BEIJING, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- China and Austria signed the China-Austria social security agreement earlier this month, a move aimed at resolving the issue of dual social insurance contributions for companies and employees from the two countries operating or working in each other's territory, China's Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said on Saturday.
Social security is a basic institutional safeguard for improving people's livelihoods, upholding social fairness and enhancing public well-being. In line with international practice, most countries require foreign workers employed in their territory to participate in their social insurance systems and make contributions.
As economic globalization deepens, cross-border corporate investment and labor mobility have become increasingly frequent, and multinational companies and workers may face dual social insurance contributions in both the home country and the host country.
A common international approach is to negotiate bilateral or multilateral social security agreements based on the principles of reciprocity, mutual benefit and cooperation.
Such agreements specify that individuals already covered by social insurance in one contracting country and meeting relevant conditions may be exempted, within a specified period, from paying corresponding social insurance contributions in the other contracting country where they work.
In recent years, China-Austria economic and trade cooperation has become increasingly close, and mutual investment and personnel exchanges have continued to grow. After technical consultations and formal negotiations, the two sides reached a consensus on the text and signed the agreement on Nov. 6.
The agreement consists of 19 articles and addresses the issue of dual social insurance contributions for investing companies and workers from the two countries.
This year marks the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Austria. The signing of the agreement this month will further promote economic and social development and improve people's well-being in both countries, and help advance the Global Development Initiative and high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.
In 2025, China-Austria trade in goods totaled about 12.5 billion U.S. dollars, and China is Austria's third-largest trading partner.
By the end of last year, two-way investment exceeded 4 billion dollars, with more than 650 Austrian companies investing in China and over 50 Chinese companies investing in Austria.
China is accelerating its integration into global industrial and supply chains, with more than 560,000 foreign-invested enterprises already established in the country. Its outbound investment and cooperation continue to grow, with 58,000 overseas direct investment enterprises established as of the end of 2025. As the number of multinational companies and workers continues to rise, the importance of signing social security agreements with relevant countries is becoming increasingly prominent.
In addition to Austria, China has formally signed bilateral social security agreements with 13 other countries since 2001, namely Germany, the Republic of Korea, Denmark, Finland, Canada, Switzerland, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Luxembourg, Japan, Serbia and Kyrgyzstan.
Going forward, China will continue negotiations with developed countries and expand these efforts to more Belt and Road countries and neighboring countries to promote high-quality economic and social development, the ministry added. ■
