On May 11, Beijing Municipal Cyberspace Administration, Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce, and Beijing Municipal Administration of Government Services and Data Management jointly released the 2025 edition of the Negative List for Outbound Data Transfers in the China (Beijing) Pilot Free Trade Zone and the National Comprehensive Demonstration Zone for Expanding the Service Sector Opening, along with its supporting management measures.

Du Lei, Second-Level Inspector of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce, noted that since the introduction of China's first scenario-based, field-level negative list in August 2024, three major outcomes have been achieved:

First, a national benchmark has been established — Beijing's scenario-based, field-level negative list has improved operational clarity and feasibility, providing a model for other pilot free trade zones. Subsequent negative lists across China have referenced Beijing's approach, enabling broader applicability.

Second, compliance costs for enterprises have been reduced — the initial version covered five sectors, including pharmaceuticals, retail, and artificial intelligence. Compared with previous procedures, the filing and approval process is now simpler and faster. Over the past year, companies such as Bayer, Samsung, and Sanofi successfully completed the registration process.

Third, cross-border data service capabilities have been enhanced – To support implementation, cross-border service centers were established in Chaoyang, Haidian, Daxing, and Yizhuang. Guided by municipal authorities, these centers continuously improve their layouts and services, offering enterprises in Beijing convenient, high-quality support across the full data chain.

The new "two-zone" negative list represents an expansion of the pilot free trade zone's list, based on three considerations:

First, it aligns with Beijing's "Two-Zone" mission — the scope now includes the National Comprehensive Demonstration Zone for Expanding Service Sector Opening, covering the entire city so as to replicate and scale the successes in the pilot zone.

Second, it responds to market demands – enterprises outside the pilot zones expressed strong interest in applying the policy. The updated list adds four new sectors—medical devices, autonomous driving, trade logistics, and banking—and extends coverage citywide, allowing more industries to benefit from Beijing's opening-up policies.

Third, it provides a comprehensive policy and service framework – Beijing established a closed-loop policy system, including management measures, cross-border service centers, and financial support. Hundreds of enterprises nationwide have benefited, with demonstration cases in AI, scientific research, and healthcare. Filing procedures are now streamlined, and services are efficient and accessible, laying a foundation for wider adoption.

Du Lei emphasized that the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce will continue to work with the Municipal Cyberspace Administration to ensure smooth implementation, strengthen city-district coordination, and enhance policy awareness for domestic and international enterprises.