其重，所以在离开之前，你最好是将这份责任转交给他人，确保自己不用再对公司负法律责任。这样不仅有利于公司的延续性，也能使你自己远离不必要的麻烦。
There is a chance the person is leaving has been in charge in China as the legal representative or a shareholder of a company. While this position comes with great power, it also comes with great responsibility. Before leaving China, the responsibility must be passed on, since this will ensure the person is no longer legally responsible for what is happening in the company. Such change can help the continuity of the company and save you from unnecessary troubles.
若继续担任公司法人代表或股东，但在你离开期间，公司因无人管理或经营不善进入了经营黑名单，也会影响到你的再次来华申请。
If you continue to serve as the legal representative or the shareholder of the company during your absence, but the company are blacklisted due to no management or poor management, your return to China in the future will suffer more barriers.
中国各个城市对于变更公司法人代表的规定大同小异，一般分为三个阶段：
To officially change the legal representative, there are roughly three steps that need to be taken. These steps might differ from city to city, however in general they are the same.
The name of the legal representative/shareholder on the business license needs to be changed.
2️⃣ 将新任法人代表/股东姓名的信息告知税务局。
The tax bureau needs to be notified about the new legal representative/shareholder.
The legal representative/shareholder for the bank accounts needs to be changed.
完成法人代表或股东变更之后，就意味着你已经移交了对于该公司所负的责任，同时，也移交了自己的权利。
After the change of legal representative or shareholder , it means that you have handed over the responsibility for the company, and at the same time, you have also handed over your rights.
如果未能找到新的任职人员，或者不想将自己的公司拱手让人，你也可以选择直接关掉公司。
If you can't find a successor, or don't want to hand over your company, you can also choose to close the company directly.
没有进行注销手续的公司并不会进入所谓的休眠状态，即使没有进行业务活动，也会一直产生经营成本，比如纳税、租用办公地址等。
A company that has not gone through the cancellation procedures does not go dormant. Even if it does not carry out business activities, it will continue to incur operating costs, such as paying taxes, renting an office address, etc.
有一点要注意，正常的注销流程需要花费两个月左右，建议提早准备。
One thing to note is that the normal process for cancellation takes about two months, and it is recommended to prepare in advance.
你也可以找一家专业的代理机构，他们有经验有方法，能帮你将注销成本最小化。
It is also recommended to find a professional agency. They have experience and solutions to effectively minimize the cost for you.
Secondly, leaving China with a Chinese pension.
如果你持有工作许可并在中国购买了社保，就可以在离开中国时申请退还保险费, 包括养老保险的员工缴纳部分以及医疗保险总额的5%。
When having worked in China on a work permit there is a good chance social insurance was paid. It is most likely that this part of the insurances can be returned to you when leaving China. Two social insurances can be claimed when leaving China are the employee’s part of the pension and 5% of the total medical fund paid by the employer and employee.
事实上，很多朋友不知道这部分保险费用是可以退还的，平白无故损失了一大笔钱。但要注意，退还款项会直接转入到你的中国银行账户，所以在收款前要确保你的银行账户还未进行销户操作！
Unfortunately, many people forget that reclaiming these funds is an option. Missing this would be a pity as it could amount to a significant sum of money. Please be aware that the funds will be transferred to your bank account in China, so it is important this one is not closed yet!
Thirdly, close bank account(s).
在中国关闭一个银行账户并不难，但很重要，因为即使你人不在中国，也不会再用中国的银行账户进行任何的业务，但是银行还是会定期收取一定的费用。要想省去这笔无谓的支出，进行销户即可。
Closing a bank account in China is not very difficult, however it is important because it will keep racking up charges even if one does not live in China any more or conduct no business with the account.
正如之前提到的，在中国生活或者接收退款都是需要有一个银行账户的，因此，建议在完成所有离开中国的准备之后再去申请关闭银行账户。
For the above-mentioned step, it is often necessary to still have a bank account. Therefore, we suggest leaving it active until all the other steps in the process of leaving China are finished.
这一步看起来似乎无足轻重，但和银行卡一样，即使你人已离开中国且不再使用这张电话卡，但服务商仍会继续扣取服务费，直到电话卡余额用尽变成停机状态。进入停机状态90天后，服务商将收回该号码并将你列入黑名单。之后你入境中国后想要再办理一张新卡，也就没那么容易了。
Cancelling your SIM card when leaving China might not seem very important, but like a bank card, even if you have left China and no longer use this SIM card, it will keep being charged by the Chinese provider until the balance is exhausted and then it will become a shutdown state. Furthermore, after 90 days shutdown, the provider will take the number back and blacklist you. This will give you trouble when you want to apply for a new SIM card in the future.
注销电话卡，通常需要带上护照到最初开卡的门店去办理，几分钟就可以完成。
To cancel a SIM card you must go to the original location you registered it at with your SIM card and passport. The process itself is quite short and while only take a couple of minutes.
但与银行账户一样，在做离开中国的其他准备时，一个处于激活且有效状态的手机号是十分必要的，所以，最好是完成所有离开中国的准备之后再注销电话卡。
Similar to a bank account, having a working phone subscription can be necessary and useful for the other steps in the process of leaving China. Therefore, it is better to keep an active phone number until all the other steps in the process of leaving China are finished.
在中国做生意需要方方面面都合规，即使是离开中国，也不能随便甩手便走。如果你还不明白如何提前做好离开中国的准备，或者需要什么帮助，随时联系我们～
Doing business in China requires everyone to take many steps in order to be compliant. Even leaving China is not something which should be done haphazardly. If you are unsure about how to leave or need some help, feel free to reach out to us~
HACOS provides free consulting services for exit and entry and Chinese visa.
If you want to know more about coming to China or doing business here, please contact us!
