Order of the President of the People's Republic of China

No. 40

The Law of the People's Republic of China on Community Corrections, adopted at the 15th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Thirteenth National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on December 28, 2019, is hereby promulgated and shall go into effect as of July 1, 2020.

Xi Jinping

President of the People's Republic of China 

28 December, 2019

Law of the People's Republic of China on Community Corrections 

(Adopted at the 15th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Thirteenth National People's Congress on December 28, 2019)

Contents

Chapter I General Provisions

Chapter II Institutions, Personnel and Duties

Chapter III Decision and Acceptance

Chapter IV Supervision and Management

Chapter V Education and Support

Chapter VI Release and Termination

Chapter VII Special Provisions on Juvenile Community Corrections

Chapter VIII Legal Liability

Chapter IX Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I   General Provisions

Article 1 This Law is enacted on the basis of the Constitution so as to advance and regulate the community corrections work, ensure right enforcement of criminal judgments, criminal rulings, and decisions on temporary service of sentence outside prison, improve the quality of corrections through education, promote the smooth integration of offenders subject to community corrections into society, and prevent and reduce recidivism.

Article 2 Community corrections are carried out in accordance with the law for convicts sentenced to public surveillance, imprisonment with a suspension of execution, release on parole, or permitted temporarily serving his sentence outside prison.

This Law applies to activities such as supervision and management, and education and support, of offenders subject to community corrections.

Article 3 Community corrections shall persist in combining supervision and management with education and support, combining specialized organs and non-government forces, and employing categorical management and individualized corrections for the targeted elimination of factors that might lead offenders subject to community corrections to commit new crimes, helping them to become law-abiding citizens.

Article 4 The offenders subject to community corrections shall accept community corrections and comply with supervision and management in accordance with the law.

Community corrections shall be conducted in accordance with the law, with human rights being respected and protected. The lawful rights of the offenders, including the personal and property right, shall not be infringed. The offenders shall not be discriminated against in employment, education, and social security, etc.

Article 5 The State supports the community corrections institutions in raising the level of information technology application, and using modern information technology to conduct supervision, management, education and support on the offenders subject to community corrections. Information shall be shared among departments related to the community corrections work in accordance with the law.

Article 6 The people's governments at all levels shall list community corrections expenses in their budgets.

The expenses entailed for residents' committees, villagers' committees, and other social organizations to help community corrections institutions carry out their work pursuant to the law, shall be listed in the government budget for the corresponding level of community corrections institutions in accordance with relevant regulations.

Article 7 The organizations and individuals making outstanding contribution to community corrections are to be commended and rewarded in accordance with relevant provisions of the State.

Chapter II  Institutions, Personnel and Duties

Article 8 The judicial administrative department of the State Council is in charge of community corrections at the national level. The judicial administrative department of  the local people's government at or above the county level is in charge of community corrections within its own administrative region.

The people's court, the people's procuratorate, the public security organ, and other relevant departments shall, in light of their respective functions, fulfill their duties concerning community corrections in accordance with the law. The people's procuratorate shall perform legal supervision of community corrections in accordance with the law.

The local people's government shall establish a community corrections commission as needed for overall planning, coordination, and guidance of community corrections within its administrative region.

Article 9 The local people's government at or above the county level shall establish the community corrections institution as needed for implementation of community corrections. The establishment and revocation of the community corrections institution is carried out upon proposal of the judicial administrative department of the local people's government at or above the county level, and approved in accordance with prescribed authoriteis and procedures.

The judicial office shall undertake the work related to community corrections as entrusted by the community corrections institution.

Article 10 The community corrections institution shall be staffed with specialized State functionaries with professional knowledge in areas such as law (hereinafter referred to as the community corrections institution staff) to perform enforcement duties such as supervision and management, and education and support.

Article 11 When necessary, the community corrections institution shall organize social workers with specialized knowledge or practical experience in such areas as law, education, psychology or social work, to carry out the work related to community corrections.

Article 12 The residents' committees and the villagers' committees shall assist community corrections institutions in their work in accordance with the law.

The guardians, family members of the offenders subject to community corrections and their employers or the schools they are enrolled shall assist the community corrections institution in community corrections.

Article 13 The State encourages and supports participation by businesses, public institutions, social organizations, volunteers and other non-government forces in community corrections work in accordance with the law.

Article 14 The community corrections institution staff shall strictly obey the Constitution and the laws, be dedicated to their duties, follow strict discipline, and be honest and clean.

Article 15 The community corrections institution staff, and other persons participating in community corrections, shall carry out community corrections activities in accordance with the law and their work shall be protected by the law.

Article 16 The State promotes the building of high-caliber community corrections work force. The community corrections institution shall strengthen management, supervision, training, and job security for the community corrections institution staff, and continuously improve the standardization and professionalism of community corrections.

Chapter III  Decision and Acceptance

Article 17 When the community correction decision-making organ makes a sentence of public surveillance or imprisonment with a suspension of exection, or makes a ruling of release on parole, or makes a decision or approval of temporary service of the sentence outside prison, it shall define the place for enforcing community corrections.

The place of residence of the offender subject to community corrections shall be the place for enforcing community corrections. Where the offender resides at multiple places, the place of habitual residence may be defined as the place for enforcement.

Where the offender's residence or habitual residence cannot be defined or is not suitable for enforcing community corrections, the community corrections decision-making organ shall define a place for enforcement based on the principle of being conducive to the offender in receiving community corrections and better integrating into society.

"The community corrections decision-making organ" as used in this Law refers to the people's court that makes a sentence of public surveillance or imprisonment with a suspension of exection, or makes a ruling of release on parole, or makes a decision of temporary service of the sentence outside prison, as well as the prison management organ or the public security organ that approves the temporary service of the sentence outside prison in accordance with the law.

Article 18 When necessary, the community corrections decision-making organ may entrust the community corrections institution or relevant social organizations with investigating and assessing the defendant's or convict's dangerousness to society and impact on the community in which he lives, and issuing an opinion for reference when the decision on community corrections is made. The residents' committee or the villagers' committee and other organizations shall provide necessary assistance.

Article 19 The community correction decision-making organ shall makes a sentence of public surveillance or imprisonment with a suspension of exection, or makes a ruling of release on parole, or makes a decision or approval of temporary service of the sentence outside prison in accordance with the requirements and procedures providec by the Criminal Law, the Criminal Procedure Law, and other laws.

The community corrections decision-making organ shall conduct education of the offenders subject to community corrections, informing them the regulations they shall obey during the community corrections period, and the legal consequences for breaking the regulations, and order them to register on time.

Article 20 The community corrections decision-making organ shall inform the community corrections institution of the place of enforcement within five days of a judgment, ruling, or decision taking effect, and deliver the relevant legal instruments within ten days, sending a copy to the people's procuratorate and the public security organ of the place of enforcement at the same time. If the place where the community corrections decision is made differs from the place of enforcement, the community corrections institution of the place of enforcement shall send the legal instruments to the people's procuratorate and the public security organ at the place of enforcement.

Article 21 The offender subject to community corrections who is sentenced by the people's court to public surveillance, or imprisonment with a suspension of execution, or release on parole shall register with the community corrections institution at the place of enforcement within 10 days of the judgement or ruling taking effect.

The offender who temporarily serves a sentence outside prison as decided by the people's court shall be transferred to the community corrections institution by the detention center or the public security organ enforcing release on bail pending trial or residential surveillance, within ten days of receiving the decision.

The offender whose temporary service of sentence outside prison has been approved by the prison management organ or the public security organ shall be transferred to the community corrections institution by the detention center or the public security organ within ten days of receiving the approval.

Article 22 The community corrections institution shall accept the offenders subject to community corrections in accordance with the law, check the legal instruments, verify their identities, handle acceptance registration, establish archives, and announce the facts of the crimes committed by the offenders, the period for community corrections, and the rules that shall be followed.

Chapter IV  Supervision and Management

Article 23 During the community corrections period, the offenders subject to community corrections shall abide by laws and administrative regulations, perform their obligations set forth in the judgments, rulings, decisions on temporary service of sentence outside prison, and other such legal instruments, abide by supervision and management provisions of the judicial administrative department of the State Council regarding reporting, receiving guests, going out, residence change, and release on medical parole, and obey the management of the community corrections institutions.

Article 24 The community corrections institution shall work out individualized community corrections programs on the basis of the contents of the judgments, and the gender, age, psychological characteristics, health, criminal motives, types of crimes, circumstances of crimes, acts of repentance and other such circumstances of offenders subject to community corrections, so as to carry out categorical management and individualized corrections. The corrections programs shall be appropriately adjusted in light of circumstances such as the offender's behavior.

Article 25 The community corrections institution shall designate a corrections group for the offender subject to community corrections on the basis of his circumstances, which is responsible for implementing the corresponding corrections programs.

When necessary, the corrections group may be comprised of personnel from the judicial office, the residents' committee or the villagers' committee, the offender's guardians and family members, staff of his employer or the school in which he is enrolled, as well as social workers, volunteers, etc. Where the offender is female, the corrections group shall have a female member or female members.

Article 26 The community corrections institution shall stay informed of the activities and behaviors of the offenders subject to community corrections. It may use methods such as communications, digital verification, and onsite inspections to verify relevant information, and cooperation of the organizations and individuals concerned is required.

When carrying out the work such as onsite inspections, the community corrections institution shall protect the offenders' identity information and personal privacy.

Article 27 The offenders subject to community corrections shall report to the community corrections institution for approval if they leave the city or county of residence or change the place of residence. The community corrections institution shall give approval where there is a justifiable reason; and may, in light of the circumstances, simplify the approval procedures and methods where regular cross-city or cross-county travels are necessary for normal work and life. 

Where there is a need to change the place of enforcement because of change in the offender's place of residence, the community corrections institution shall make a decision for the change in accordance with the relevant provisions. After making the decision, it shall inform the community corrections decision-making organ and the community corrections institution at the new place of enforcement, and send a copy of the relevant legal instrument to the latter. The community corrections institution at the new place of enforcement shall transfer the legal instrument to the people's procuratorate and the public security organ of the place where it is located.

Article 28 The community corrections institution carries out evaluations, rewards, and punishments based on the behaviors of the offenders subject to community corrections and in accordance with the relevant provisions. Offenders shall be praised for showing outstanding behaviors in admitting guilt and making repentance, obeying laws and regulations, and accepting supervision, management and education. Where they violate laws, regulations, or provisions on supervision and management, they shall, depending on the circumstances, be given a reprimand or a warning, or a quest is made to the public security organ for imposing punishment for administration of public security, or a request is to made in accordance with the law for revoking the imprisonment with a suspensionof execution or release on parole, or for putting the offender who is temporarily serving his sentence outside prision back into the prison.

The evaluation result of the offenders may be the basis for determining whether they have demonstrated repentance or seriously violated supervision and management provisions.