The State Council General Office issued a notice on addressing delayed payments
to SMEs, requiring government procurement projects to be paid in full in cash
and adding timely payment to government procurement oversight. It ordered
strengthened, whole-process supervision of government investment funds from
allocation to disbursement; project owners must prioritize cash payments and
require main contractors to pay subcontractors promptly, passing through a cash
share at least equal to what they received. Existing completed but unsettled
government investment projects must promptly complete financial close and settle
outstanding project payments to accelerate subcontractor and migrant-worker wage
payments. The notice tightens supervision of the Administrative Regulations on
State-owned Assets in public institutions and mandates strict adherence to
deadlines from completion acceptance to final financial settlement. Public
institutions must comply with statutory payment terms for procurement of goods,
works and services from SMEs. Cases flagged by the national complaints platform
for overdue SME payments will receive targeted supervision, mandatory
rectification deadlines, and, if necessary, region- or industry-level public
notices.
