Hainan Free Trade Port to officially launch island-wide independent customs operation on Dec. 18

An aerial drone photo shows a duty-free shopping mall in Sanya, south China's Hainan Province, May 29, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]

China's Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP) will officially launch an island-wide independent customs operation on Dec. 18, 2025, as approved by the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, an official with the country's top economic planner announced Wednesday.

The launch on this symbolic date, which marks the anniversary of the milestone Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee in 1978 that ushered in the reform and opening-up, underscores China's unwavering commitment to high-standard opening-up, Wang Changlin, deputy head of the National Development and Reform Commission, said at a press conference.

"The island-wide independent customs operation is a flagship move for the development of the Hainan FTP and a key measure to further expand opening-up," Wang said, calling it "a milestone" in China's opening-up efforts.

The proportion of tariff lines with zero-tariff products in the Hainan Free Trade Port will increase from 21 percent to 74 percent, Wang said, adding that imported products that undergo at least 30 percent value-added processing in Hainan can enter the mainland tariff-free. Certain goods currently banned or restricted nationwide will enjoy open policies in Hainan.

Vice Minister of Finance Liao Min noted that the number of duty-free items in Hainan will increase from about 1,900 to around 6,600, marking a significant boost in openness.

The scope of eligible beneficiaries will be significantly expanded to include enterprises, public institutions, and private non-enterprise entities in the FTP with actual import needs, according to Liao.

Once the independent customs operation begins, zero-tariff imports will be managed under a negative list, Liao added.

"We will take a targeted regulatory approach of low-intervention and high-efficiency for zero-tariff and relaxed management goods, ensuring smooth implementation of the opening-up policies," Wang said.

Yuan Xiaoming, assistant minister of commerce, said that the commerce ministry, together with relevant departments, has issued a list specifying goods and articles prohibited or restricted from import and export in the Hainan FTP.

The list clearly and systematically outlines the full scope of goods and articles subject to current import and export prohibitions or restrictions, enabling businesses to understand regulatory boundaries easily, Yuan added.

Preparations on the policy front for the island-wide independent customs operation are already in place, said Feng Fei, secretary of the CPC Hainan provincial committee.

Wang stressed that the independent customs operation is intended to expand opening-up further and promote the high-quality development of the Hainan FTP. Following the launch, exchanges between Hainan and the international market will become smoother and more seamless. At the same time, travel for business or tourism to the island will remain unchanged, with no additional documents required.

The launch of the operation marks the beginning of a new stage in the opening-up and development of the Hainan FTP and will be followed by sustained policy implementation, Wang said, pledging further efforts to deepen reform, expand openness, and refine the FTP's policy framework to build Hainan into a key gateway for China's opening-up.

"We are full of anticipation for the independent customs operation of the Hainan FTP," said Meng Weiwei, general manager of Jia Green Chocolate Works (Hainan) Co., Ltd. Meng has been paying close attention to the policies released at the press conference.

The company is a joint venture that mainly imports raw and auxiliary materials from countries such as Belgium, Spain and Canada for chocolate production, before selling its chocolate products to the domestic market. This business model is highly applicable to the Hainan FTP tariff-free policy.

In April 2018, China announced a decision to develop Hainan into a pilot free-trade zone while gradually exploring and steadily promoting the establishment of an FTP with Chinese characteristics. In June 2020, a master plan was unveiled to build the island into a globally influential and high-level FTP by the middle of the century.

After several years of development, the Hainan FTP has achieved remarkable results in the formation of policies and institutions, the upgrading of modern industrial systems, the cultivation of an export-oriented economy and the optimization of the business environment.

In the past five years, the actual utilization of foreign capital in Hainan reached 102.5 billion yuan (14.35 billion U.S. dollars), with an average annual growth rate of 14.6 percent. A total of 8,098 new foreign-funded enterprises were established at an average annual growth rate of 43.7 percent, and 176 countries and regions invested in Hainan during this period, official figures showed. Meanwhile, its offshore duty-free sales have grown rapidly, accounting for over 8 percent of the global duty-free market.

A number of policies introduced in the Hainan FTP have been effectively implemented, focusing on the areas of "zero tariffs, low tax rates and a simple tax system," as well as the free and convenient flow of factors such as goods, capital and personnel.

"All of these are real benefits," said an employee of Chambroad (Hainan) Advanced Material Co., Ltd. in Hainan. A while ago, the company imported a batch of crude oil through the "zero-tariff" policy, with 2.37 million yuan of tariff exempted.

The opening-up policies are attracting more global capital and industries, according to William Huang, managing partner of EY China South.

"With the independent customs operation, Hainan will continue to attract the concentration of high-end manufacturing, biomedicine and other industries. Sectors like aviation and deep-sea industries will also see new opportunities for development," Huang said.

"We will strive to build the Hainan Free Trade Port into an important gateway leading China's opening up in the new era, contributing to the sustained development of the Chinese economy as well as injecting stability and certainty into the world economy," said Yuan, assistant minister of commerce.