Law of the People's Republic of China on Land Contract in Rural Areas (Revised in 2018)
Law of the People's Republic of China on Land Contract in Rural Areas (Revised in 2018)
Law of the People's Republic of China on Land Contract in Rural Areas (Revised in 2018)
Order of the President of the People's Republic of China No. 17
December 29, 2018
(Adopted at the 29th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress on August 29, 2002 and issued under Order of the President [2002] No.73 on August 29, 2002; amended according to the Decision on Amending Certain Laws adopted at the 10th Session of the Standing Committee of the 11th National People's Congress on August 27, 2009; and amended for the second time according to Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on Amending the Law of the People's Republic of China on Land Contracts in Rural Areas adopted at the Seventh Session of the Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on December 29, 2018)
Table of Contents
Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II Household Contract
Section 1 Rights and Obligations of the Party Giving out the Contract and of the Contractor
Section 2 Principles and Procedures for Contracting
Section 3 Term of Contract and the Contract
Section 4 Protection, Exchange and Transfer of the Right to Land Contractual Management
Section 5 Land Management Right
Chapter III Contract in Other Forms
Chapter IV Settlement of Disputes and Legal Liability
Chapter V Supplementary Provisions
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 In accordance with the Constitution, the Law is enacted for the purposes of reinforcing and improving the two-tier management system that combines centralized and decentralized management on the basis of household contractual management, keeping the relationship of land contracts in rural areas stable and unchanged for the long term, safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the parties to land contracts in rural areas, and promoting the development of agriculture and the rural economy and the harmony and stability of rural society.
Article 2 For purposes of this Law, land in rural areas includes the arable land, forestlands and grasslands owned collectively by the peasants and by the State and used collectively by the peasants according to law, as well as other lands used for agriculture according to law.
Article 3 The State applies the contractual management system in respect of land in rural areas.
Land contract in rural areas shall take the form of household contract within the collective economic organizations in the countryside, while such land in rural areas as barren mountains, gullies, hills and beaches, which are not suited to the form of household contract, may be contracted in such forms as bid invitation, auction and public consultation.
Article 4 After the land in rural areas is contracted, the nature of ownership of the land shall remain unchanged. The contracted land may not be purchased or sold.
Article 5 Members of the collective economic organizations in rural areas shall, according to law, have the right to undertake rural land contracts with their own collective economic organizations that give out the contracts.
No organizations or individuals may deprive the members of the rural collective economic organizations of their right to undertake contracts or illegally restrict such right.
Article 6 In undertaking land contracts in rural areas, women shall enjoy equal rights with men. The legitimate rights and interests of women shall be protected in contract. No organizations or individuals may deprive their rights to land contractual management, which they are entitled to, or infringe upon such right.
Article 7 In land contract in rural areas, the principles of openness, fairness and impartiality shall be adhered to and the relationship of interests among the State, the collective and the individual shall be correctly handled.
Article 8 The State protects the legitimate rights and interests of the owners of the collective land and the right of the contractors to land contractual management, which no organizations and individuals may infringe upon.
Article 9 After contracting the land, the contractor shall enjoy the right to land contractual management. It may either manage the land itself or retain the land contracting right but circulate the management right of its contracted land to be managed by others.
Article 10 The State protects the circulation of the land management right, which is effected according to the law, on a voluntary basis and with compensation, and protects the legitimate rights and interests of the land management right holders. No organization or individual may infringe them.
Article 11 When undertaking land contracts in rural areas, laws and administrative rules and regulations shall be observed, and the rational development and sustainable use of land resources shall be maintained. Without approval granted according to the law, no contracted land may be used for non-agricultural development.
The State encourages increasing their input in land, improving soil fertility and expanding the capacity of agricultural production.
Article 12 The competent department of agriculture and rural affairs and the competent department of forestry and grassland under the State Council shall, in compliance with their respective functions and duties defined by the State Council, be responsible for providing guidance to the contractual management of land in rural areas throughout the country and to the administration of contractual management contracts.
The competent department of agriculture and rural affairs and the competent department of forestry and grassland, as well as other departments under the local people's governments at or above the county level shall, in compliance with their respective functions and duties, be responsible for administration of the contractual management of the rural land within their own administrative areas and the administration of contractual management contracts.
The township (town) people's governments shall be responsible for the administration of the contractual management of the rural land within their own administrative areas and the administration of contractual management contracts.
Chapter II Household Contract
Section 1 Rights and Obligations of the Party Giving out the Contract and of the Contractor
Article 13 Where the land owned collectively by the peasants belongs, in accordance with law, to collective ownership by the peasants in a village, contracts shall be given out by the collective economic organization of the village or the villagers committee; where the land is already owned collectively by the peasants of more than two rural collective economic organizations in a village, contracts shall be given out respectively by the said organizations or villagers groups in the village. Where contracts are issued by the rural collective economic organizations or villagers committees in a village, the ownership of the land owned collectively by the peasants of the collective economic organizations in the village shall remain unchanged.
Where rural land owned by the State but is used collectively by the peasants according to law, contracts shall be issued by the rural collective economic organizations, villagers committees or villagers groups that use such land.
Article 14 The party giving out the contracts shall enjoy the following rights:
1.
......
Order of the President of the People's Republic of China No. 17
December 29, 2018
(Adopted at the 29th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress on August 29, 2002 and issued under Order of the President [2002] No.73 on August 29, 2002; amended according to the Decision on Amending Certain Laws adopted at the 10th Session of the Standing Committee of the 11th National People's Congress on August 27, 2009; and amended for the second time according to Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on Amending the Law of the People's Republic of China on Land Contracts in Rural Areas adopted at the Seventh Session of the Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on December 29, 2018)
Table of Contents
Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II Household Contract
Section 1 Rights and Obligations of the Party Giving out the Contract and of the Contractor
Section 2 Principles and Procedures for Contracting
Section 3 Term of Contract and the Contract
Section 4 Protection, Exchange and Transfer of the Right to Land Contractual Management
Section 5 Land Management Right
Chapter III Contract in Other Forms
Chapter IV Settlement of Disputes and Legal Liability
Chapter V Supplementary Provisions
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 In accordance with the Constitution, the Law is enacted for the purposes of reinforcing and improving the two-tier management system that combines centralized and decentralized management on the basis of household contractual management, keeping the relationship of land contracts in rural areas stable and unchanged for the long term, safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the parties to land contracts in rural areas, and promoting the development of agriculture and the rural economy and the harmony and stability of rural society.
Article 2 For purposes of this Law, land in rural areas includes the arable land, forestlands and grasslands owned collectively by the peasants and by the State and used collectively by the peasants according to law, as well as other lands used for agriculture according to law.
Article 3 The State applies the contractual management system in respect of land in rural areas.
Land contract in rural areas shall take the form of household contract within the collective economic organizations in the countryside, while such land in rural areas as barren mountains, gullies, hills and beaches, which are not suited to the form of household contract, may be contracted in such forms as bid invitation, auction and public consultation.
Article 4 After the land in rural areas is contracted, the nature of ownership of the land shall remain unchanged. The contracted land may not be purchased or sold.
Article 5 Members of the collective economic organizations in rural areas shall, according to law, have the right to undertake rural land contracts with their own collective economic organizations that give out the contracts.
No organizations or individuals may deprive the members of the rural collective economic organizations of their right to undertake contracts or illegally restrict such right.
Article 6 In undertaking land contracts in rural areas, women shall enjoy equal rights with men. The legitimate rights and interests of women shall be protected in contract. No organizations or individuals may deprive their rights to land contractual management, which they are entitled to, or infringe upon such right.
Article 7 In land contract in rural areas, the principles of openness, fairness and impartiality shall be adhered to and the relationship of interests among the State, the collective and the individual shall be correctly handled.
Article 8 The State protects the legitimate rights and interests of the owners of the collective land and the right of the contractors to land contractual management, which no organizations and individuals may infringe upon.
Article 9 After contracting the land, the contractor shall enjoy the right to land contractual management. It may either manage the land itself or retain the land contracting right but circulate the management right of its contracted land to be managed by others.
Article 10 The State protects the circulation of the land management right, which is effected according to the law, on a voluntary basis and with compensation, and protects the legitimate rights and interests of the land management right holders. No organization or individual may infringe them.
Article 11 When undertaking land contracts in rural areas, laws and administrative rules and regulations shall be observed, and the rational development and sustainable use of land resources shall be maintained. Without approval granted according to the law, no contracted land may be used for non-agricultural development.
The State encourages increasing their input in land, improving soil fertility and expanding the capacity of agricultural production.
Article 12 The competent department of agriculture and rural affairs and the competent department of forestry and grassland under the State Council shall, in compliance with their respective functions and duties defined by the State Council, be responsible for providing guidance to the contractual management of land in rural areas throughout the country and to the administration of contractual management contracts.
The competent department of agriculture and rural affairs and the competent department of forestry and grassland, as well as other departments under the local people's governments at or above the county level shall, in compliance with their respective functions and duties, be responsible for administration of the contractual management of the rural land within their own administrative areas and the administration of contractual management contracts.
The township (town) people's governments shall be responsible for the administration of the contractual management of the rural land within their own administrative areas and the administration of contractual management contracts.
Chapter II Household Contract
Section 1 Rights and Obligations of the Party Giving out the Contract and of the Contractor
Article 13 Where the land owned collectively by the peasants belongs, in accordance with law, to collective ownership by the peasants in a village, contracts shall be given out by the collective economic organization of the village or the villagers committee; where the land is already owned collectively by the peasants of more than two rural collective economic organizations in a village, contracts shall be given out respectively by the said organizations or villagers groups in the village. Where contracts are issued by the rural collective economic organizations or villagers committees in a village, the ownership of the land owned collectively by the peasants of the collective economic organizations in the village shall remain unchanged.
Where rural land owned by the State but is used collectively by the peasants according to law, contracts shall be issued by the rural collective economic organizations, villagers committees or villagers groups that use such land.
Article 14 The party giving out the contracts shall enjoy the following rights:
1.
......