Adopted at the 13th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Sixth National People's Congress, promulgated by Order No. 31 of the President of the People's Republic of China on November 22, 1985, and effective as of February 1, 1986

Contents

Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II Entry into the Country
Chapter III Residence
Chapter IV Travel
Chapter V Exit from the Country
Chapter VI Administrative Organs
Chapter VII Penalties
Chapter VIII Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1 This Law is formulated with a view to safeguarding the
sovereignty of the People's Republic of China, maintaining its security and
public order and facilitating international exchange.
This Law is applicable to aliens entering, leaving and transiting the
territory of the People's Republic of China and to those residing and travelling
in China.

Article 2 Aliens must obtain the permission of the competent authorities of
the Chinese Government in order to enter, transit or reside in China.

Article 3 For entry, exit and transit, aliens must pass through ports open
to aliens or other designated ports and must be subject to inspection by the
frontier inspection offices.
For entry, exit and transit, foreign-owned means of transport must pass
through ports open to aliens or other designated ports and must be subject to
inspection and supervision by the frontier inspection offices.

Article 4 The Chinese Government shall protect the lawful rights and
interests of aliens on Chinese territory.
Freedom of the person of aliens is inviolable. No alien may be arrested
except with the approval or by decision of a people's procuratorate or by
decision of a people's court, and arrest must be made by public security organ
or state security organ.

Article 5 Aliens in China must abide by Chinese laws and may not endanger
the state security of China, harm public interests or disrupt public order.GO TO TOP

Chapter II Entry into the Country

Article 6 For entry into China, aliens shall apply for visas from Chinese
diplomatic missions, consular offices or other resident agencies abroad
authorized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In specific situations aliens
may, in compliance with the provisions of the State Council, apply for visas to
visa-granting offices at ports designated by the competent authorities of the
Chinese Government.
The entry of nationals from countries having visa agreements with the
Chinese Government shall be handled in accordance with those agreements.
In cases where another country has special provisions for Chinese citizens
entering and transiting that country, the competent authorities of the Chinese
Government may adopt reciprocal measures contingent on the circumstances.
Visas are not required for aliens in immediate transit on connected
international flights who hold passenger tickets and stay for no more than 24
hours in China entirely within airport boundaries. Anyone desiring to leave the
airport temporarily must obtain permission from the frontier inspection office.

Article 7 When applying for various kinds of visas, aliens shall present
valid passports and, if necessary, provide pertinent evidence.

Article 8 Aliens who have been invited or hired to work in China shall,
when applying for visas, produce evidence of the invitation or employment.

Article 9 Aliens desiring to reside permanently in China shall, when
applying for visas, present status-of-residence identification forms. Applicants
may obtain such forms from public security organs at the place where they intend
to reside.

Article 10 The competent authorities of the Chinese Government shall issue
appropriate visas to aliens according to the purposes stated in their entry
applications.

Article 11 When an aircraft or a vessel navigating international routes
arrives at a Chinese port, the captain or his agent must submit a passenger name
list to the frontier inspection office; a foreign aircraft of vessel must also
provide a name list of its crew members.

Article 12 Aliens who are considered a possible threat to China's state
security and public order shall not be permitted to enter China.GO TO TOP

Chapter III Residence

Article 13 For residence in China, aliens must possess identification
papers or residence certificates issued by the competent authories of the
Chinese Government.
The term of validity of identification papers or residence certificates
shall be determined according to the purposes of entry.
Aliens residing in China shall submit their certificates to the local public
security organs for examination within the prescribed period of time.

Article 14 Aliens who, in compliance with Chinese laws, find it necessary
to establish prolonged residence in China for the purpose of investing in China
or engaging in cooperative projects with Chinese enterprises or institutions in
the economic, scientific, technological and cultural fields, or for other
purposes, are eligible for prolonged or permanent residence in China upon
approval by the competent authorities of the Chinese Government.

Article 15 Aliens who seek asylum for political reasons shall be permitted
to reside in China upon approval by the competent authorities of the Chinese
Government.

Article 16 Aliens who fail to abide by Chinese laws may have their period
of stay in China curtailed or their status of residence in China annulled by the
competent authorities of the Chinese Government.

Article 17 For a temporary overnight stay in China, aliens shall complete
registration procedures pursuant to the relevant provisions.

Article 18 Aliens holding residence certificates who wish to change their
place of residence in China must complete removal formalities pursuant to the
relevant provisions.

Article 19 Aliens who have not acquired residence certificates or who are
on a study programme in China may not seek employment in China without
permission of the competent authorities of the Chinese Government.GO TO TOP

Chapter IV Travel

Article 20 Aliens who hold valid visas or residence certificates may travel
to places open to aliens as designated by the Chinese Government.

Article 21 Aliens desiring to travel to places closed to aliens must apply
to local public security organs for travel permits.GO TO TOP

Chapter V Exit from the Country

Article 22 For exit from China, aliens shall present their valid passports
or other valid certificates.

Article 23 Aliens belonging to any of the following categories shall not be
allowed to leave China:
(1) defendants in criminal cases or criminal suspects confirmed by a public
security organ, a people's procuratorate or a people's court;
(2) persons who, as notified by a people's court, shall be denied exit owing
to involvement in unresolved civil cases; and
(3) persons who have committed other acts in violation of Chinese law who
have not been dealt with and against whom the competent authorities consider it
necessarty to institute prosecution.

Article 24 Frontier inspection offices shall have the power to stop aliens
belonging to any of the following categories from leaving the country and to
deal with them according to law:
(1) holders of invalid exit certificates;
(2) holders of exit certificates other than their own; and
(3) holders of forged or altered exit certificates.GO TO TOP

Chapter VI Administrative Organs

Article 25 China's diplomatic missions, consular offices and other resident
agencies abroad authorized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall be the
Chinese Government's agencies abroad to handle aliens' applications for entry
and transit.
The Ministry of Public Security, its authorized local public security
organs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its authorized local foreign affairs
departments shall be the Chinese Government's agencies in China to handle
aliens' applications for entry, transit, residence and travel.

Article 26 The authorities handling aliens' applications for entry,
transit, residence and travel shall have the power to refuse to issue visas and
certificates or to cancel visas and certificates already issued or declare them
invalid.
The Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs may,
when necessary, alter decisions made by their respectively authorized agencies.

Article 27 An alien who enters or resides in China illegally may be
detained for examination or be subjected to residential surveillance or
deportation by a public security organ at or above the county level.

Article 28 While performing their duties, foreign affairs police of the
public security organs at or above the county level shall have the power to
examine the passports and other certificates of aliens. When conducting such
examinations, the foreign affairs police shall produce their own service
certificates, and relevant organizations or individuals shall have the duty to
offer them assistance.GO TO TOP

Chapter VII Penalties

Article 29 If a person, in violation of the provisions of this Law, enters
or leaves China illegally, establishes illegal residence or makes an illegal
stopover in China, travels to places closed to aliens without a valid travel
document, forges or alters an entry or exit certificate, uses another person's
certificate as his own or transfers his cerificate, he may be penalized by a
public security organ at or above the county level with a warning, a fine or
detention for not more than ten days. If the circumstances of the case are
serious enough to constitute a crime, criminal responsibility shall be
investigated in accordance with the law.
If an alien subject to a fine or detention by a public security organ
refuses to accept the penalty, he may, within 15 days of receiving notification,
appeal to the public security organ at the next higher level, which shall make
the final decision; he may also directly file suit in the local people's court.

Article 30 In cases where a person commits any of the acts stated in
Article 29 of this Law, if the circumstances are serious, the Ministry of Public
Security may impose a penalty by ordering him to leave the country within a
certain time or may expel him from the country.GO TO TOP

Chapter VIII Supplementary Provisions

Article 31 For the purposes of this Law the term "alien" means any person
not holding Chinese nationality according to the Nationality Law of the People's
Republic of China.

Article 32 Transitory entry into and exit from China by aliens who are
nationals of a country adjacent to China and who reside in areas bordering on
China shall be handled according to any relevant agreements between the two
countries or, in the absence of such agreements, according to the relevant
provisions of the Chinese Government.

Article 33 The Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs shall, pursuant to this Law, formulate rules for its implementation,
which shall go into effect after being submitted to and approved by the State
Council.

Article 34 Affairs concerning members of foreign diplomatic missions and
consular offices in the People's Republic of China and other aliens who enjoy
diplomatic privileges and immunities, after their entry into China, shall be
administered in accordance with the relevant provisions of the State Council and
its competent departments.

Article 35 This Law shall go into effect on February 1, 1986.GO TO TOP