City policies

China's most foreigner-friendly startup city. In 2026 Shanghai officially opened one-person company (OPC) registration to foreign natural persons and rolled out OPC communities across Hongqiao, Yangpu, Lingang, Xuhui and Jing'an — making it the natural first stop for solo foreign founders.

Home to China's most aggressive OPC support. The Yizhuang 'Modelling OPC Community' offers zero-rent offices, a nationwide-first real-time compute-credit exchange, and guaranteed government orders — a serious option for AI and content solo founders.

The first city with a dedicated OPC action plan (2026–2027): by end-2027 Shenzhen targets 500,000 m² of OPC communities and 1,000+ high-growth AI startups. District-level firepower — equity, cash, housing — is among the strongest in the country.

First city with a dedicated OPC 'sandbox' supervision scheme and the national-first SOPC industry ecosystem. Nansha's OPC one-stop service zone can get a company set up in half a day.

China's digital-economy capital. Its 12-measure OPC policy pack (Apr 2026) pioneered workstation registration — one person, one laptop, one workstation can legally register a company — plus collateral-free OPC credit and sandbox supervision.

Western China's AI-OPC hub. The city action plan (Mar 2026) targets 20 OPC communities, 100 innovative products and 100 demonstration scenarios by end-2027 — with the lowest cost base among all leading OPC cities.

The city that registered China's first foreigner-owned OPC — a Korean designer got her license the same day she applied (Mar 2026). With 10+ OPC parks and Laoshan's ten-measure policy list, Qingdao is proving the most welcoming door for foreign solo founders.

The first city in China with a dedicated municipal-level OPC program — and the anchor of Jiangsu's manufacturing powerhouse. Suzhou's industrial parks and AI+manufacturing ecosystem make it a prime pick for solo founders building hardware, industrial AI and export businesses.