China Justice Observer

中司观察

EnglishArabicChinese (Simplified)DutchFrenchGermanHindiItalianJapaneseKoreanPortugueseRussianSpanishSwedishHebrewIndonesianVietnameseThaiTurkishMalay

China Amends Legislation Law

Mon, 24 Apr 2023
Categories: China Legal Trends

On 13 Mar. 2023, the National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s legislature, passed the amended Legislation Law.

The Legislation Law provides for the enactment, amendment, and repeal of, among others, laws, administrative regulations, local regulations, autonomous regulations, and separate regulations.

The highlights of this amendment are as follows:

1. Legislative power

Under the previous Legislation Law, the NPC enacts and amends basic laws governing criminal offences, civil affairs, state authorities, and other matters. The NPC Standing Committee enacts other laws and may amend these basic laws.

The amended Legislation Law additionally stipulates that the NPC may also authorize the NPC Standing Committee to enact relevant laws.

2. Number of deliberations

Under the previous Legislation Law, legislative bills to be deliberated by the NPC Standing Committee shall be put to vote after deliberations at two sessions. However, a legislative bill may be put to vote after deliberation at one session if various parties have a consensus on the bill and it concerns the simple adjustment of certain matters or partial amendments to a law.

The amended Law additionally stipulates that legislative bills to be deliberated by the NPC Standing Committee may also be put to vote after deliberation at one session of the Standing Committee in case of emergency.

3. Focus of legislation

The amended Law clarifies that the NPC will focus on the legislation in key, emerging, and foreign-related fields.

 

 

Cover Photo by YunFengQ on Unsplash

Contributors: CJO Staff Contributors Team

Save as PDF

Related laws on China Laws Portal

You might also like

China Enacts Landmark Private Economy Promotion Law

China enacted its landmark first Private Economy Promotion Law, effective May 20, 2025, to guarantee fair competition, streamline market access via a unified negative list, and bolster private enterprises through financing, innovation, and service support.

China Strengthens Criminal IP Protection with New Rules

In April 2025, China’s top court and procuratorate jointly issued a new judicial interpretation to clarify standards for handling criminal intellectual property infringement cases, aiming to strengthen IP protection, particularly in the service sector.

SPC’s 2024 Typical IP Cases Include AI Face-Swap Ruling

In April 2025, China’s Supreme People’s Court released eight typical IP cases, highlighting judicial responses to emerging issues in AI, gaming, and biotech, including a landmark ruling on AI face-swapping copyright infringement.

China Eases Tax Refunds to Boost Inbound Tourist Spending

In 2025, China has lowered its departure tax refund threshold from 500 RMB to 200 RMB and doubled cash refund limits to 20,000 RMB while expanding eligible stores and streamlining processes, aiming to boost inbound tourism spending and promote Chinese products.

Chinese Courts Bolster Pregnant Workers' Rights Protection

In April 2025, China's Ministry of Human Resources and Supreme People's Court released typical labor dispute cases emphasizing stronger protection of pregnant employees' rights, including a case where unlawful job reassignment and salary reduction were ruled illegal.

China Revises Marriage Registration Regulation

China's revised marriage registration rules, effective May 2025, eliminate location restrictions, simplify procedures by removing hukou requirements, and align divorce processes with the Civil Code's cooling-off period.

China’s SPC Issues Foreign State Immunity Case Guidelines

In March 2025, China's Supreme People's Court (SPC) issued procedural guidelines for handling civil cases involving foreign state immunity, implementing the country's shift from absolute to restrictive immunity under the new Foreign State Immunity Law.