The Peoples Republic of China Foreign Trade Law
The Peoples Republic of China Foreign Trade Law (hereinafter referred to as Foreign Trade Law) was adopted at the 4th session of the Tenth National Peoples Congress Standing Committee on April 4th, 2004 and went into effect since July 1, 2004. The Foreign Trade Law was formulated in compliance with the overall principle and goal of developing socialist foreign trade. It governs the operations and behaviors of enterprises, as well as the activities related to Chinese international trade to promote a higher and better level of development for socialist foreign trade.
The Foreign Trade Law consists of six parts: General Principles, Trade Business Enterprises, Foreign Trade Contract, Customs Supervision, Special-Use Foreign Trade and Penalty Clause.
Part one, General Principles stipulates the basic principles which govern foreign trade and international economic cooperation. It points out the direction of developing foreign trade and guarantees a scientific, regulated and reasonable development for China’s international economic activities.
Part two, Trade Business Enterprises defines the occupational qualifications, obligations and legal liabilities of foreign trade business enterprises as well as protection measures for trade business, secret information and intellectual property rights.
Part three, Foreign Trade Contract regulates foreign trade contracts, both domestically and internationally, including conclusion of contracts, variation and termination of contracts, effectiveness of contracts, contract contents, transfer of contracts and performance of contracts.
Part four, Customs Supervision refers to the customs declaration and clearance of goods, and the inspection, supervision and investigation of foreign trade activities. This part ensures the safety of goods, to ensure the necessary income for the country.
Part five, Special-Use Foreign Trade is about the foreign trade of goods that cannot be commercially traded, including technology trade, foreign aid goods and services trade, foreign exchange and other goods and technology trade. This part stipulates the different situations and requirements for each of these special-use trades.
Part six, Penalty Clause is the last part of the Foreign Trade Law. It states that any person or organization that violates the burden of the law shall be subject to administrative penalties, civil liability, and criminal liability in accordance with the law.
Overall, the Peoples Republic of China Foreign Trade Law is a comprehensive and detailed set of laws intended to act as a legal basis and framework for the protection of foreign trade activities. It is an important technical support that helps to revitalize foreign trade and to build a better foreign trade environment. It ensures the comprehensive, legitimate, orderly and standard flow of goods, services and investments in and out of the country, and is thus beneficial to the countrys economic development.
