Published by ChinaMNC · Dengfeng

Zhengzhou's New Positive-Optimization List for Detailed Urban Planning: What Foreign Founders Need to Know

Zhengzhou has issued a Positive-Optimization List for detailed urban planning that lets certain land-use changes and planning adjustments skip the standard amendment process. For foreign founders, this affects how quickly industrial, logistics, and commercial sites can be repurposed for new projects.

Quick Takeaway for Foreign Founders

Zhengzhou has introduced a Positive-Optimization List (Trial) for detailed urban planning. The core mechanism is a classified handling system: matters on the list skip the detailed planning amendment procedure, while matters off the list still follow the standard procedure. For a foreign founder setting up or expanding a company in Zhengzhou, this matters mainly when your project involves securing or repurposing land for industrial, logistics, commercial, or public-service uses inside the urban development boundary.

The list was drafted by the Municipal Resource and Planning Bureau starting in February 2026, went through public consultation and expert review, was approved by the 87th executive meeting of the municipal government on September 1, 2026, and was issued on September 29, 2026 in the name of the municipal government.

Why This Policy Exists

The Ministry of Natural Resources and the Henan Provincial Department of Natural Resources have issued documents clarifying different situations for detailed planning approval and adjustment, and introduced the concept of a positive list for use conversion to simplify amendment procedures. Zhengzhou's list implements the Zhengzhou Measures for Optimizing the Implementation and Management of Urban Detailed Planning (Trial) and supports urban renewal, industrial upgrading, and livelihood projects.

For founders, the practical effect is that certain site-level changes can be processed using an "original detailed plan + positive-optimization list + plot plan (or linear facility optimization drawing)" package as the basis for planning and land formalities, rather than going through a full plan amendment. This can shorten the planning step for eligible projects.

Where the List Applies

The list applies to detailed planning and linear-facility detailed planning within the urban development boundary of Zhengzhou's main urban area, which covers the five inner districts and the development zones. Counties (cities), Shangjie District, and the Airport Economy Zone may refer to it.

What this means for registration: if you are choosing a site for a factory, warehouse, or commercial project, confirm early whether the plot sits inside the main urban area's urban development boundary and whether your intended use falls within the listed scenarios. Outside those areas, the list is only a reference, so local procedures may differ.

Land-Use Conversion: What Can Change Without Amendment

Industrial land. Subject to industrial policy compliance, land may be converted among new-type industrial, small and micro enterprise park, new-type industrial, Class I industrial, Class I logistics and warehousing, Class II industrial, and Class II logistics and warehousing uses.

Residential land. Urban residential land may be converted to community service facility land.

Public-service and commercial land. Among culture, education, sports, medical and health, commercial, business and finance, and entertainment uses, conversion toward public-welfare public-service uses is permitted.

The list also clarifies the basis for land classification. Industrial land must align with the city's dedicated policies for industrial and new-type industrial land. Other uses exclude nuisance-type uses such as wholesale markets, fuel and gas stations, and infectious disease hospitals.

For a foreign founder, this is relevant if your business plan depends on converting an existing industrial or commercial site. The conversion path is simpler, but the underlying industrial-policy fit and the exclusion of nuisance uses still need to be checked before signing a lease or land contract.

Mixed Land Use

The list defines compatible mixed functions for urban residential, government and institutional, cultural, commercial, business and finance, entertainment, industrial, and logistics and warehousing land. For example, urban residential land may mix cultural, sports, and park green space functions. The dominant use must account for more than 50% of the floor area ratio (FAR) calculation, core indicators must be preserved, and applicable standards must be met without negative impacts. Industrial and logistics land support mixing of the same type of logistics and industrial functions.

Practical implication: mixed-use sites can support a combined office, light industrial, and service footprint, but the dominant-use threshold means the primary use should be clearly established in your project documents.

Planning Control Indicators

The list sets optimization scenarios with constraints on standards, safety, sunlight, and urban design for:

• FAR and building density for industrial and logistics and warehousing land;
• Building height for commercial, business and entertainment land and for public administration and public-service land, with an adjustment range of no more than 10% of the original plan;
• Minor building-height adjustments for urban residential land where FAR, building density, and green space ratio remain unchanged;
• FAR and building-height adjustments for municipal utility land.

For founders, these are the technical parameters that often determine whether a proposed facility fits a site. If your design needs a height or density change, check whether it falls within these listed scenarios before assuming a plan amendment is required.

Linear Facilities

The list covers roads, pipelines, and rail transit:

• Roads: local alignment optimization, channelization adjustment, and cross-section optimization without changing red-line width, road grade, or lane scale.
• Pipelines: adjustment of position, diameter, slope, and elevation for local sections or nodes without changing the rainwater and sewage upstream and downstream systems or other pipeline layouts.
• Rail transit: adjustment of passages, entrances and exits, elevator shafts, ventilation pavilions, air ducts, cooling towers, fire water tanks, and other ancillary facilities for stations and sections, provided there is no negative impact on surrounding land.

Definitions and Documentation

The list defines terms including linear-facility detailed planning, detailed planning adjustment, plot plan, and linear-facility optimization drawing, to unify concepts for practical operations. Clearer definitions can reduce back-and-forth with planning authorities when preparing application materials.

How This Connects to Company Registration

This policy does not change company registration rules, capital requirements, or tax obligations. It affects the site and planning side of setting up operations: whether a chosen location can be used for your intended activity, how quickly a use conversion can be processed, and what planning documents you will need. Foreign founders should coordinate site selection and planning checks with their registration and compliance work rather than treating them as separate steps.

This summary is based on information published by the relevant Chinese government website and is general information, not legal or tax advice.

Foreign founders who need help registering and operating a company in China can contact ChinaMNC on WhatsApp or WeChat at +86 153 1898 8535.