Law of the People's Republic of China on Guarding State Secrets (Revised in 2024)
Law of the People's Republic of China on Guarding State Secrets (Revised in 2024)
Law of the People's Republic of China on Guarding State Secrets (Revised in 2024)
Order of the President of the People's Republic of China No. 20
February 27, 2024
The Law of the People's Republic of China on Guarding State Secrets, which has been revised and adopted at the eighth session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on February 27, 2024, is hereby promulgated and shall come into effect as of May 1, 2024.
Law of the People's Republic of China on Guarding State Secrets (Revised in 2024)
(Adopted at the third session of the Standing Committee of the seventh National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on September 5, 1988; revised for the first time at the 14th session of the Standing Committee of the 11th National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on April 29, 2010; and revised for the second time at the eighth session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on February 27, 2024)
Table of Contents
Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II Scope and Classification Level of State Secrets
Chapter III Classification System
Chapter IV Supervision and Administration
Chapter V Legal Liability
Chapter VI Supplementary Provisions
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 This Law is formulated in accordance with the Constitution in order to guard state secrets, protect national security and interests, and guarantee the smooth progress of the reform and opening-up and the socialist modernization.
Article 2 State secrets refer to matters that have a vital bearing on national security and interests, as identified by legal procedures, and are only permitted to be disclosed to a limited number of people during a given period of time.
Article 3 The leadership of the Communist Party of China in the protection of state secrets (hereinafter as the "secret protection ") shall be upheld. The central leading authority for secret protection work shall lead the secret protection work nationwide, study, formulate, and guide the implementation of the strategies and major policies for guarding state secrets, coordinate the major matters and key tasks concerning state secrets protection and advance the rule of law in state secrets protection.
Article 4 The secret protection work shall adhere to the holistic approach to national security, and abide by the principles of the Party's leadership in secret protection work, lawful management, active prevention, focus on priorities, equal emphasis on technology and management, and innovative development; shall both ensure the security of the state secrets and facilitate the reasonable utilization of information resources.
Matters that are required to be disclosed by laws and administrative regulations shall be lawfully disclosed.
Article 5 State secrets shall be protected by laws.
All state authorities and armed forces, all political parties and mass organizations, enterprises, public institutions, entities and other social organizations, and citizens shall have the obligation to guard state secrets.
Any conduct that endangers or harms the security of state secrets shall be prosecuted according to the law.
Article 6 The national administrative department of secret protection shall be responsible for the secret protection work nationwide. The local administrative departments of secret protection at or above the county level shall, within the scope of their functions and powers, be responsible for the secret protection work in the administrative areas under their jurisdiction.
Article 7 State authorities and institutions involving state secrets (the "authorities or institutions") shall administer the secret protection work within their own authorities or institutions.
The central state authorities shall, within their functions and powers, administer or guide the secret protection work of their own system.
Article 8 The authorities and institutions shall adopt the secret protection accountability system, lawfully establish a secret protection work organization or designate a dedicated person to be responsible for secret protection work, improve the secret protection management systems, perfect the protective measures for secret protection, carry out secret protection publicity and education, and strengthen secret protection supervision and inspection.
Article 9 The state adopts various forms to strengthen secret protection publicity and education, integrates secret protection education into the national education system and civil servant education and training system, encourages mass media to conduct secret protection publicity and education to the public, popularizes secret protection knowledge, publicizes the rule of law on secret protection, and enhances the secret protection awareness of the entire society.
Article 10 The state encourages and supports the research and application of secret protection-related science and technology, enhances independent innovation capabilities, and protects intellectual property rights in the field of secret protection in accordance with the law.
Article 11 People's governments at or above the county level shall incorporate secret protection work into the national economic and social development plan at the corresponding level, and the necessary funds shall be included in the budget at the corresponding level.
The funds required by authorities and institutions to carry out secret protection work shall be included in their annual budget or annual revenue and expenditure plan.
Article 12 The state strengthens the training and team building of secret protection personnel and improves relevant incentive and guarantee mechanisms.
Organizations and individuals who have made outstanding contributions in safeguarding and protecting state secrets shall be commended and rewarded in accordance with relevant national regulations.
Chapter II Scope and Classification Level of State Secrets
Article 13 The following matters involving national security and interests shall be determined as state secrets if the leakage of such matters may harm national security and interests in the field of politics, economy, national defense and foreign affairs, etc.:
(1) secrets concerning major policy decisions on state affairs;
(2) secrets concerning the building of national defense and activities of the armed forces;
(3) secrets concerning diplomatic activities and foreign affairs as well as secrets subject to confidentiality obligations for foreign countries;
(4) secrets concerning national economic and social development;
(5) secrets concerning science and technology;
(6) secrets concerning the activities for safeguarding state security and the investigation of criminal offences; and
(7) other matters that are determined as state secrets by the national administrative department of secret protection.
Secrets of political parties that conform to the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall be deemed as state secrets.
Article 14 State secrets shall be classified into three levels: top secret level, secret level, and confidential level.
State secrets at the top secret level are vital state secrets, the leakage of which will cause extremely serious harm to the national security and interests; state secrets at the secret level are important state secrets, the leakage of which will cause serious harm to the national security and interests; state secrets at the confidential level are common state secrets, the leakage of which will cause harm to the national security and interests.
Article 15 The specific scope of state secrets and their classification level (the "the scope of secrets") shall be determined by the national administrative department of secret protection independently or in conjunction with relevant central state authorities.
The scope of military secrets shall be stipulated by the Central Military Commission.
The scope of secrets shall be determined based on the principles of necessity and rationality, shall be subject to scientific demonstration and assessment, and shall be promptly adjusted according to changes in circumstances.
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Order of the President of the People's Republic of China No. 20
February 27, 2024
The Law of the People's Republic of China on Guarding State Secrets, which has been revised and adopted at the eighth session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on February 27, 2024, is hereby promulgated and shall come into effect as of May 1, 2024.
Law of the People's Republic of China on Guarding State Secrets (Revised in 2024)
(Adopted at the third session of the Standing Committee of the seventh National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on September 5, 1988; revised for the first time at the 14th session of the Standing Committee of the 11th National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on April 29, 2010; and revised for the second time at the eighth session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on February 27, 2024)
Table of Contents
Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II Scope and Classification Level of State Secrets
Chapter III Classification System
Chapter IV Supervision and Administration
Chapter V Legal Liability
Chapter VI Supplementary Provisions
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 This Law is formulated in accordance with the Constitution in order to guard state secrets, protect national security and interests, and guarantee the smooth progress of the reform and opening-up and the socialist modernization.
Article 2 State secrets refer to matters that have a vital bearing on national security and interests, as identified by legal procedures, and are only permitted to be disclosed to a limited number of people during a given period of time.
Article 3 The leadership of the Communist Party of China in the protection of state secrets (hereinafter as the "secret protection ") shall be upheld. The central leading authority for secret protection work shall lead the secret protection work nationwide, study, formulate, and guide the implementation of the strategies and major policies for guarding state secrets, coordinate the major matters and key tasks concerning state secrets protection and advance the rule of law in state secrets protection.
Article 4 The secret protection work shall adhere to the holistic approach to national security, and abide by the principles of the Party's leadership in secret protection work, lawful management, active prevention, focus on priorities, equal emphasis on technology and management, and innovative development; shall both ensure the security of the state secrets and facilitate the reasonable utilization of information resources.
Matters that are required to be disclosed by laws and administrative regulations shall be lawfully disclosed.
Article 5 State secrets shall be protected by laws.
All state authorities and armed forces, all political parties and mass organizations, enterprises, public institutions, entities and other social organizations, and citizens shall have the obligation to guard state secrets.
Any conduct that endangers or harms the security of state secrets shall be prosecuted according to the law.
Article 6 The national administrative department of secret protection shall be responsible for the secret protection work nationwide. The local administrative departments of secret protection at or above the county level shall, within the scope of their functions and powers, be responsible for the secret protection work in the administrative areas under their jurisdiction.
Article 7 State authorities and institutions involving state secrets (the "authorities or institutions") shall administer the secret protection work within their own authorities or institutions.
The central state authorities shall, within their functions and powers, administer or guide the secret protection work of their own system.
Article 8 The authorities and institutions shall adopt the secret protection accountability system, lawfully establish a secret protection work organization or designate a dedicated person to be responsible for secret protection work, improve the secret protection management systems, perfect the protective measures for secret protection, carry out secret protection publicity and education, and strengthen secret protection supervision and inspection.
Article 9 The state adopts various forms to strengthen secret protection publicity and education, integrates secret protection education into the national education system and civil servant education and training system, encourages mass media to conduct secret protection publicity and education to the public, popularizes secret protection knowledge, publicizes the rule of law on secret protection, and enhances the secret protection awareness of the entire society.
Article 10 The state encourages and supports the research and application of secret protection-related science and technology, enhances independent innovation capabilities, and protects intellectual property rights in the field of secret protection in accordance with the law.
Article 11 People's governments at or above the county level shall incorporate secret protection work into the national economic and social development plan at the corresponding level, and the necessary funds shall be included in the budget at the corresponding level.
The funds required by authorities and institutions to carry out secret protection work shall be included in their annual budget or annual revenue and expenditure plan.
Article 12 The state strengthens the training and team building of secret protection personnel and improves relevant incentive and guarantee mechanisms.
Organizations and individuals who have made outstanding contributions in safeguarding and protecting state secrets shall be commended and rewarded in accordance with relevant national regulations.
Chapter II Scope and Classification Level of State Secrets
Article 13 The following matters involving national security and interests shall be determined as state secrets if the leakage of such matters may harm national security and interests in the field of politics, economy, national defense and foreign affairs, etc.:
(1) secrets concerning major policy decisions on state affairs;
(2) secrets concerning the building of national defense and activities of the armed forces;
(3) secrets concerning diplomatic activities and foreign affairs as well as secrets subject to confidentiality obligations for foreign countries;
(4) secrets concerning national economic and social development;
(5) secrets concerning science and technology;
(6) secrets concerning the activities for safeguarding state security and the investigation of criminal offences; and
(7) other matters that are determined as state secrets by the national administrative department of secret protection.
Secrets of political parties that conform to the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall be deemed as state secrets.
Article 14 State secrets shall be classified into three levels: top secret level, secret level, and confidential level.
State secrets at the top secret level are vital state secrets, the leakage of which will cause extremely serious harm to the national security and interests; state secrets at the secret level are important state secrets, the leakage of which will cause serious harm to the national security and interests; state secrets at the confidential level are common state secrets, the leakage of which will cause harm to the national security and interests.
Article 15 The specific scope of state secrets and their classification level (the "the scope of secrets") shall be determined by the national administrative department of secret protection independently or in conjunction with relevant central state authorities.
The scope of military secrets shall be stipulated by the Central Military Commission.
The scope of secrets shall be determined based on the principles of necessity and rationality, shall be subject to scientific demonstration and assessment, and shall be promptly adjusted according to changes in circumstances.
......