The Ministry of Finance ("MOF") has recently issued the Interim Measures for Other Professional Qualification Holders to Act as Partners in Special General Partnership Accounting Firms (the "Measures"), with effect from March 1, 2018.
It is made clear in the Measures that, individuals who fail to satisfy conditions set out in Items 1 and 3, Paragraph 1 of Article 11 of the Administrative Measures for the Practice Licensing and the Supervision of Accounting Firms, are allowed to serve as partners in special general partnership accounting firms, provided that they have obtained the Chinese occupational qualifications for certified public valuers, tax agents and cost engineers and meet five requirements, including "working as full-time staff in accounting firms". Additionally, the Measures stipulate that, the proportion of partners holding other professional qualifications in the total number of partners in a special general partnership accounting firm shall not exceed 20 percent, and they shall have at most 20 percent sits in the partner management committee of the firm. Furthermore, a partner that holds other types of professional qualifications is not allowed to act as the chief partner or the partner responsible for executing partnership affairs, in an accounting firm, or the head in charge of its branch.