Administrative Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China (Revised in 2017)

Order of the President of the People's Republic of China No. 71

June 27, 2017

(Passed on April 4, 1989 by the 2nd Session of the 7th National People's Congress, and amended for the first time according to the Decision on Revising the Administrative Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China at the 11th Session of the Standing Committee of the 12th National People's Congress on November 1, 2014, and amended for the second time according to the Decision on Revising the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China and the Administrative Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China at the 28th Session of the Standing Committee of the 12th National People's Congress on June 27, 2017.)

Table of Contents
Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II Scope of Case Which May Be Accepted
Chapter III Jurisdiction
Chapter IV Parties
Chapter V Evidence
Chapter VI Institution and Acceptance of Proceedings
Chapter VII Trial and Adjudication
Section 1 General Provisions
Section 2 Ordinary Procedure at First Instance
Section 3 Summary Procedure
Section 4 Procedure at Second Instance
Section 5 Procedure for Trial Supervision
Chapter VIII Enforcement
Chapter IX Foreign-related Administrative Litigation
Chapter X Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1 The Administrative Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the "Law") is enacted on the basis of the Constitution in order to ensure the impartial and timely hearing of administrative cases and settlement of administrative disputes by people's courts, to protect the legitimate rights and interests of citizens, legal persons and other organizations and to supervise the exercise of functions in accordance with the law by administrative organs.

Article 2 Where citizens, legal persons or other organizations which consider that administrative acts of administrative organs or their personnel have infringed their legitimate rights and interests, they shall have the right to institute proceedings in people's courts according to this Law.
For the purpose of the preceding paragraph, administrative acts include administrative acts made by the organizations empowered by laws, regulations, and rules.

Article 3 A people's court shall guarantee the rights of citizens, legal persons and other organizations to file a lawsuit and shall accept an administrative case that shall be accepted in accordance with the law.
Administrative organs and their personnel shall not intervene or hamper the acceptance of administrative cases by a people's court.
The responsible person of the administrative organ being sued shall appear in court. If he fails to appear in court, he shall appoint the corresponding personnel of the administration organ to appear in court.

Article 4 People's Courts shall exercise their power to hear and adjudicate administrative cases independently and according to the law and shall be free from interference by administrative organs, social organizations and individuals.
People's courts shall establish administrative tribunals to hear administrative cases.

Article 5 People's courts shall hear administrative cases based on the facts of such cases and in accordance with the law.

Article 6 In hearing administrative cases, people's courts shall examine the lawfulness of administrative acts.

Article 7 In hearing administrative cases, people's courts shall implement a collegiate system, a challenge system, a system of public hearings and a system of the court of second instance being the court of last instance according to the law.

Article 8 Parties to administrative proceedings shall be equal in legal status.

Article 9 Citizens of all ethnic groups shall have the right to institute administrative proceedings in the languages and scripts of their own ethnic groups.
People's courts in regions which are inhabited by ethnic minorities or which are inhabited by more than one ethnic groups shall hear and adjudicate cases and issue legal documents in the languages and scripts in common use by the local ethnic groups.
People's courts shall provide translations for those litigants who do not have a good command of the languages and scripts in common use by local ethnic groups.

Article 10 Parties shall have the right to argue their cases during administrative proceedings.

Article 11 People's procuratorates shall have the right to exercise legal supervision over administrative proceedings.

Chapter II Scope of Cases Which May Be Accepted

Article 12 A people's court shall accept the following types of proceedings instituted by citizens, legal persons or other organizations that:
1. are dissatisfied with an administrative penalty such as administrative detention, suspension or revocation of a permit or license, an order to suspend production or business activities, confiscation of illegal gains or property, imposition of a fine and warning;
2. are dissatisfied with an administrative coercive measure or administrative execution such as restriction of personal freedom or sealing up, seizing or freezing property;
3. in case of an application for administrative licensing, are dissatisfied with the administrative organs' refusal to accept or failure to respond to the application within a legal time limit, or with other decisions made by the administrative organs on administrative licensing;
4. are dissatisfied with the decisions made by the administrative organs on the ownerships or use rights of land, mineral resources, water, forests, mountain ridges, prairies, wastelands, intertidal zones, sea areas and other natural resources;
5. are dissatisfied with the decisions on expropriation, requisition and compensation therefor;
6. in case of an application for performance of the statutory duties to protect the personal right and property right as well as other legitimate rights and interests by the administrative organs, are dissatisfied with the administrative organs' refusal to perform or failure to respond to the application;
7. consider that the administrative organs have infringed their autonomy in management or rural land contractual management right and rural land management right;
8. consider that the administrative organs abuse administrative powers to eliminate or limit competition;
9. consider that the administrative organs raise funds, amortize expenses or require them to perform other obligations in an illegal way;
10. consider that the administrative organs fail to pay pensions, the subsistence allowances or social insurance benefits in accordance with the law;
11. consider that the administrative organs fail to perform in accordance with the law or the agreement, or illegally change or terminate government franchise agreements, agreements on land and house expropriation and compensation and other agreements; or
12. consider that the administrative organs have infringed other legitimate rights and interests such as personal rights and property rights.
In addition to the provisions in the preceding paragraph, people's courts may accept other administrative cases for which proceedings may be instituted under laws and regulations.

Article 13 People's courts shall not accept the proceedings instituted by citizens, legal persons or other organizations for the following matters:
1. State actions involving national defense or diplomacy;
2. administrative laws and regulations, or universally binding decisions or orders formulated and promulgated by administrative organs;
3. decisions of administrative organs to reward, punish, appoint or dismiss personnel of administrative organs; or
4. administrative acts for which the law provides that final adjudication is to be conducted by administrative organs.

Chapter III Jurisdiction

Article 14 People's courts at the grass-roots level shall have jurisdiction over the administrative cases of first instance.

Article 15 Intermediate people's courts shall have jurisdiction over the following administrative cases of first instance:
1. proceedings instituted against the administrative acts of any department under the State Council or the people's government at county level or above;
2. cases handled by the customs;
3. major and complicated cases which arise in their area of jurisdiction; and
4. other cases under the jurisdiction of the intermediate people's court as specified by law.

Article 16 Higher people's courts shall have jurisdiction as courts of first instance over major and complicated cases which arise in their areas of jurisdiction.

Article 17 The Supreme People's Court shall have jurisdiction as the court of first instance over major and complicated cases arising throughout the country.

Article 18 Jurisdiction over administrative cases shall be exercised by the people's court at the place where the administrative organ which originally performed the administrative act (from which the case arose) is located. For cases which have been reconsidered, jurisdiction over such cases may be exercised by the people's court at the place where such reconsideration organ is located.
Upon the approval of the Supreme People's Court, a higher people's court may, according to the actual situation of the trial, determine several people's courts to have cross-regional jurisdiction over administrative cases.

Article 19 Jurisdiction over cases arising from dissatisfaction with administrative orders which restrict personal freedom shall be exercised by the people's court at the place of residence of the defendant or plaintiff.

Article 20 Jurisdiction over administrative litigation involving real property shall be exercised by the people's court at the place where the real property is located.

Article 21 Where two or more people's courts have jurisdiction over a case, the plaintiff may institute proceedings in either or any one of such people's courts. Where the plaintiff institutes proceedings in two or more people's courts with jurisdiction, the people's court that first places the case on its trial docket shall have jurisdiction.

Article 22 Where a people's court discovers that a case which it has accepted does not fall within its jurisdiction, such people's court shall transfer the case to a people's court which has jurisdiction over the case. The people's court to which a case has been transferred shall accept the case. In the case that the people's court to which a case has been transferred considers the case transferred is not under its jurisdiction in accordance with the relevant provisions, it shall apply to a higher-level people's court for designation of jurisdiction and shall not retransfer such case on its own initiative.

Article 23 Where, due to special reasons, a people's court which has jurisdiction cannot exercise such jurisdiction, jurisdiction shall be designated by a higher-level people's court.
A dispute between people's courts over jurisdiction shall be resolved through consultation between the parties to the dispute. Where the dispute cannot be resolved through consultation, such dispute shall be submitted to a people's court which is a higher-level people's court to the parties to the dispute for designation of jurisdiction.

Article 24 Higher-level people's courts shall have the power to hear administrative cases of first instance which are within the jurisdiction of lower-level people's courts.
Where a lower-level people's court considers that an administrative case of first instance within its jurisdiction shall be tried by or subject to a jurisdiction designated by a higher-level people's court, the lower-level people's court may report the case to a higher-level people's court for decision.

Chapter IV Parties

Article 25 The concerned person to an administrative act and other citizens, legal persons or other organizations that have an interest in the administrative act are entitled to institute proceedings.
Where a citizen who has the right to institute proceedings dies, his close relatives may institute proceedings.
Where legal person or other organizations which have the right to institute proceedings are terminated, the legal persons or other organizations which succeed to their rights may institute proceedings.
Where the people's procuratorate finds that administrative organs responsible for the supervision and management of such areas as the ecological environment and resources protection, food and drug safety, state-owned assets protection and grant of land use rights for state-owned land perform duties unlawfully or omit to perform duties, infringing upon the national or public interests, it may institute a procuratorial proposal to the administrative authority to urge such authority to perform its duty in accordance with the law. If such administrative authority fails to perform its duty in accordance with the law, the people's procuratorate shall institute a lawsuit to the people's court.

Article 26 Defendants shall be the administrative organs which performed the administrative act (which are the subjects of the proceedings) where citizens, legal persons or other organizations directly institute proceedings in people's courts.
For cases which have been reconsidered, where the reconsideration organ decides to uphold the original decision, the co-defendants shall be the administrative organ which performed the original administrative act and the reconsideration organ. Where the reconsideration organ orders the amendment of the original administrative act, the defendant shall be such reconsideration organ.
Where a reconsideration organ fails to make a reconsideration decision within the statutory period, and citizens, legal persons or other organizations sue the original administrative act, the defendant is the administrative organ which performed the original administrative act; where the reconsideration organ is accused of dereliction of duty, the defendant shall be such reconsideration organ.
Where two or more administrative organs perform the same administrative act, the administrative organs which jointly performed the administrative act shall be co-defendants.
Where the administrative act is performed by an organization entrusted by an administrative organ, such organ shall be the defendant.
Where an administrative organ is dissolved or its functions and powers are changed, the administrative organ which continues to exercise the original organ's functions and powers shall be the defendant.

Article 27 Administrative cases arising from the same or similar administrative act shall be deemed to be cases of joint litigation where one or both parties (to such cases) consist of two or more persons, the people's court considers that the cases can be jointly heard and the parties concerned agree.

Article 28 In case of joint litigation with one party concerned in large numbers, the party concerned may elect a delegate to engage in the proceeding. The delegate's action shall become legally effective for the party concerned represented by the delegate; however, the delegate shall obtain the consent from the party concerned represented by the delegate for altering and waiving the claims or by admitting the claims of the other party concerned.

Article 29 Citizens, legal persons or other organizations that have an interest in an administrative act against which proceedings are instituted and fail to institute proceedings, or that have an interest in the outcomes of a case, may apply to participate in the proceedings as third parties or may be ordered by people's courts to participate in the proceedings.
A third party who is ruled by a people's court to bear an obligation or have its rights or interests undermined is entitled to institute an appeal in accordance with the law.

Article 30 Where a citizen has no capacity to institute proceedings, his statutory agents shall commence proceedings on his behalf. Where such citizen's statutory agents refuse to act as agent, the people's court shall designate one of the agents to commence proceedings on behalf of the citizen.

Article 31 Parties and statutory agents may entrust one to two agents ad litem.
The following persons may be entrusted as agents ad litem:
1. lawyers and law service providers at the grass-roots level;
2. close relatives or employees of the parties; and
3. citizens recommended by the communities where the parties reside, employers of the parties or the relevant social associations.

Article 32 Lawyers acting as agents ad litem are entitled to gain access to or copy any information relating to the case in question according to the relevant provisions and are entitled to investigate and collect evidence related to the case from organizations and citizens concerned. The confidentiality of information involving state and commercial secrets and individual privacy shall be maintained in accordance with the law.
The parties and other agents ad litem are entitled to gain access to or copy the court trial-related documents concerning the case in question according to the relevant provisions, except for information involving state and commercial secrets and individual privacy.

Chapter V Evidence

Article 33 The evidence shall include:
1. documentary evidence;
2. physical evidence;
3. audio-visual materials;
4. electronic data;
5. testimony of witnesses;
6. statements of parties;
7. expert opinions; and
8. written records of inquests and records made on the scene.
Any of the above-mentioned evidence must be verified by the court before it is taken as a basis for ascertaining a fact.

Article 34 A defendant shall bear the burden of proof in respect of its administrative act, and provide evidence of having performed such administrative act and the normative documents on which such administrative act is based.
Where a defendant fails to provide evidence or provides overdue evidence without justified reasons, it shall be deemed that there is no corresponding evidence. However, if the administrative act against which proceedings are instituted involves the legitimate rights and interests of a third party, the evidence provided by the third party shall be an exception.

Article 35 During the proceedings, the defendant and the agent ad litem thereof shall not collect evidence from the plaintiff, third party or witness(es) at their own initiative.

Article 36 Where the defendant has already collected the evidence before performing an administrative act but is unable to provide it as a result of force majeure or for other legitimate reasons, the defendant may provide the said evidence later upon the approval of the people's court.
Where the plaintiff or the third party presents the reasons or evidence not presented during the administrative handling progress, the defendant may supplement the evidence upon the approval of the people's court.

Article 37 A plaintiff may provide the evidence proving that an administrative act is illegal. Where the evidence provided by the plaintiff is false, the defendant shall not be exempted from the burden of proof.

Article 38 In a case in which the defendant is sued for non-performance of statutory duties, the plaintiff shall offer the evidence proving that it has ever applied to the defendant, unless either of the following circumstances is involved:
1. the defendant shall actively perform the relevant statutory duties in accordance with its functions and powers; or
2. the plaintiff fails to provide the evidence for justified reasons.
In the cases in which an administrative compensation or reimbursement is required, the plaintiff shall provide evidence proving the damages incurred by the administrative act. Where the plaintiff fails to provide the evidence due to reasons attributable to the defendant, the burden of proof shall be borne by the defendant.


Article 39 A people's court is entitled to require the concerned parties to provide or supplement evidence.

Article 40 A people's court is entitled to obtain evidence from the relevant administrative organs and other organizations and citizens. However, it shall not obtain the evidence that was not collected when the defendant performed an administrative act so as to prove the legality of the administrative act.

Article 41 Where the plaintiff or the third party cannot collect the following evidence related to the case on their own, they may apply to the people's court for obtaining the evidence:
1. the evidence that is kept by the State organs and must be obtained by the people's court;
2. the evidence involving state and commercial secrets and individual privacy; and
3. other evidence that cannot be collected on one's own for real objective reasons.

Article 42 Litigants may apply to people's courts for preservation of evidence in circumstances where such evidence might otherwise be destroyed or difficult to be collected subsequently. People's courts may also take the initiative in adopting preservation measures.

Article 43 The evidence shall be presented at the court and cross-examined by concerned parties. The evidence involving state and commercial secrets and individual privacy shall not be presented publicly at the court.
A people's court shall comprehensively and objectively examine and verify the evidence according to the statutory procedures. The reasons why the evidence fails to be admitted shall be explained in the verdict.
The evidence obtained through illegal means shall not serve as the basis on which the facts of the case are affirmed.

Chapter VI Institution and Acceptance of Proceedings

Article 44 Citizens, legal persons or other organizations may first apply to the administrative organ for reconsideration of administrative cases which fall within the scope of administrative adjudication of a people's court. If such citizens, legal persons or other organizations are dissatisfied with the reconsideration decision, they may institute proceedings with a people's court afterwards. Alternatively, they may institute proceedings directly with a people's court.
Where the laws and regulations provide that a party shall first apply to an administrative organ for reconsideration and that a proceeding may be instituted with a people's court only if the party is dissatisfied with the reconsideration decision, such provisions shall apply.

Article 45 Where any citizens, legal persons or other organizations are dissatisfied with the reconsideration decision, they may, within 15 days after receiving the decision, institute proceedings with a people's court. Where reconsideration organs fail to make a decision within the specified period, plaintiffs may institute proceedings with a people's court within 15 days from the date of expiration of the term for reconsideration, except where the law provides otherwise.

Article 46 Citizens, legal persons or other organizations that intend to institute proceedings directly with a people's court shall do so within six months from the date on which they learnt of or should have learnt of the performance of the administrative act in question, except where the law provides otherwise.
Where proceedings are not initiated within 20 years as of the date of performance of the administrative act for cases with the proceedings initiated due to real property or within five years as of the date performance of the administrative act for other cases, the people's court shall not accept such cases.

Article 47 Where citizens, legal persons or other organizations apply to an administrative organ for performance its statutory duties to protect their personal rights, property rights and other legitimate rights and interests and the administrative organ fails to perform its duties within two months as of the date upon receipt of the applications, the citizens, legal persons or other organizations may institute proceedings with a people's court. If there are other laws and regulations that provide for the time limit for performance of duties by the administrative organs, the provisions shall apply.
Where citizens, legal persons or other organizations ask an administrative organ to perform its statutory duties to protect their personal rights, property rights and other legitimate rights and interests under an emergency circumstance and the administrative organ fails to perform its duties, the institution of proceedings shall not be subject to the time limit prescribed in the preceding paragraph.

Article 48 Where citizens, legal persons or other organizations fail to meet the deadline for institution of proceedings due to force majeure or other reasons not attributable to themselves, the delayed time shall not be included in the time limit for institution of proceedings.
Citizens, legal persons or other organizations that fail to meet the deadline for institution f proceedings due to special circumstances other than those mentioned in the preceding paragraph may, within ten days upon removal of the obstacles, apply to a people's court for an extension of the time limit. Whether such application is permitted or not shall be subject to the decision of the people's court.

Article 49 The institution of proceedings shall meet the following conditions:
1. the plaintiff shall be any of citizens, legal persons or other organizations as specified in Article 25 hereof;
2. the defendant shall be identifiable;
3. there shall be specific claims and factual basis for the action; and
4. the case shall fall within the scope of cases which may be heard by the People's Court and the (specific) jurisdiction of the people's court which accepts the case.

Article 50 A statement of claim shall be submitted to a people's court when a proceeding is instituted, and the number of its copies shall be the same as that of defendants.
Where there is actually a difficulty in writing a statement of claim, a proceeding may be instituted in an oral way, and the people's court shall be responsible for making a written record, issuing a written document with the specific date of receipt marked and notifying the other party concerned..

Article 51 A people's court shall register and place the case on its trial docket upon the receipt of a statement of claim meeting the conditions for instituting a proceeding specified herein.
For a case where it cannot decide whether the conditions for instituting a proceeding specified herein are met or not, the people's court shall accept the statement of claim, issue a written document with the date of receipt marked, and decide whether the case shall be placed on its trial docket or not within seven days. For a case not meeting the conditions for placing a case on its trial docket, a verdict shall be made for refusal to place the case on its trial docket. The verdict shall explicitly state the reasons for the refusal. The plaintiff who is unsatisfied with the verdict may file an appeal.
Where a statement of claim is incomplete in terms of its contents or has other errors, the concerned party shall be given guidance and explanation and informed of contents to be supplemented and corrected at one stroke. A people's court shall not refuse to receive a statement of claim in the name of the statement of claim failing to meet the relevant conditions without giving any guidance or explanations.
Where a people's court refuses to accept a statement of claim, or fails to issue a written document after receipt of a statement of claim or fails to inform the concerned parties of the information on the statement of claim to be supplemented and corrected at one stroke, the concerned parties may complain to a higher-level people's court and the higher-level people's court shall order the people's court to make corrections and punish the persons directly in charge or other persons directly responsible.

Article 52 Where a people's court neither places a case on its trial docket nor makes a verdict on refusal to place the case on its trial docket, the concerned party may institute a proceeding with a higher-level people's court. The higher-level people's court that considers the conditions for filing a lawsuit are met may either place the case on its trial docket and try the case or designate another lower-level people's court to do so.

Article 53 Where citizens, legal persons or other organizations consider that the normative documents which are formulated by the departments under the State Council and local people's governments and their departments and on which an administrative act is based are illegal, when instituting a proceeding for the administrative act, they may apply for examination of the normative documents at the same time.
For the purpose of the preceding paragraph, the normative documents exclude rules.

Chapter VII Trial and Adjudication

Section 1 General Provisions

Article 54 People's courts shall hear administrative cases in public, except where state secrets or private affairs of individuals are involved and in cases where the law provides otherwise.
Any case involving business secrets may be heard in camera if a party concerned so requests.


Article 55 Where a party considers that judicial personnel have an interest in the case or are concerned with the case in any other way which might affect the impartiality of the trial, such party shall have the right to request such personnel to withdraw (from the case).
Judicial personnel who consider themselves to have an interest in the case or are otherwise concerned with the case in question shall request their withdrawal.
The provisions of the preceding two paragraphs shall apply to clerks, translators, experts and investigators.
The withdrawal of the president of the court serving as the chief judge shall be decided by the court's adjudication committee. The withdrawal of a member of the judicial personnel shall be decided by the president of the court. The withdrawal of other personnel shall be decided by the chief judge. A party concerned who is dissatisfied with the decision may apply for reconsideration once.

Article 56 The execution of the administrative act shall not be suspended during proceedings, except under any of the following circumstances:
1. where the defendant considers that it is necessary to suspend the act;
2. where the plaintiff or an interested person applies for suspension of the act and the people's court rules that such administrative act shall be suspended as, in the opinion of the people's court, the execution would cause irremediable losses and the suspension of the act would not harm the national interests and public interests;
3. the people's court rules that such administrative act may severely damage the national interests and public interests; and
4. where suspension of execution is required by the provisions of laws or regulations.
If the party concerned is dissatisfied with the ruling on suspension or not suspension, it may apply for reconsideration once.

Article 57 For any case in which a proceeding is instituted against an administrative organ for not paying pensions or subsistence allowances or work-related injury, medical, or social insurance premiums, if the relationships of rights and obligations are definite and no advance enforcement will seriously affect the life of the defendant, the people's court may rule advance enforcement according to the application of the plaintiff.
A party concerned who is dissatisfied with the decision on advance enforcement may apply for reconsideration once, during which enforcement of the ruling will not be suspended.

Article 58 If the plaintiff refuses to appear in court without justified reasons after being summoned by the people's court or leaves the court session halfway without permission of the court, the court may handle the case in the same manner for the withdrawal of a suit. If the defendant refuses to appear in court without justified reasons or leaves the court session halfway without permission of the court, the court may render a judgment by default.

Article 59 If litigants or any other person commits any of the following acts, the people's court may, according to the seriousness of his offence, reprimand him, order him to sign a statement of repentance or impose upon him a fine of not more than CNY10,000 or detain him for not longer than l5 days; if a crime is constituted, his criminal responsibility shall be investigated:
1. delaying or refusing to assist in or obstructing without reason the execution of the notice of a people's court for assistance in investigation and execution by a person who isobliged to render assistance;
2. forging, concealing or destroying evidence or providing false evidential materials to hinder the people's court from hearing a case;
3. instigating, suborning or coercing others to commit perjury, or hindering witnesses from giving testimony;
4. concealing, transferring, selling or destroying the property that has been sealed up, seized or frozen;
5. making the plaintiff withdraw the suit through fraudulent, coercive or other illegal means;
6. hindering the personnel of a people's court from performing their duties through violent, threatening or other means, or disturbing the order of the work of a people's court by creating uproars, rushing at the court or other means; or
7. threatening, insulting, slandering, framing, beating, sieging or retaliating against the judicial personnel or other personnel of the people's court, litigants or personnel who assist in the investigation and execution.
A people's court may impose fines on and detain the major person-in-charge or persons directly responsible of any entity conducting any act set out in the preceding paragraph in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph; if a crime is constituted, such person-in-charge or persons directly responsible shall be prosecuted for their criminal liabilities in accordance with the law.
A fine or detention must be approved by the president of a people's court. Dissatisfied parties may apply to the higher-level people's court for reconsideration once, during which the execution will not be suspended.

Article 60 Mediation shall not be conducted in administrative cases heard by people's courts, except for cases under which administrative compensations or reimbursements are made and administrative organs exercise the discretion stipulated in laws and regulations.
The mediation shall be conducted on the principles of voluntariness and legality and may not prejudice the national interests, public interests and the legitimate rights and interests of others.

Article 61 If a party concerned applies for concurrent settlement of the relevant civil dispute in an administrative litigation involving administrative licensing, registration, collection, expropriation and the ruling for the civil dispute made by the administrative organ, the people's court may hear the case concurrently.
In an administrative proceeding, if the people's court rules that the hearing of the administrative case shall be based on the judgment of the civil litigation, the people's court may award the suspension of administrative proceeding.

Article 62 Where, before the people's court pronounces judgment or gives a ruling, the plaintiff applies for withdrawal of the case, or the defendent alters its administrative act and the plaintiff agrees to such alteration and applies for withdrawal of the case, the people's court shall rule on whether or not to approve such withdrawal.

Article 63 People's courts shall try administrative cases in accordance with laws, administrative regulations and regional legislation. Regional legislation shall apply to administrative cases arising in the region concerned.
Where people's courts try administrative cases in autonomous regions of ethnic groups, they shall also refer to the autonomy regulations and special regulations of the autonomous region of the ethnic group concerned.
When hearing administrative cases, the people's courts shall refer to rules and regulations.

Article 64 If a people's court finds through examination that the normative documents specified in Article 53 hereof are illegal in the course of hearing an administrative case, such documents shall not be taken as the basis on which an administrative act is identified as lawful, and the people's courts shall propose solutions to the organs that formulate the aforesaid normative documents.

Article 65 The people's courts shall disclose any written judgment or order that is effective for reference by the public, except for those involving any national secret, business secret and individual privacy.

Article 66 In the course of hearing an administrative case, where a people's court considers that persons in charge of an administrative organ or persons of an administrative organ who are directly responsible have violated the law or the discipline, the people's court shall transfer the relevant materials to the supervisory organ, such administrative organ or its superior administrative organ; where the court considers that such persons have committed a crime, it shall transfer the relevant materials to the public security and/or the procuratorial organs.
If the defendant refuse to appear in court without justified reasons after being summoned by a people's court or leaves the court session halfway without permission of the court, the people's court may announce the condition that the defendant refuses to appear in court or leaves the court session halfway, and may present judicial proposals to the supervisory organ or the superior administrative organ of the defendant to punish the major person-in-charge of or persons directly responsible for the defendant in accordance with the law.

Section 2 Ordinary Procedure at First Instance

Article 67 A people's court (which places a case on its trial docket) shall send a copy of the statement of claim to the defendant within five days from the date on which the case is placed on its trial docket. The defendant shall, within 15 days from the date of receiving the copy of the statement of claim, submit to the people's court evidence relating to its performance of the administrative act in question and normative documents on which the administrative act in question is based, and submit a statement of defense. The people's court shall send a copy of the statement of defense to the plaintiff within five days from the date of receiving the response.
Failure on the part of the defendant to submit a statement of defense shall not impede the trial by the People's Court.

Article 68 Where people's courts hear administrative cases, collegiate benches shall be formed by judges or by judges and jurors. A collegiate bench shall consist of an odd number of persons, the minimum being three persons.

Article 69 Where the evidence in respect of an administrative act is conclusive, the application of laws and regulations to the act is correct and the statutory procedure is complied with, or the reason for which the plaintiff requires the defendant to fulfill duties or payment obligation is invalid, the people's court shall reject the specific claim of the plaintiff.

Article 70 If an administrative act has been performed in one of the following circumstances, the act shall be annulled or partially annulled by judgment of the people's court, or the defendant may be required by judgment to perform an administrative act anew:
1. where the main evidence (in support of such act) is insufficient;
2. where incorrect laws and regulations are applied;
3. where statutory procedures are violated;
4. where such act is performed beyond the authority;
5. where official powers are abused; or
6. where such act is improper obviously.

Article 71 A defendant which has been ordered by the people's court to perform an administrative act anew may not thereupon perform an administrative act which is basically identical to the original one on the basis of the same facts and reasons.

Article 72 If the people's court finds out the defendant fails to perform its statutory duties after trial, it shall order the defendant to perform such duties within a specified period.

Article 73 If the people's court finds out that the defendant has payment obligation in accordance with the law after trial, it shall order the defendant to perform the payment obligation.

Article 74 If an administrative act has been performed in either of the following circumstances, the people's court shall rule that the administrative act is illegal but shall not be annulled:
1. where the administrative act shall be annulled in accordance with the law, but the annulment may seriously damages national interests and public interests; or
2. where administrative act procedures are slightly illegal but have no actual influence on the rights of the plaintiff.
If an administrative act has been performed in one of the following circumstances, the people's court shall rule that the administrative action is illegal if the administrative act is not required to be annulled or be performed by judgment:
1. where the administrative act is illegal, but there is no content to be annulled;
2. where the defendant changes the original administrative act, but the plaintiff continues to require the confirmation of illegality of the original administrative act; and
3. where the defendant fails to perform or delays the performance of statutory duties, and the ruling on such performance is of no significance.

Article 75 Where an administrative act is performed in significant and obvious illegal circumstances such as the executor having no legal capacity as an administrative subject and lack of basis, and the plaintiff applies for confirming such administrative action as invalid, the people's court shall rule that the administrative act is invalid.

Article 76 When a people's court rules that anadministrative act is illegal or invalid, it may order the defendant to take remedial measures at the same time; if the plaintiff suffers losses, the people's court shall rule the defendant to bear compensation liability in accordance with the law.

Article 77 Where an administrative penalty is manifestly improper, or the confirmation or identification of amounts involved in any other administrative act is incorrect, the people's court may order that such penalty or confirmation or identification act be altered.
Where the people's court orders that such penalty or administrative act be altered, it shall not increase the obligation or undermine the rights and interests of the plaintiff, unless the interested party is also the plaintiff and the claim is opposite.

Article 78 Where the defendant does not perform in accordance with the law, fails to perform as agreed or illegally changes or terminates the agreement specified in Item 11,Paragraph 1 of Article 12 hereof, the people's court shall rule the defendant to take liabilities for continuing to perform the agreement, taking remedial measures or making compensations.
Where the defendant legally changes or terminates the agreement specified in Item 11, Paragraph 1 of Article 12 hereof but does not make compensations in accordance with the law, the people's court shall rule the defendant to make compensations.

Article 79 Where the reconsideration organ and the administrative organ which performs the original administrative act are co-defendants in a case, the people's court shall make judgment on the reconsideration decision and the original administrative act concurrently.

Article 80 The people's court shall publicly announce the judgments for cases which are heard in public and in camera.
If the people's court announces a judgment in court, it shall send the judgment within ten days; if the people's court announces a judgment after court, it shall send the judgment immediately after announcing the judgment.
At the time of announcing the judgment, the people's court shall notify the party concerned of the right of appeal, the period of appeal and the appellate people's court.

Article 81 A people's court shall adjudicate a case as a court of first instance within six months after placing the case on its trial docket. Extension of such period, if required because of special circumstances, shall be approved by a higher people's court. Where a higher people's court requires an extension of such period for a case which it is hearing as a court of first instance, such extension shall be approved by the Supreme People's Court.

Section 3 Summary Procedure

Article 82 The people's court may apply summary procedure to hear the following administrative cases of first instance with clear facts, definite relationships of rights and obligations and not serious disputes:
1. where the administrative act under litigation is performed on the site in accordance with the law;
2. where the case involves an amount of less than CNY2,000; and
3. where the case involves disclosure of government information.
In addition to the administrative cases of the first instance set out in the preceding paragraph, summary procedure may apply to cases for which the parties concerned agree upon the application of summary procedure.
Summary procedure shall not apply to cases remanded for retrial and retried according to the procedure for trial supervision.

Article 83 An administrative case heard according to summary procedure shall be heard by the judge independently, and be concluded within 45 days after the case is placed on the trial docket.

Article 84 If the people's court finds that it is improper to apply summary procedure to a case in hearing, it shall order that ordinary procedure applies.

Section 4 Procedure at Second Instance

Article 85 Parties who are dissatisfied with the judgment rendered by people's cCourts as courts of first instance shall have the right to appeal to the People's Courts at the next higher level within 15 days from the date of service of the judgment. Parties who are dissatisfied with rulings rendered by people's courts as courts of first instance shall have the right to appeal to the people's court at the next higher level within 10 days from the date of service of the ruling. The judgments or rulings rendered by people's courts acting as courts of first instance shall take legal effect if no appeal has been lodged on the expiry of the time limits (for appeal).

Article 86 The people's courts shall form a collegiate bench to try appellate cases. Upon consulting, investigation and inquiry of the parties concerned, if no new facts, evidence or reasons are put forward, and the collegiate bench rules that it is unnecessary to hold a hearing, the case may be handled without a hearing.

Article 87 For trial of appellate cases, the people's court shall fully review the judgment, rulings and administrative act under litigation of the people's court of original trial.

Article 88 In trying an appellate case, the people's court shall make a final judgment within three months from the date of receiving the petition for appeal. An extension of such period, if required because of special circumstances, shall be approved by a higher people's court. Where a higher people's court requires an extension of such time limit for hearing an appellate case, such extension shall be approved by the Supreme People's court.

Article 89 The people's court shall handle an appellate case respectively according to the circumstances set forth below:
1. where the facts are clearly ascertained and the law and regulations are correctly applied in the original judgment or ruling, the appeal shall be rejected by judgment or ruling and the original judgment and ruling be sustained;
2. where the facts are erroneously ascertained or the law and regulations are incorrectly applied in the original judgment or ruling, the judgment or ruling shall be amended, annulled or altered in accordance with the law;
3. where the facts are not clearly ascertained in the original judgment and the evidence is insufficient, the case shall be remanded to the original people's court for retrial, or the people's court of the second instance may amend the original judgment after investigating and clarifying the facts; and
4. where there is any serious violation of statutory procedures such as omission of the party concerned and illegal judgment by default in the original judgment, the people's court of second instance shall rule that the original judgment be annulled and remand the case to the original people's court for retrial.
Where a party concerned institutes an appeal after the original people's court makes a judgment on the case remanded for retrial, the people's court of second instance shall not remand the case for retrial again.
Where the people's court needs to amend the original judgment in trying an appellate case, it shall make judgment on the administrative action under litigation at the same time.


Section 5 Procedure for Trial Supervision

Article 90 A party who considers that a legally effective judgment or ruling contains a mistake may apply to the people's court at higher level for retrial; however, the execution of the judgment or ruling shall not be suspended.


Article 91 If the application of a party conforms to any of the following circumstances, the people's court shall retry the case:
1. where there is real error in not placing a case in the trial docket of a court or rejecting a litigation;
2. where there is any new evidence which is sufficient to overturn the original judgment or ruling;
3. where the facts ascertained in the original judgment and ruling are not sufficient, cross-examined, or are forged;
4. where the laws and regulations applied in the original judgment and ruling are wrong;
5. where the proceeding is in violation of statutory provisions, which may affect impartial trial;
6. where the claim is omitted under the original judgment and ruling;
7. where the legal instruments on which the original judgment or ruling is based are annulled or changed; or
8. where the judge commits any act of corruption, malpractice for personal gains and law perverting arbitration in trying the case.


Article 92 Where the president of a people's court at any level discovers that a legally effective judgment or a ruling rendered by the people's court falls into any of the circumstances set out in Article 91 hereof, or the mediation is in violation of the principle of free will, or that the mediation document contains any illegal content, and considers it necessary to retry the case, the president shall submit the case to the judicial committee to determine whether or not to retry the case.
Where the Supreme People's Court discovers that a legally effective judgment or ruling rendered by a local people's court at any level is wrong, or a higher-level people's court discovers that a legally effective judgment or ruling rendered by a lower-level people's court falls into any of the circumstances set out in Article 91 hereof, or the mediation is in violation of the principle of free will, or that the mediation document contains any illegal content, the Supreme People's Court or the higher-level people's court is empowered to try the case or to order the lower-level people's court to retry the case.

Article 93 Where the Supreme People's Procuratorate discovers that a legally effective judgment or ruling rendered by a people's court at any level, or a higher-level people's procuratorate discovers that a legally effective judgment or ruling rendered by a lower-level people's court falls into any circumstance specified in Article 91 of the Law, or that the mediation document undermines the national interests or the public interests, the Supreme People's Procuratorate or the higher-level people's procuratorate shall lodge a protest.
Where a local people's procuratorate at any level discovers that a legally effective judgment or ruling rendered by a people's court at the same level falls into any circumstance specified in Article 91 of the Law, or that the mediation document undermines the national interests or the public interests, the local people's procuratorate may make procuratorial suggestions to the people's court at the same level, and report to the higher-level people's procuratorate for record-filing purposes; or propose to the higher-level people's procuratorate to lodge a protest against the people's court at the same level.
In terms of the illegal acts of judges in trial procedures other than the procedure for trial supervision, the people's procuratorates at all levels are entitled to make procuratorial suggestions to the people's courts at the same level.

Chapter VIII Enforcement

Article 94 The parties concerned must perform legally effective judgments, rulings and mediation documents rendered by people's courts.

Article 95 Where a citizen, legal person or other organization refuses to perform a judgment, ruling or mediation document, the administrative organ or any third person may apply to the people's court of first instance for mandatory enforcement or enforce the judgment, ruling or mediation document by the administrative organ in accordance with the law.

Article 96 Where an administrative organ refuses to perform a judgment, ruling or mediation document, the people's court of first instance may adopt the following measures:
1. (where the court rules that) fines shall be refunded or damages shall be paid, the court may notify the relevant bank to transfer the sum from the account of the administrative organ in question;
2. (where the administrative organ) fails to perform the judgment, ruling or mediation document within the prescribed time limit, a fine of CNY50 to CNY100 per day shall be imposed on the principal of the administrative organ in question;
3. announce the administrative organ's refusal to perform the order, ruling or mediation document;
4. submit a judicial suggestion to the supervisory organ or to the superior administrative organ of the administrative organ; the organ accepting such judicial suggestion shall handle the case in accordance with the relevant provisions and inform the people's court of its handling; and
5. (where the administrative organ) refuses to perform a judgment, ruling or mediation document and where bad social influence is caused, detention may be imposed on the person in charge of and the person(s) directly responsible for the administrative organ; where the circumstance is serious and constitutes a crime, the criminal liabilities of the person in charge of and the person(s) directly responsible for the administrative organ shall be prosecuted in accordance with the law.

Article 97 Where a citizen, legal person or other organization neither institutes proceedings in respect of an administrative act nor performs such act within the statutory time limit, the administrative organ may apply to a people's court for enforcement or enforce the act itself according to the law.

Chapter IX Foreign-related Administrative Litigation

Article 98 This Law shall apply to administrative litigation conducted in the People's Republic of China by foreigners, stateless persons and foreign organizations, except where otherwise provided by law.

Article 99 Foreigners, stateless persons and foreign organizations conducting administrative litigation in the People's Republic of China shall enjoy the same litigation rights and be subject to the same obligations as citizens and organizations of the People's Republic of China.
Where a court of a foreign country restricts the administrative litigation rights of citizens and organizations of the People's Republic of China, the People's Court shall apply the principle of reciprocity to the administrative litigation rights of citizens and organizations of such country.

Article 100 Foreigners, stateless persons and foreign organizations conducting administrative litigation in the People's Republic of China who wish to appoint a lawyer as an agent ad litem shall appoint a lawyer from a lawyer's organization of the People's Republic of China.

Chapter XI Supplementary Provisions

Article 101 For any matter relating to the trial of administrative cases by people's courts not covered herein, such as the period, service, property preservation, trial in court, mediation, suspension of action, termination of action, summary procedure and execution, and the supervision over the acceptance, hearing, judgment and execution of the administrative cases by the people's procuratorates, the relevant provisions of the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China shall apply.

Article 102 People's courts shall charge a litigation fee for hearing administrative cases. The litigation fee shall be borne by the party who loses the lawsuit, or, if both parties are liable, by both parties. Specific procedures for charging litigation fees shall be prescribed separately.

Article 103 This Law shall take effect as of October 1, 1990.