Domestic Violence Law 2015

Title: Domestic Violence Law of the People's Republic of China 
Promulgating Entities: Standing Committee of the National People's Congress
Reference number: 
Promulgation Date: 2015-12-27
Expiration date: 
Source of text: http://news.xinhuanet.com/legal/2015-12/27/c_128571791.htm

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Chapter I: General Provisions

Chapter II: Prevention of Domestic Violence

Chapter III: Disposition of Domestic Violence

Chapter IV: Personal Safety Protection Orders

Chapter V: Legal Responsibility

Chapter VI: Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I: General Provisions

Article 1: This law is formulated so as to prevent and stop domestic violence, to protect the lawful rights and interests of family members, to preserve equal, tranquil, and civilized family relationships; and to promote family harmony and social stability.

Article 2: Domestic violence as used in this Law refers to physical, psychological or other infractions between family members effected through the use of methods such as beatings, restraints, maiming, restrictions on physical liberty as well as recurrent verbal berating or intimidation.

Article 3: Family members shall help each other, love each other and live in harmony, and perform familial obligations.

Countering domestic violence is the joint responsibility of the State, society and every family.

The State prohibits domestic violence in any form.

Article 4: People's government institutions at the county level or above with responsibility for efforts on women and children, are responsible for organizing, coordinating, guiding, supervising and driving relevant departments' efforts to counter domestic violence.

Relevant departments of people's governments at the county level or above, judicial organs, people's organizations, social organizations, residents' committees , villagers' committee, enterprises and public institutions, shall work to counter domestic violence in accordance with this law and relevant laws and regulations.

All levels of people's government shall ensure necessary funding for efforts to counter domestic violence.

Article 5: Efforts to counter domestic violence follow the principles of putting prevention first, and combining education, corrections and punishment.

Efforts to counter domestic violence shall respect victims' true wishes and protect parties' privacy.

Minors, the elderly, persons with disabilities, pregnant and nursing women, and persons with serious illnesses who sustain domestic violence infractions shall be given special protections.

　　Chapter II: Prevention of Domestic Violence

Article 6: The State initiates publicity and education on family values, popularizing knowledge on combatting domestic violence and strengthening awareness of domestic violence.

Labor unions, the Communist Youth League, women's federations, and the Disabled Persons Federations shall each organize the initiation of publicity and education on family values and countering domestic violence, within the scope of their work.

Radio, television, newspapers, online networks and so forth shall initiate publicity on family values and countering domestic violence.

Schools and kindergartens shall initiate publicity on family values and countering domestic violence.

Article 7: Relevant departments of people's governments at the county level or above, judicial organs, and womens federations shall include efforts to prevent and stop domestic violence in their operations training and statistics.

Medical establishments shall do a good job of recording treatment of victims of domestic violence.

Article 8: Township people's governments and neighborhood offices shall organize and develop efforts to prevent domestic violence, and residents' committees, villagers' committee and social work service organizations shall coordinate and assist them.

Article 9: All levels of people's government shall support social work service organizations in developing services such as mental health consultation, family relationship guidance, and education on prevention of domestic violence.

Article 10: People's mediation organizations shall mediate family disputes in accordance with law, to prevent and reduce the incidence of domestic violence.

Article 11: Employment units discovering that their personnel have domestic violence situations shall give criticism and education, and do a good job of efforts to mediate or resolve family conflicts.

Article 12: Guardians of minors shall carry out family education and lawfully perform guardianship and educational duties in a civilized fashion, and must not commit domestic violence.

　　Chapter III: Disposition of Domestic Violence

Article 13: Victims of domestic violence, their legally-designated representatives and close family may make a complaint, give feedback or seek aid from the perpetrator's or victim's unit, residents' committee and villagers' committee, womens federation or other relevant unit. After relevant units receive a complaint of domestic violence, feedback or a request for aid, they shall give help and disposition.

Victims of domestic violence and their legally-designated representatives or close relatives may also report cases to the public security organs, or raise a lawsuit in the people's courts.

Units or individuals discovering acts of domestic violence have the right to promptly discourage it.

Article 14: Where schools, kindergartens, medical establishments, residents' committees, villagers' committees, social work service organizations, relief management organizations, welfare organizations or their employees discover in the course of their work that a person lacking civil capacity or with limited civil capacity has suffered domestic violence or might have suffered domestic violence; they shall promptly report it to a public security organ. Public security organs shall preserve the confidentiality of those making reports.

Article 15: After public security organs receive a report of domestic violence, they shall promptly dispatch police, stop the domestic violence, and follow the relevant provisions in investigating and gathering evidence, assisting victims in receiving medical care, and evaluating injuries.

Where persons lacking civil capacity or having limited civil capacity are seriously physically injured or face a threat to their physical safety due to domestic violence , or are in dangerous situation such as having nobody looking after them, the public security organs shall notify and assist the civil affairs departments in having them placed in a temporary shelter, aid management organization or welfare organization.

Article 16: Where the circumstances of domestic violence are lighter and public security administrative sanctions are not given in accordance with law, the public security organs are to give the perpetrator criticism and education or issue a written warning.

Written warnings shall include content such as the identity of the perpetrator, a statement of facts on the domestic violence incident, and a prohibition against the perpetrator continuing to commit domestic violence.

Article 17: Public security organs shall send the written warning to the perpetrator and victims, and inform residents' committees and villagers' committees.

Residents' committees, villagers' committees and public security police substations shall make inspection visits of perpetrators and victims that have received written warnings, and oversee that the perpetrator does not commit further domestic violence.

Article 18: People's governments at the county level or districted-city level may, either independently or by retaining an aid management organization, establish residential shelters to provide temporary residential assistance to victims of domestic violence.

Article 19: Legal aid organizations shall provide legal aid to victims of domestic violence in accordance with law.

People's courts shall delay, reduce, or waive litigation fees for victims of domestic violence in accordance with law.

Article 20: People's courts trying cases involving domestic violence may verify facts of domestic violence on the basis of evidence such as public security organs' dispatch records, written warnings, and injury evaluation opinions.

Article 21: Where guardians commit domestic violence and seriously encroach their wards' lawful rights and interests, the people's courts may revoke guardianship credentials in accordance with law and separately appoint another guardian on the basis of an application by relevant persons or units such as the wards' close relatives, residents' committees, villagers' committees, or civil affairs departments of county level people's governments.

Perpetrators who have their guardianship qualifications revoked shall continue to bear the costs of maintenance, support, or custody for their wards.

Article 22: Labor unions, the Communist Youth League, women's federations, the Disabled Persons Federations, residents' committees, villagers' committees and so forth, shall conduct legal education of perpetrators of domestic violence, and when necessary may conduct psychological counseling of the perpetrators and victims.

　　Chapter IV: Personal Safety Protection Orders

Article 23: Where parties apply to people's courts for a personal safety protection order because they have suffered domestic violence or face an actual threat of domestic violence, people's courts shall accept it.

Where parties are persons with limited or no civil capacity, or are unable to apply for a personal safety protection order due to reasons such as coercion or intimidation, their close relatives, public security organs, womens federations, residents' committees, villagers' committees, or aid management organizations may apply on their behalf.

Article 24: Applications for personal safety protection orders shall be submitted in writing; where there is truly a difficulty in applying in writing, the application may be oral and the people's courts will enter it in the record.

Article 25: The basic level people's courts for the residence of the applicant, the residence of the subject of the application, or the location where domestic violence occurred have jurisdiction over personal safety protection order cases.

Article 26: Personal safety protection orders are issued by the people's courts as a ruling.

Article 27: The following conditions shall be met to make a personal safety protection order:

(1) Have a clear subject of the application;

(2) Have a specific request;

(3) have circumstances of having suffered domestic violence or facing an actual threat of domestic violence.

Article 28: After people's courts accept an application, they shall make a personal safety protection order within 72 hours, or reject the application; where the situation is urgent, it shall be made within 24 hours.

Article 29: Personal safety protection orders may include the following measures:

(1) Prohibiting the subject of the application from perpetrating domestic violence;

(2) Prohibiting the subject of the application from harassing, following, or having contact with the applicant or their close family;

(3) ordering the subject of the application to move out of the applicant's residence;

(4) Other measures for the protection of the applicants' personal safety.

Article 30: The validity period for personal safety protection orders is not to exceed six months, and they take effect on the date they are made. Prior to the expiration of a personal safety protection order, people's courts may withdraw, modify or extend it on the basis of an applicant's application.

Article 31: Where applicants are dissatisfied with the rejection of an application or where the subject of an application is dissatisfied with the personal safety protection order, they may apply to the people's court making the ruling for a single reconsideration within 5 days of the ruling taking effect. The enforcement of personal safety protection orders made by a people's court in accordance with law is not stopped during the period for reconsideration.

Article 32: After people's courts issue personal safety protection orders, they shall be served on the applicant and subject of the application, the public security organs, as well as residents ' and villagers ' committees and other relevant organizations. Personal safety protection order are enforced by the people's courts; public security organs as well as residents' and villagers' committees shall assist in enforcement.

　　Chapter V: Legal Responsibility

Article 33: Where perpetrators commit domestic violence with conduct that constitutes a violation of public security management, public security punishments are to be given according to the law; where a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility is to be pursued in accordance with law.

Article 34: Where the subject of an application's violation of a personal safety protection order constitutes a crime, pursue criminal responsibility in accordance with law; where it does not constitute a crime, the people's courts shall give reprimands and may, on the basis of the severity, give a fine of up to 1000 yuan and detention of up to 15 days.

Article 35: Where schools, kindergartens, medical establishments, residents' committees, villagers' committees, social work service organizations, relief management organizations, welfare organizations or their employees do not follow article 14 of this law in making a report to the public security organs, causing serious consequences, the directly responsible management personnel and other directly responsible personnel are sanctioned by the competent administrative department at the level above or by that unit.

Article 36: Where state personnel who have anti-Domestic Violence duties derelict their duty, abuse their authority, or play favorites, they shall be punished in accordance with law; where it constitutes a crime, they shall be pursued for criminal responsibility in accordance with law.

　　Chapter VI: Supplementary Provisions

Article 37: Where persons living together other than family members commit acts of violence against each other, proceed with reference to this law.

Article 38: This law shall enter into force on March 1, 2016.