As we bid farewell to 2025, we reflect on the work of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and of this publication over the past year.
Continue reading “Year in Review: The NPC and This Observer in 2025″Taige Hu
Taige Hu has been the deputy manager of NPC Observer since July 2019. He was a research assistant from August 2018 to June 2019. He holds an LL.M. degree from the Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge, and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the City University of Hong Kong.
Chinese Legislature Seeks Public Comment on 8 Bills: Environmental Code, Ethnic Unity, Childcare, Antarctic Affairs, Banking Regulation, Trademark & More
China’s national legislature, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPCSC), is soliciting public comment on the following eight bills. The consultation period will end on February 9, 2026 for the draft revision to the Trademark Law and on January 25, 2026 for the other bills.
| Draft Name | Chinese Text | Explanatory Document |
|---|---|---|
| Ecological and Environmental Code (3rd Draft) 生态环境法典草案三次审议稿 | ||
| Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress (2nd Draft) 民族团结进步促进法草案二次审议稿 | PDF · 🆚 | |
| Law on National Development Plans (3rd Draft) 国家发展规划法草案三次审议稿 | PDF · 🆚 | |
| State-Owned Assets Law (Draft) 国有资产法草案 | ||
| Childcare Service Law (Draft) 托育服务法草案 | ||
| Antarctic Activities and Environmental Protection Law (Draft) 南极活动与环境保护法草案 | ||
| Banking Supervision and Administration Law (Draft Revision) 银行业监督管理法修订草案 | PDF 🆚 | |
| Trademark Law (Draft Revision) 商标法修订草案 | PDF 🆚 (English) |
English translations will be provided if available. All explanatory documents are in Chinese and compiled in a single PDF; the links above will take you to the corresponding pages in the PDF.
Continue reading “Chinese Legislature Seeks Public Comment on 8 Bills: Environmental Code, Ethnic Unity, Childcare, Antarctic Affairs, Banking Regulation, Trademark & More”Chinese Legislature Seeks Public Comment on 10 Bills: Community Governance, Social Welfare, Public Health Emergency, Food Safety, Civil Aviation & More
China’s national legislature, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPCSC), is soliciting public comment on the following ten bills through July 26, 2025.
| Draft Name | Chinese Text | Explanatory Document |
|---|---|---|
| Public Health Emergency Response Law (2nd Draft) 突发公共卫生事件应对法草案二次审议稿 | ||
| Maritime Law (2nd Draft Revision) 海商法修订草案二次审议稿 | ||
| Law on Publicity and Education on the Rule of Law (2nd Draft) 法治宣传教育法草案二次审议稿 | ||
| Fisheries Law (2nd Draft Revision) 渔业法修订草案二次审议稿 | ||
| Civil Aviation Law (2nd Draft Revision) 民用航空法修订草案二次审议稿 | ||
| Villagers’ Committees Organic Law (Draft Amendment) 村民委员会组织法修正草案 | PDF 🆚 | |
| Urban Residents’ Committees Organic Law (Draft Revision) 城市居民委员会组织法修订草案 | PDF 🆚 | |
| Social Assistance Law (Draft) 社会救助法草案 | ||
| Healthcare Security Law (Draft) 医疗保障法草案 | ||
| Food Safety Law (Draft Amendment) 食品安全法修正草案 | PDF 🆚 |
English translations will be provided if available. All explanatory documents are in Chinese and compiled in a single PDF; the links above will take you to the corresponding pages in the PDF only if you use a desktop browser—this does not work on a phone or a tablet.
Continue reading “Chinese Legislature Seeks Public Comment on 10 Bills: Community Governance, Social Welfare, Public Health Emergency, Food Safety, Civil Aviation & More”NPCSC Session Watch: Public-Order Offenses, Unfair Competition, Community Governance, Social Welfare, Food Safety & Law Propaganda
UPDATE (June 27, 2025): On June 27, the NPCSC approved revisions to the Public Security Administration Punishments Law (effective Jan. 1, 2026) and to the Anti–Unfair Competition Law (effective Oct. 15, 2025). It also removed Miao Hua as a member of the PRC Central Military Commission and ratified the Convention on the Establishment of the International Organization for Mediation, among the other actions taken.
China’s top legislature, the 14th NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC), will convene for its sixteenth session from June 24 to 27, the Council of Chairpersons decided on Monday, June 16. According to the Council’s proposed agenda, the session will consider twelve legislative bills, hear three oversight reports, and ratify the Convention on the Establishment of the International Organization for Mediation—which China signed on May 30 as a founding member. As usual, we preview the session’s legislative agenda in detail below.
Continue reading “NPCSC Session Watch: Public-Order Offenses, Unfair Competition, Community Governance, Social Welfare, Food Safety & Law Propaganda”China’s National Legislature Releases 2025 Legislative Plan
On Wednesday, May 14, China’s national legislature, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPCSC), released its legislative work plan for 2025 (Plan). The Plan was preliminarily approved by the Council of Chairpersons in December 2024 and finalized on April 18. It sets forth priorities for all aspects of the NPCSC’s legislative work in 2025, which include a list of legislative projects slated for review or research this year. Other aspects of the NPCSC’s legislative work include conducting constitutional review of draft laws, improving legislative procedure, raising public awareness of the NPC’s legislative activities, and offering guidance to local people’s congresses. As usual, we will focus on the list of legislative projects in this post.
Continue reading “China’s National Legislature Releases 2025 Legislative Plan”NPCSC Session Watch: Environmental Code, Private Sector Promotion, Arbitration, Enforcement of Prison Sentences & National Development Planning
UPDATE (Apr. 30, 2025): On April 30, the NPCSC approved the Private Economy Promotion Law (effective May 20, 2025); revised the Law on the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases (effective Sept. 1, 2025); and adopted a decision authorizing the State Council to temporarily modify a provision of the Seed Law in the Xinjiang Pilot Free Trade Zone (effective May 1, 2025).
China’s top legislature, the 14th NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC), will convene for its fifteenth session from April 27 to 30, the Council of Chairpersons decided on Friday, April 18. According to the Council’s proposed agenda, the session will consider eight legislative bills, which we preview below. The Council also approved the NPCSC’s 2025 work priorities as well as 2025 plans for legislative, oversight, delegates-related, and foreign-affairs work. We expect all but the foreign-affairs work plan to be released after the upcoming session, likely in early May.
Continue reading “NPCSC Session Watch: Environmental Code, Private Sector Promotion, Arbitration, Enforcement of Prison Sentences & National Development Planning”NPC 2025: Agenda and Daily Schedule
China’s National People’s Congress (NPC) has released its 2025 session’s agenda and daily schedule of meetings, as well as a preliminary schedule of press events during the session. This year’s session will open on the morning of March 5 and close on the afternoon of March 11, lasting seven full days. As the NPC spokesperson announced last year, the Premier will not hold a press conference after this session (or during the remainder of this NPC’s term “absent special circumstances”).
All times below are in China Standard Time (UTC +8:00). For a primer on the NPC and its annual sessions, check out this FAQ.
Continue reading “NPC 2025: Agenda and Daily Schedule”Chinese Legislature Seeks Public Comment on Draft Revision to Civil Aviation Law
China’s national legislature, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPCSC), is soliciting public comment on a draft revision to the Civil Aviation Law [民用航空法] through March 26, 2025. The draft is available in PDF here and an explanatory document here. An English translation will be provided if and when available.
The NPCSC also reviewed the second draft of the Private Economy Promotion Law [民营经济促进法] at this week’s session, but did not release it for public comment today. The legislature may be revising that draft based on lawmakers’ feedback this week and could release an updated version for public comment later. Or it may have decided to forego another round of public consultation in hopes of passing the law quickly. We will publish a separate post should a new draft become available.
To submit comment online, please refer to this guide. Comments can also be mailed to the NPCSC Legislative Affairs Commission [全国人大常委会法制工作委员会] at the following address:
北京市西城区前门西大街1号 邮编: 100805
1 West Qianmen Avenue, Xicheng District, Beijing 100805
Please clearly write “民用航空法修订草案征求意见” on the envelope.
Year in Review: The NPC and the Observer in 2024
As we bid farewell to 2024, we reflect on the work of the National People’s Congress and of this publication over the past year.
Continue reading “Year in Review: The NPC and the Observer in 2024”NPCSC Session Watch: VAT, Anti-Corruption, Private Sector Promotion, Law Propaganda & Unfair Competition
UPDATE (Dec. 26, 2024): On December 25, the NPCSC approved the Value-Added Tax Law (effective Jan. 1, 2026); amended the Supervision Law (effective June 1, 2025); and revised the Science and Technology Popularization Law (effective immediately).
China’s top legislature, the 14th NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC), will convene for its thirteenth session from December 21 to 25, the Council of Chairpersons decided on Friday, December 13. The Council proposed an agenda with ten legislative bills and several reports that might be of interest, which we preview below. It also approved the NPCSC’s 2025 work priorities as well as 2025 plans for legislative, oversight, delegates-related, and foreign affairs work; these documents will be finalized next April, and at least the first four will be publicly released thereafter.
Continue reading “NPCSC Session Watch: VAT, Anti-Corruption, Private Sector Promotion, Law Propaganda & Unfair Competition”