The international version of Beijing Municipal Government's official website has recently been launched online. Designed to serve Beijing's efforts to improve its role as the center for international exchanges, the new website is a multi-lingual platform integrating such functions as information release, public service, inquiry, and communication. It will assist in the capital's further opening-up and present its new image.
To better serve foreigners coming to Beijing and foreign investors interested in Beijing's development and meet their needs, the new website consists of five themes – investing, working, studying, living and traveling. The five themes are designed in corresponding scenarios to provide panoramic and targeted services for users, so as to cater to their needs and enhance their on-site experience. Developing through the intensive platform for municipal government websites, the multi-lingual website features the main hue of white and blue and a clear and neat overall layout.
Five service scenarios
"Investing in Beijing" provides comprehensive information on foreign service resources across the city to facilitate foreign investors and overseas entities in their investment and business activities in Beijing. Consisting of nine sections under four parts, this scenario has released more than 1,600 pieces of investment and service information.
"Working in Beijing" includes several columns, such as "Why Beijing", "How to Work in Beijing" and "Labor Rights". It also provides all-round services ranging from visa, employment, to insurance, tax payment, housing fund, and to holidays and labor dispute settlement.
"Studying in Beijing" includes such columns as "Choices", "Tips for Preparation", "During Your Study Program" and "Upon Graduation". It provides comprehensive information for foreign students who want to study in Beijing, covering universities, scholarship, tuition fee, courses and internship.
"Living in Beijing" simulates actual living needs to help foreigners better merge into and adapt to life in Beijing. It provides a full range of scenario-based services covering residence permit, marriage registration, housing, transport, medical care, children's education, finance, safety and security, catering and shopping.
“Traveling in Beijing” provides information on city tours, shopping, entertainment, dining, accommodation and transport, as well as visa, travel agency, tour guide, and rights and interests protection.
International business environment
"Why Beijing" demonstrates Beijing's advantages in investment. It lists the latest policy measures, such as "1 + 5" (one guideline and five action plans), to foster and strengthen at a faster pace the new business forms and models so as to promote high-quality economic development in the city, as well as the latest investment hotspots and news. The column also presents Beijing's economic development, investment opportunities, business environment, policies and regulations, key industries and investment cases in the form of video and picture, and releases investment information about all districts and key industrial parks. It aims to showcase Beijing's transparent and open business environment to foreign investors.
"Start Your Business" helps investors implement their investment projects. It provides detailed information on such topics as business registration, qualification and licensing, fee and tax payment, payment of social security, project approval, and engineering and construction, guiding foreign enterprises in their investment and operation in Beijing every step of the way.
"Investment Transaction Promotion" promotes investment and transaction. This column has released 15 pieces of information on investment projects, 120 pieces on business premises, and 34 pieces on municipal and district-level investment promotion agencies as well as foreign business associations in Beijing, helping foreign investors to acquire investment information and build connections in a timely manner.
"Business Activities" and "Business Service" provide auxiliary services. It provides updates on international exhibitions and conferences held in Beijing, such as the China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS), so that foreign enterprises and businessmen can acquire timely and comprehensive information and take part in the events conveniently. This column integrates 547 pieces of information on eight types of service agencies, covering accounting, asset valuation, legal service, justice and arbitration, taxation, human resources, intellectual property rights (IPR), and scientific research and innovation. It weaves a network of business service resources across the city and provides all-round support for international businesses to carry out economic and trade cooperation and enhance their brand influence in Beijing.
Friendly online services
The website provides guidance on a list of matters. Being a service-oriented website, it puts "Services You May Need" in an eye-catching position on the homepage, so that users can pinpoint the services they need at a glance. "Most Requested" displays tens of most frequently requested matters, such as business registration, visa and work permit. It also lists 394 items concerning foreigners and foreign investors, including 167 items of government services and 227 items of resident services, which can be searched under such keywords as visa, transport, social security, medical service and education, or by such categories as personal and corporate legal entity.
The website is user-friendly. The rigid and obscure policies are designed in scenarios and expressed in international terms, and the process of handling relevant matters, including visa application, driver's license, permanent residence permit, work permit, and mobile payment, is re-created in pictures and diagrams to facilitate foreign users and improve user experience and efficiency.
The website provides reservation services. It offers online reservation to handle frequent matters for foreigners, such as marriage registration, visa and residential permit, thus improving efficiency and user experience.
The website provides interactive inquiries. There are such columns as "FAQs", "QAS", "Feedback" and "Surveys", intelligent Q&A system and interactive messaging platform for foreigners and foreign investors, as well as fast and considerate complaint and inquiry services in multiple languages. Entries for interactive services are offered on relevant themes, columns, and pages to serve the users in a timely manner.
Multi-lingual services
The website now features eight languages, including English, Korean, Japanese, German, French, Russian, Spanish, and Arabic. Next, the website will be refined to provide targeted policy and information services by industry and sector, give more contents under each theme, and handle more matters online. As an online platform for international communication and dialogue, the new website of Beijing municipal government will keep improving its international services and help make Beijing a highly dynamic and influential center for international exchanges with world-class services.
