The Shanghai Municipal Commission of Science and Technology has released implementation rules on the management of service institutions participating in the science and technology innovation voucher initiative.

The city aims to stimulate innovation among small and medium-sized enterprises and promote high-quality development of the tech services sector through the initiative.

The implementation rules will be effective from Feb 28, 2026, through Aug 31, 2030. Key points include:

Eligible entities

These rules apply to service institutions that have joined the Shanghai Municipal Intelligent Work Platform for Science and Technology Innovation Vouchers.

Basic entry requirements

Institutions providing professional services on the innovation voucher platform must meet the following requirements:

1. Be a legal entity or unincorporated organization.

2. Have been in normal operation for more than two years, have a fixed place for service, possess a professional service team and capabilities, and have clearly defined service content, standards, fees, and a normative financial system.

3. Comply with management requirements for scientific research integrity.

Entry process

Service institutions join the innovation voucher platform through a "no-application" self-evaluation method, following these steps:

1. Institutions should log into the innovation voucher platform, conduct self-evaluation, fill in information, and upload materials.

2. The platform verifies institutions' credit, basic conditions, and service qualifications.

3. Upon passing verification, institutions' information is publicized on the platform for review for seven days.

4. If there are no objections during the public notice period, the institutions can join the platform.

5. Institutions can publish service product information on the platform. Each institution can publish multiple categories of service products based on their service capabilities.

Service operations

Service institutions already on the platform should carry out the following tasks:

1. Pay attention to and respond to service needs of enterprises (teams), promptly undertake innovation voucher service orders, and provide genuine, standardized, high-quality professional services.

2. Establish and improve internal management systems and service standards for innovation voucher services, continuously enhancing service capabilities and levels.

3. Update institution introductions, service qualifications, service products, and fee standards at least once a year, ensuring they are true, accurate, and reasonable.

4. Maintain complete records of service contracts, receipts, outcomes related to innovation voucher orders, and actively cooperate with relevant reviews, supervision, inspections, and comprehensive evaluations.

Evaluation system

A comprehensive evaluation is conducted every year by the municipal innovation voucher management center for service institutions that have joined the innovation voucher platform for at least two years, with assessments categorized by service types.

Evaluation content

Evaluation content includes service capability, service quality, service frequency, internal control system, activity level, integrity, and user feedback. Comprehensive evaluation indicators are developed and continuously optimized based on these criteria.

Evaluation process

The comprehensive evaluation is organized as follows:

1. In the first quarter of each year, a comprehensive evaluation work notice is published on the innovation voucher platform, listing service institutions within the evaluation scope, and notifying these institutions via internal messages on the Government Online-Offline Shanghai e-government platform, as well as SMS.

2. The innovation voucher platform retrieves backend data according to evaluation indicators, verifies each indicator, and calculates evaluation scores.

3. The innovation voucher management center reviews the scores and randomly selects one to five users from each institution for satisfaction review. Institutions may be asked to provide supplementary materials or accept on-site inspections as required.

4. Comprehensive evaluation results are formed based on the review.

5. Results are publicly announced on the innovation voucher platform for seven days, opening to dissent.

6. The innovation voucher management center submits the final evaluation results to the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Science and Technology for record-filing, and publishes them on the innovation voucher platform.

Evaluation results

Evaluation results are categorized by service types and divided into four grades proportionally: Excellent, Good, Qualified, and Unqualified, based on the number of service institutions participating in the evaluation.

Institutions rated as Excellent or Good receive rewards and are displayed on the innovation voucher platform. Qualified institutions receive suggestions for optimization and special training to enhance service quality. Unqualified institutions receive suggestions for improvement, and are subject to "dynamic adjustments".

For institutions offering services in multiple categories, the highest category score is used for ranking, and rewards are not duplicated. Institutions that have received municipal incentive funding for sharing large scientific instruments within the evaluation period are not eligible for similar rewards.

Dynamic adjustments

The Shanghai Municipal Commission of Science and Technology implements the following dynamic adjustment measures based on daily management, comprehensive evaluation, supervision, and inspection:

1. Rectification within a time limit: Service institutions failing to update information as required, not responding to service orders over an extended period of time without valid reasons, or rated as Unqualified in evaluation, must complete rectification within the specified time frame.

2. Service suspension: Institutions that fail to complete rectification within the specific time or whose rectification is unsatisfactory will have their platform service permissions suspended, which can be restored after rectification.

3. Removal: Institutions will be removed from the innovation voucher platform if they provide false materials, engage in fraudulent or deceptive practices, misuse innovation voucher funding, no longer meet basic entry requirements, refuse to cooperate with supervision or inspections, or fail to update information and have no orders for over three years. Institutions bear responsibility for any order termination or service breaches resulting from service suspension or qualification removal.

Usage norms

Service institutions must adhere to innovation voucher usage norms and must not engage in the following practices:

1. Fraudulent practices: Including but not limited to forging service contracts, falsifying service records, fabricating test results, or inflating service amounts.

2. Related-party transactions: Transactions between service institutions and enterprises (teams) with direct control or management relationships that do not meet the principles of independence and fairness.

3. Service subcontracting: Transferring service orders to third parties.

Supervision and inspection

Service institutions must cooperate with supervision and inspection organized by the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Science and Technology and the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Finance. Institutions refusing to cooperate or found engaging in fraudulent practices, related-party transactions, or service subcontracting will not receive payments, or will have payments retrieved. Related entities and individuals will be put on a credit blacklist, and in serious cases held to account according to the law.

 

Source: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Science and Technology

Note: The English text is for reference only. In case of any discrepancies, the Chinese version shall prevail.