The new Agreement between the Republic of Belarus and the People’s Republic of China opens up the EAEU market for business. How can Chinese investors take advantage of it?
- Context: from strategic partnership to legal safeguards
- What is “inside” the Agreement?
- I. Services: only what is expressly permitted is allowed
- II. Investment: everything is allowed unless expressly prohibited
- What guarantees does an investor receive?
- National Treatment (NT) and Most-Favoured-Nation Treatment (MFN)
- Free transfers and repatriation of capital
- Prohibition of performance requirements
- Senior management: prohibition of nationality requirements
- Minimum standard of treatment and protection against expropriation
- Protection of intellectual property (IP)
- Settlement of investment disputes
- Temporary movement of personnel
- How REVERA law group lawyers can assist with entering the EAEU market
- Choosing the most suitable form of presence
- Structuring the investment project
- Obtaining incentives and special regimes
- Construction support
- Structuring relationships with counterparties
- Ongoing legal support
- Dispute resolution
- Contact a lawyer for further infromation
Context: from strategic partnership to legal safeguards
For Chinese companies expanding into Eurasia, Belarus is becoming not merely a separate new market, but also a convenient entry point into the Eurasian Economic Union market, with access to more than 180 million consumers.
There has long been political will for cooperation, including in the format of an “all-weather and comprehensive strategic partnership”.
The next step in updating the legal framework for cooperation was the signing in Minsk, on 22 August 2024, of the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Belarus and the Government of the People’s Republic of China on Trade in Services and Investment. The Agreement entered into force on 1 January 2026.
The new Agreement establishes an updated legal framework. Investors of both parties now benefit from a special bilateral legal regime with specific, treaty-based guarantees binding on both states.
The Agreement provides guarantees of transparent and stable conditions for trade in services and investment, and also creates clearer rules for investors operating in both countries.
The Agreement is the first bilateral treaty of this kind concluded between China and a member state of the Eurasian Economic Union.
Belarus is a member of the EAEU, which means that investment projects implemented in its territory may be viewed by Chinese businesses as part of a broader strategy for entering the regional market.
Combined with the Belt and Road Initiative and Belarus’s status as a key logistics corridor between Europe and Asia, Belarus offers opportunities extending far beyond its own territory.
One of the most notable examples of China–Belarus investment cooperation is the Great Stone Industrial Park. The project has already become one of the largest joint industrial clusters of the two countries and offers investors a special legal regime, tax incentives and developed infrastructure.
The new Agreement complements the existing instruments with broader public international law guarantees for the protection of investments and greater specificity regarding the conditions for trade in services.
What is “inside” the Agreement?
It should be emphasised that the Agreement is an international treaty ratified by both countries.
Under Belarusian law, international treaties take precedence over domestic legislation, except for the Constitution. This means that where Belarusian law contradicts the Agreement, the Agreement prevails. An investor may rely on it directly, including in arbitration proceedings.
By its structure, the Agreement combines two key regulatory areas: bilateral conditions for trade in services and the establishment of a legal regime for investments.
I. Services: only what is expressly permitted is allowed
Access to the services market is regulated on the basis of a positive list: each country has listed in advance the specific sectors it opens to the other party. If a sector is not included in the list, it is closed by default.
Belarus has included more than 100 services sectors in its Schedule: business, legal, audit, IT, financial, construction, hotel, restaurant, tourism, transport and medical services, as well as architectural and engineering services. In many of these sectors, there are no restrictions on the form of presence or the share of capital.
II. Investment: everything is allowed unless expressly prohibited
The investment chapter operates on the reverse principle, namely that of a negative list. Here, everything is permitted unless it is expressly excluded. Both states have set out a limited list of reservations in Annex II.
Number of reservations: China — 23 (including nuclear energy, rare earth metals and fishing in Chinese waters); Belarus — 19 (including subsoil, waters and forests as exclusive state property, as well as the prohibition on foreign ownership of land — only leasehold for up to 99 years is available).
At the same time, Chinese investors in Belarus are guaranteed access to all manufacturing, agricultural and other sectors, except for the reservations expressly listed.
What guarantees does an investor receive?
National Treatment (NT) and Most-Favoured-Nation Treatment (MFN)
Each party is obliged to accord to investors of the other party treatment no less favourable than that accorded to its own investors in like circumstances (NT), as well as treatment no less favourable than that accorded to investors of any third country (MFN).
This means that a Chinese investor implementing a project in Belarus may not be placed in a less favourable position than Belarusian companies or investors from third countries operating in the same sector under like circumstances.
Free transfers and repatriation of capital
Each party must permit all transfers relating to covered investments to be made freely and without delay after tax obligations have been fulfilled.
This applies to capital contributions, dividends, capital gains, interest, royalties, payments under contracts and remuneration of personnel.
Prohibition of performance requirements
The state may not require an investor to achieve a certain level of exports, purchase local raw materials, transfer technologies or production processes, or impose a requirement to supply goods exclusively from the territory of the host party.
Senior management: prohibition of nationality requirements
Neither party may require persons of a particular nationality to be appointed to senior positions. This means that a Chinese company may appoint its own managers and executives to a Belarusian subsidiary without any restrictions based on nationality.
Minimum standard of treatment and protection against expropriation
Investments are guaranteed fair and equitable treatment. Expropriation is permitted only subject to four conditions: it must be in the public interest, on a non-discriminatory basis, against payment of full market compensation without delay, and in accordance with due process of law.
Protection of intellectual property (IP)
Chapter VII of the Agreement is devoted to cooperation in the field of intellectual property. The parties reaffirm their obligations under the existing EAEU–China Agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation (2018) in respect of IP. The parties exchange information on changes in legislation and designate contact points.
Settlement of investment disputes
If a dispute between an investor and a state is not resolved through negotiations within 180 days, the investor is entitled to submit it to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), to arbitration under the UNCITRAL Rules, or, by agreement with the respondent, to another arbitral forum.
The scope of the claim covers breaches of national treatment, MFN, the minimum standard of treatment, guarantees of free transfers and the conditions governing expropriation.
Temporary movement of personnel
The Agreement regulates the conditions for the temporary entry and employment of key personnel: executives, managers and specialists.
The most active investment is expected in manufacturing, logistics, the IT sector, infrastructure and construction.
How REVERA law group lawyers can assist with entering the EAEU market
The Agreement strengthens legal opportunities, but for these opportunities to become a real and functioning project, sound legal support is required.
We help Chinese and international investors through the entire process of entering the Belarusian and EAEU markets.
Choosing the most suitable form of presence
A subsidiary, branch or representative office — the choice depends not only on convenience, but also on tax consequences and the limits of liability. We analyse your business model and propose a structure tailored specifically to your business.
Structuring the investment project
This includes legal support for transactions involving the acquisition of assets or interests, analysis of applicable reservations under the Agreement, and development of a corporate structure taking into account regulatory requirements in Belarus and the EAEU states.
Obtaining incentives and special regimes
The Great Stone Industrial Park and free economic zones offer tax preferences, incentives and simplified administrative procedures. We help determine whether your project qualifies for these regimes and support the process of obtaining resident status.
Construction support
Legal support for construction and infrastructure projects: from structuring the project’s contractual framework through to the resolution of construction disputes.
Structuring relationships with counterparties
A properly drafted contract is an instrument of protection. We draft, or amend existing, investment agreements, contracts with suppliers and contractors, intellectual property licence agreements, and other contractual mechanisms.
Ongoing legal support
We assume the role of your company’s in-house legal department in Belarus, covering all legal issues arising in day-to-day operations.
Dispute resolution
If the matter has moved beyond business negotiations, we are ready to conduct complex pre-trial negotiations, organise the protection of your interests in state courts, and represent the client’s interests in international arbitration.
If you require assistance with entering the Belarusian market, investment support or dispute resolution, REVERA’s international team will be pleased to provide legal assistance. For cooperation enquiries, please contact us.
Author: Sergey Suschenya, Elina Hardziyenka.
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