Law of the PRC on the Establishment of the Social Credit System (Draft Released for Solicitation of Public Comments)

Commentary

Franken-Law: Initial thoughts on the Draft Social Credit Law

I am hesitant to write anything about the new Draft Social Credit Law because, frankly, the draft is a mess and adds little to previous authority.

In order to implement the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important instructions on improving legal systems for the credit system, and in accordance with the arrangements and requirements of the Party Central Committee and State Council on promoting the high-quality development of the social credit system, the National Development and Reform Commission and People's Bank of China, in conjunction with the inter-ministerial conference for the establishment of the social credit system and other relevant departments, have researched and drafted this "Law of the PRC on the Establishment of the Social Credit System", which is hereby publicly released to solicit public comments.

"Establishment of a social credit system", as used in this Law, refers to the state mobilizing and leading government, market, and all social forces to promote the establishment of creditworthiness in government affairs, creditworthiness in commercial affairs, societal creditworthiness, and judicial credibility; improving credit reporting systems, regulating the handling of credit information, strengthening credit regulation, completing institutional mechanisms that praise creditworthiness and punish untrustworthiness, and advancing the establishment of a culture of creditworthiness.

Law of the PRC on the Establishment of the Social Credit System

(Draft Released for Solicitation of Public Comments)

Chapter I: General Provisions

Article 1: [Legislative Purpose]This law is formulated so as to improve the social credit system, innovate mechanisms for societal governance, optimize the business environment, standardize order in the Socialist market economy, raise the entire society's awareness of creditworthiness, advocate the Core Socialist Values, and complete a credit reporting system that covers the entire society.

Article 2: [Scope of Application]This Law applies to activities related to advancing the establishment of the social credit system inside the mainland territory of the People's Republic of China.

"Establishment of a social credit system", as used in this Law, refers to the state mobilizing and leading government, market, and all social forces to promote the establishment of creditworthiness in government affairs, creditworthiness in commercial affairs, societal creditworthiness, and judicial credibility; improving credit reporting systems, regulating the handling of credit information, strengthening credit regulation, completing institutional mechanisms that praise creditworthiness and punish untrustworthiness, and advancing the establishment of a culture of creditworthiness.

"Credit Information" as used in this Law, refers to information that can be used to recognize the identity and credit status of natural persons with full civil competency, legal persons, and unincorporated organizations. The handling of credit information includes its collection, storage, use, processing, transmission, provision, disclosure, deletion, and ensuring information security.

"Untrustworthiness" as used in this law refers to credit subjects' conduct that is lawfully designated and confirmed by state organs as not complying with creditworthiness.

Article 3: 【Government Duties】The State Council is to plan and coordinate the establishment of the social credit system, and people's governments at the county level or above are to plan and coordinate the establishment of the social credit system within the corresponding administrative region.

All levels of people's government shall strengthen leadership over the construction of the social credit system, include the establishment of a social credit system in the citizen's economic and social development plan, provide the necessary funding, and carry out oversight and evaluations of the efforts of relevant departments and subordinate people's governments in establishing the social credit system.

Article 4: [Management Departments] The National Development and Reform Commission and People's Bank of China are the State Council's departments for managing the establishment of the social credit system, and are responsible for the overall coordination, oversight, and guidance of the establishment of the social credit system, taking the lead in organizing the formulation and implementation of related policies and standards, and organizing their implementation. Other (regulatory) departments in charge of industries are responsible for efforts to establish the social credit system in the corresponding industry.

Article 5: [Credit Information Sharing] The social credit system should establish mechanisms for the interconnection and shared application of credit information, and each (regulatory) department in charge of an industry is to establish credit records of the subjects of their management, and lawfully carry out credit information sharing and application between departments.

Article 6: [Protection of Rights and Interests] The establishment of the social credit system shall safeguard the lawful rights and interests of natural persons, legal persons, and unincorporated organizations, maintain credit information security, and strictly protect state secrets, commercial secrets, and personal privacy.

Article 7: [Credit Pledges] Encourage the wide establishment of credit pledge systems throughout society. A credit pledge system should especially be fully established in the course of ex-ante, ongoing, and ex-post regulation, and encourage industry management departments and industry associations, and chambers of commerce to improve credit pledge systems for self-discipline in the industry. Relevant departments and units are to record the circumstances of the fulfillment of pledges in credit records in accordance with law.

"Credit pledges" as used in this law refers to pledges made to relevant departments (units) or the public by credit information subjects about their credit status or future performance of obligations.

Article 8: [Establishment of Industry Credit Systems] Each industry regulatory department shall promote the establishment of the corresponding industry's credit system, establish credit records for market entities in accordance with laws and regulations, carry out credit regulation, expand the establishment of creditworthiness for institutions and persons working in the industry, and regulate market order. Fields that meet the requirements may set up lists of seriously untrustworthy entities in accordance with law. Industry associations and chambers of commerce shall strengthen industry creditworthiness and self-discipline.

"Credit Regulation" as used in this Law refers to departments that have regulatory duties in accordance with law rationally and reasonably assessing the credit status of regulatory subjects based on their credit records and credit appraisals, and carrying out hierarchical and categorized regulation on this basis.

"Lists of seriously untrustworthy entities" as used in this Law refers to including credit information subjects with seriously untrustworthy violations of law in lists for management.

Article 9: [Praise for Creditworthiness] Within the scope of their legally-prescribed authority, state organs and organizations authorized by laws or regulations to have public affairs management duties shall implement incentives for credit information subjects with good credit statuses. Other organizations are encouraged to carry out market incentives for credit information subjects with good credit statuses.

Article 10: [Punishment of Untrustworthiness] Within the scope of their legally-prescribed authority, state organs and organizations authorized by laws or regulations to have public affairs management duties shall carry out punishments for entities with untrustworthy conduct.

Article 11: [Setting up Demonstrations] Departments for the establishment of the social credit system are to carry out activities to set up demonstrations, promptly discovering, summarizing, and spreading advanced experiences and practices in the establishment of the social credit system.

Chapter II: The establish of Creditworthiness in Government Affairs

Article 12: [Overall Requirements for the Establishment of Creditworthiness in Government Affairs] All levels of administrative organ shall give play to their function as role models for the establishment of credit, lawfully fulfilling their legally-prescribed duties, establishing a creditworthy government, accelerating the establishment of mechanisms for government trustworthiness and fulfillment of promises, and strengthening creditworthiness management and education for civil servants in accordance with law.

Article 13: [Honor Policies and Pledges] Administrative organs should earnestly fulfill and honor the policy commitments they make and all contracts they sign in accordance with law. They must not refuse or delay implementation on the grounds of institutional adjustments or personal changes, or indirectly [not?] implement policy commitments by requiring conditions that impair the rights and interests of market entities.

Where it is truly necessary to change policy commitments for the national interest or societal public interest, it shall be done in accordance with legally-prescribed procedures, and the market entities suffering losses as a result are to be compensated in accordance with law.

Article 14: [Oversight of Creditworthiness in Government Affairs] Establish mechanisms for the oversight of creditworthiness and accountability for untrustworthiness in government affairs, carrying out evaluations and appraisals of creditworthiness in government affairs, and including government affairs creditworthiness statuses in the government performance assessment system.

Article 15: [The establishment of civil servant creditworthiness] Establish creditworthiness archives for civil servants, and pay attention to their use in the evaluation and review of civil servants. Civil servants shall increase their awareness of creditworthiness in the performance of duties, and must not go against the requirements of establishing creditworthiness in government affairs during the performance of their duties.

Article 16: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Government Affairs in key sectors 1] Administrative organs shall strengthen the establishment of creditworthiness in government affairs in the area of attracting investment, introducing preferential policies in accordance with laws and regulations, and strictly honoring related commitments.

Article 17: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Government Affairs in key sectors 2] Administrative organs shall strengthen the establishment of creditworthiness in government affairs in the area of government procurement, strictly overseeing the credit status of procurers in the project performance and receipt stages, and addressing the illegal and untrustworthy conduct of procurers and related responsible persons in government procurement activities.

Article 18: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Government Affairs in key sectors 3] Administrative organs must not breach contracts by defaulting on credits for goods, projects, services, and the like; and people's governments at the county level or above, as well as their relevant departments, should expand the extent of governance for default, establishing long-term and effective mechanisms for preventing default.

Article 19: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Government Affairs in key sectors 4] Administrative organs shall strengthen the establishment of creditworthiness in government affairs in the area of local government debt, enhancing budgetary restraints for local government debt, and increasing transparency. Provincial level Party committees and governments bear overall responsibility for debt risks in the corresponding region and are to ensure the creditworthy fulfillment of local government debt, resolutely investigating and addressing acts of illegal borrowing.

Article 20: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Government Affairs in key sectors 5] Administrative organs shall strengthen the establishment of creditworthiness in government affairs in the area of public-private partnerships, and the responsible person for the government party in cooperative projects using public and private capital shall make pledges on responsibility for project stages such as planning, bidding and tendering, government procurement, financing, and implementation. Administrative organs shall include the trustworthy fulfillment of project agreements and their successful implementation in the credit records of the persons responsible for the government party.

Article 21: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Government Affairs in key sectors 6] Administrative organs shall strengthen the establishment of creditworthiness in government affairs in the area of government bidding and tendering, spreading and utilizing third-party credit reports and promptly disclosing information on related bidding agents' qualifications, credit information, and dynamic regulatory information to the public.

Chapter III: The establish of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs

Article 22: [Overall Requirements for the Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs] All types of market entities shall faithfully abide by the principle of honesty and credit in economic activities, operating with creditworthiness in accordance with law, respecting the spirit of contract, fulfilling commercial contracts, and building a market environment of fair competition.

Article 23: [Contract Performance] In all types of commercial activity, market entities shall fulfill the obligations provided for in lawfully concluded contracts and comply with credit pledges made in accordance with law. Large enterprises must not abuse their advantageous market position to conclude contracts containing unreasonable payment requirements or time limits, and must not breach contracts by defaulting on accounts for goods, projects, services, and so forth with small and medium-sized enterprises. Relevant departments and units are to record serious violations of contract provisions or the content of credit pledges in credit records in accordance with law.

Article 24: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 1] The departments in charge of production sectors shall share product quality credit information across regions and departments, emphasizing foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, daily consumer goods, agricultural products, and agricultural inputs. Departments with duties on the oversight and management of production safety are to strictly enforce mechanisms for production safety credit review, establish and complete systems for production safety announcements and pledges, and lawfully carry out punishments for seriously untrustworthy enterprises and persons working in the industry, emphasizing units in mining, metal smelting, construction, or transport; units that produce, trade in, store, or handle dangerous chemicals; and enterprises or units that trade in or use natural gas. Firefighting and rescue establishments shall strengthen credit regulation in the fire safety sector, urging units and individuals in society to perform fire safety duties in accordance with law.

Article 25: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 2] Departments in charge of the circulation sector shall guide commercial trade circulation enterprises in creditworthiness and self-discipline, encouraging enterprises to expand credit marketing and spur individuals' credit consumption. Departments with duties to oversee and manage the market shall intensify investigations of illegal conduct such as causing confusion in the marketplace, false promotions, commercial fraud, commercial defamation, and commercial bribery, and regulate prepay consumer behavior.

Article 26: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 3] Departments in charge of the statistics sector shall strictly investigate and address acts of deception and fraud in the field of statistics, increasing the extent of punishment for untrustworthy entities in statistics, incentivizing trustworthy conduct in statistics, and sharing credit information for the statistics sector across departments.

Article 27: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 4] The departments in charge of managing the registration of market entities shall aggregate relevant information from registration, administrative permits, routine regulation, and administrative law enforcement, and carry out hierarchical and categorical regulation based on market entities' credit statuses, including all types of illegal conduct in registration management in the market administration business irregularity lists and List of the Untrustworthy with Serious Violations, and expanding the extent of punishment for persons directly responsible for untrustworthy and illegal conduct.

Article 28: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 5] The departments in charge of the accounting sector shall lawfully take punishment measures such as restrictions on engaging in accounting work against accounting personnel with serious illegal and untrustworthy conduct; and where they are state employees, the unit to which they belong or relevant units are also to give administrative sanctions of removal from their positions or up to dismissal; and where a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility is pursued in accordance with law.

Article 29: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 6] The departments in charge of the finance sector shall increase the force of punishments for financial fraud, malicious evasion of bank debts, insider trading, selling fake warranties, insurance benefit fraud, disclosing false information, illegal fundraising, obtaining foreign currency under false pretenses, telecommunication network fraud, and other related illegal and untrustworthy conduct, to regulate order in financial markets.

Article 30: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 7] The departments in charge of the taxation sector shall carry out efforts on tax payment credit records and appraisals on the foundation of market entities' fulfillment of obligations to pay taxes and fees, shall strengthen hierarchical and categorized credit regulation and services in the taxation sector, giving play to the function of taxpayers' differing credit appraisals in to reward and punish taxpayers, guiding taxpayers in creditworthiness and self-discipline, and enhancing compliance with tax law.

Article 31: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 8] The departments in charge of the pricing sector shall guide businesses to strengthen creditworthiness and self-discipline in pricing, regulate and guide businesses' pricing conduct, urge businesses to strengthen internal pricing management, and lawfully investigate and address illegal and untrustworthy conduct such as the fabrication and spreading of information on price increases, pricing fraud, and pricing monopolies.

Article 32: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 9] The departments in charge of the construction sector shall expand the extent of punishment for enterprises and responsible workers in the industry that have major illegal and untrustworthy conduct such as having fault for major construction quality or safety incidents, and associate enterprises' and workers' credit appraisal results with the management of matters for approval and review such as qualifications approvals, registration of practice credentials, or cancellation of qualifications or credentials, and include piecemeal contracting, subcontracting, illegal contract division, arrears in payment of project funds or migrant workers' wages, in the scope of accountability for dishonesty.

Article 33: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 10] The departments in charge of managing transport shall establish a credit system for transport, establish a credit appraisal system targetting construction projects and transport services in areas such as public roads, railways, water routes, civil aviation, and the post; and strengthen the use of credit outcomes. Strengthen credit regulation for the construction, management, maintenance, and operation of transport infrastructure, increasing the capacity to ensure construction quality, operation, and maintenance. Establish and complete a comprehensive transport services credit system, regulating transport enterprises' business, creating a market environment of fair competition, honesty and trustworthiness; and promoting the establishment of a uniform and open market for transport.

Article 34: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 11] The departments in charge of the advertising sector shall strengthen credit regulation of advertisers, Advertising agents, advertisement publishers, advertising spokespersons, and so forth, strengthening reviews of advertising content, lawfully combatting false advertising that infringes on consumers' rights and interests, and other such conduct.

Article 35: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 12] The competent departments related to intermediary services shall truly strengthen credit regulation for intermediary service establishments and professional service bodies such as for lawyers, arbitration, notarization, accounting, tax services, guarantees, authentication, inspection and testing, environmental impact assessments, appraisals, certification, agency, management, employment introductions, consulting, trading, and scientific and technical services; enhance information disclosures, lawfully combat illegal and untrustworthy conduct such as the issuance of fake reports and provision of fake experimental research, to preserve the normal market order.

Article 36: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 13]The departments in charge of the radio sector shall strengthen credit regulation of radio frequencies, radio stations, the management of radio transmission equipment, and radio wave order maintenance, to promote the effective development and utilization of radio spectrum resources and ensure the normal operation of all types of radio services.

Article 37: [Establishment of Creditworthiness in Commercial Affairs in key sectors 14] As the department overseeing and managing border crossings, customs shall strengthen regulation and guidance of entities related to the import/export trade, providing facilitation for trustworthy entities and carrying out punishments for untrustworthy entities, carrying out credit training and education for all types of entity related to the import/export trade, enhancing the use of mechanisms incentivizing trustworthiness and retraining untrustworthiness, building new forms of credit-based regulatory mechanisms for customs, and creating a creditworthy import/export business environment.

Chapter IV: Establishing Societal Creditworthiness

Article 38: [Overall Requirements for the Establishment of Social Creditworthiness] In every step of establishing public service systems and improving a jointly constructed, sharing, and jointly governed social governance system, the relevant departments shall actively give play to the function of credit establishment, continuously increasing the quality of public services and raising the level of social governance. All parts of society are encouraged to strengthen publicity and education on creditworthiness and advocate a culture of creditworthiness.

Article 39: [Establishment of Social Creditworthiness in key sectors 1] Departments in charge of labor security shall complete credit regulation mechanisms for the labor protection sector, encourage laborers and employer units to be creditworthy and law-abiding and to be lawful in employing workers; carry out credit appraisals on the labor protections of employer units, human resources service establishments, and labor dispatch agencies; publicly announce and display major violations of laws and regulations in labor protections; increase the degree of struggle against illegal conduct that violates laborer's rights and interests, as well as improper acts in the training and assessment of skilled technical workers; increase the extent of punishment for conduct such as carrying out public training without teaching permits, carrying out professional qualifications assessments or professional skill level verification without having filed with the departments for human resources and social security, or the improper issuance of professional qualification or skill level certificates; combat all types of illegal and untrustworthy conduct such as illegal intermediaries, employment, and testing or arbitration fraud, to ensure the lawful rights and interests of laborers.

Article 40: [Establishment of Social Creditworthiness in key sectors 2] The departments in charge of the social services and social security sector shall strengthen the establishment of credit systems in the corresponding sectors, complete credit management systems, strengthen credit regulation, and carry out the notice and pledge system; enhance the force of examinations and inspections of conduct such as obtaining social insurance benefits or fund payments improperly, through fraud or deception, and the refusal to repay work-related insurance benefits that were paid in advance from the work-related injury insurance fund, that is committed by social service establishments such as insurance-designated hospitals, designated pharmacies, medical institutions with work-related injury insurance agreements, institutions with agreements for rehabilitation of work-related injuries, institutions with agreements to allocate assistive devices for work-related injury insurance, and vocational skills training institutions, as well as their staffs, employer units, and their legal representatives, or third parties, intermediary establishments, and enrolled beneficiaries.

Article 41: [Establishment of Social Creditworthiness in key sectors 3] Departments in charge of the health and medicine sector shall cultivate the concepts of creditworthy practice, creditworthy purchasing, creditworthy treatment, creditworthy billing, creditworthy health insurance, and creditworthy work-related injury insurance; punishing the collection of bribes, excessive treatment, and other illegal and untrustworthy conduct, strictly combatting acts of counterfeiting and ensuring that the public uses medicine safely and effectively.

Article 42: [Establishment of Social Creditworthiness in key sectors 4] Departments in charge of the education and human resources sector shall establish and complete credit systems and related standards for the corresponding industry, improve credit regulation mechanisms for the education and human resources sector, carry out credit appraisals of related institutions and their workers, and strengthen the pursuit, investigation, and handling of issues such as resume fraud, cheating on tests, examination fraud, academic misconduct, examination and recruitment fraud, improper teaching, improper training, improper carrying out self-testing tutoring, improper issuance of certificates, and improper internships.

Article 43: [Establishment of Social Creditworthiness in key sectors 5] The departments in charge of the scientific research sector shall strengthen the establishment of creditworthiness in scientific research, fully promoting a pledge system for creditworthiness in scientific research, strengthening reviews of creditworthiness in the entire process of scientific research, organizing the carrying out of credit records and appraisals for entities related to the scientific research sector, increasing awareness of creditworthiness at scientific research establishments and among researchers, and regulating activities reviewing scientific research. Lawfully investigate and address conduct such as plagiarism, stealing work, forgery, alteration, buying and selling, and writing papers for others, as well as serious violations of the norms for managing scientific research activities, and carry out punishments.

Article 44: [Establishment of Social Creditworthiness in key sectors 6] The departments in charge of culture and tourism shall establish a credit management system for managing the entire country's culture and tourism market, establish and improve credit records for market entities and workers, widely use credit records in key sectors, strengthen credit regulation, preserve market order, carry out efforts on credit appraisals, and expand the scenarios in which credit is applied. The departments in charge of the sports sector shall broadly use the credit records of professional sports workers, professional sports clubs, and intermediary enterprises in areas such as participation and hosting of professional sporting competitions, entry into professional sporting, and transfers.

Article 45: [Establishment of Social Creditworthiness in key sectors 7] The departments in charge of the intellectual property rights sector shall establish and complete a credit system for the intellectual property rights sector, strengthen credit regulation, establish credit records, and advance efforts on credit appraisals. Strengthen joint disciplinary action for seriously untrustworthy conduct such as violations of intellectual property rights, enhance the force of punishments for untrustworthy conduct such as trademark squatting and irregular patent applications, advance credit pledge systems, encourage the establishment of self-discipline mechanisms for protecting intellectual property rights, and increase the entire society's awareness of protecting intellectual property rights.

Article 46: [Establishment of Social Creditworthiness in key sectors 8] The departments in charge of the ecology and environment sector shall include enterprises' and public institutions' compliance with environmental laws and regulations and their performance of social responsibility on environmental protection in an environmental protection credit system. Aggregate information on violations and untrustworthiness by key environmental regulatory units and environmental protection service establishments and their staffs, strengthen sharing and joint use of environmental protection credit information and promote relevant departments' implementation of incentives for trustworthiness and punishments for untrustworthiness. Relevant enterprises and public institutions should disclose environmental information in accordance with relevant state provisions, and relevant circumstances are to be environmental protection credit information and shared with institutions such as banks, securities establishments, and insurance establishments.

Article 47:[Establishment of Social Creditworthiness 9] The departments in charge of the internet sector shall cultivate the concepts of managing the network in accordance with law and using the networks in a creditworthy way, employing measures such as restricting internet services, restricting online conduct, prohibiting industry entry, and disclosure and exposure to relevant departments against individuals and organizations and workers who violate laws, administrative regulations, and department rules on online information security, network operation security, online data security, and the protection of personal information. The state is to establish public service infrastructure for online identity verification, to provide the public service of online identity verification to state organs and the public.

Article 48: [Establishment of Social Creditworthiness 10] The civil affairs departments shall strengthen the establishment of credit for social organizations such as social groups, foundations, and social service organizations, establish a list system for seriously untrustworthy entities, guide social organizations to include content on the establishment of creditworthiness in their charters, establish an information disclosure system for social organizations, to increase the transparency and credibility of social organizations. Guide basic-level mass autonomous organizations in strengthing the establishment of credit, improve mechanisms for managing creditworthiness and creditworthiness self-discipline, and increase the basic-level mass autonomous organizations' awareness of creditworthiness and level of credit.

Article 49: [Establishment of Social Creditworthiness in key sectors 11] The departments in charge of telecommunications shall strengthen the information and communications industry's credit management in areas such as the prevention and governance of telecommunication network fraud, real name systems for telephones, and the management of IoT card security; establish and complete long-term effective systems, advancing punishments for untrustworthiness in accordance with laws and regulations, and promoting the healthy and orderly development of the industry. Implement measures such as refusing to open accounts, restricting or suspending relevant services, as well as prohibiting entry into the industry for units and individuals that illegally provide telecommunications operations.

Article 50: [Publicity and Education on Creditworthiness] Encourage the carrying out of activities on the theme of creditworthiness, giving full play to the role of all kinds of news media in publicity and guidance, expand the extent of publicity on examples of creditworthiness and cases of untrustworthiness, making it so that honesty and trustworthiness become the conscious pursuit of the entire society. Further enrich the content on creditworthiness in all levels and types of education and training, forcefully carry out activities to bring creditworthiness education into schools, communities, and families. Schools of higher learning that have the capacity shall strengthen the cultivation of talent in credit management, carrying out research in areas such as credit theory, credit management, and credit standards. Establish and complete practical training and professional evaluation systems for credit management, expanding the construction of a talent corps for the social credit system.

Chapter V: Establishing Judicial Credibility

Article 51: [The Overall Requirements for the Establishment of Judicial Credibility] All levels of judicial organ shall strengthen the establishment of judicial credibility, optimizing the allocation of judicial authority, independently and fairly exercising authority in accordance with law, increasing the degree of judicial openness, increasing judicial credibility, and preserving the authority of the law and social fairness and justice.

Article 52: [The Establishment of trial organ credibility] Trial organs shall give play to the role of trial functions to encourage creditworthy transactions and advocate mutual trust and cooperation, punish untrustworthy conduct such as commercial fraud and willful violation or breach of contracts, and lead a trend of honesty and trustworthiness.

Trial organs shall advance the disclosure of case information in accordance with law and increase the enforcement rate for effective legal documents.

Judges shall abide by professional ethics and perform their duties in accordance with law. Judges shall handle cases impartially and are not to be interfered with by administrative organs, social groups, and individuals.

Article 53: [The Establishment of procuratorate credibility] Procuratorate organs shall perform their legal oversight functions in accordance with law, giving full play to criminal, civil, administrative, and public interest litigation procuratorate functions, to urge the establishment of creditworthiness.

Procuratorate organs shall deepen disclosure of procuratorate affairs in accordance with law, safeguarding the public's right to know, right of participation, right to oversee procuratorial work.

Procurators shall have the facts as their basis and the laws as their measure, and maintain an objective and fair posture in lawfully performing their duties, and are not to be interfered with by administrative organs, social groups, and individuals.

Article 54: [The Establishment of public security organ credibility] Public security organs carrying out criminal judicial functions shall fully carry out “sunshine law enforcement”; lawfully and promptly publishing information such as case-handling system specifications and procedural time limits.

The public security organs shall strengthen the management of public security, road traffic safety, immigration, and border crossings, and internet security. Publicly display serious traffic violations; strengthen publicity, education, and warnings about serious traffic violations and traffic accidents, and strictly manage illegal and untrustworthy conduct that threatens road traffic safety.

Article 55: [The Establishment of credibility for the judicial-administrative organs] Judicial-administrative organs shall strengthen the level of standardized and institutionalized management of prisons, drug rehabilitation facilities, and community corrections establishments; preserve the lawful rights and interests of persons serving sentences, in drug rehabilitation, or in community corrections; and advance the disclosure of judicial administration information.

Article 56: [The establishment of credibility for judicial services bodies] Arbitration commissions, law firms, notary offices, forensic evaluation establishments, and other judicial service bodies shall strengthen their own credit establishment, and practice fairly and justly in accordance with law.

Article 57: [The establishment of creditworthiness for judicial service personnel] Lawyers, notaries, basic-level legal service workers, legal aid personnel, forensic evaluators, and other such judicial service personnel shall practice in a creditworthy and regulated manner.

Related judicial organs shall establish credit records for judicial service personnel, recording the untrustworthy conduct of judicial service personnel in credit records in accordance with laws and regulations.

Chapter VI: The Management of Credit information

Article 58: [The Scope and Types of Credit Information] Credit information includes basic information and information that can reflect a credit information subject's credit.

Basic information refers to information used to identify credit information subjects' identities and indicate their basic circumstances.

Information that can reflect credit information subjects' credit includes information related to creditor rights and debts, and information such as on their performance in economic and social activities of obligations prescribed by laws, regulations, and effective legal documents; their compliance with administrative management and provisions related to public services; and on their performance of obligations provided by contracts, and pledges they made in accordance with law or of their own accord and their fulfillment of them; as well as information on administrative permits, qualification levels, honors, and commendations, and credit appraisals made on the basis of the information described above.

Article 59: [Uniform social credit codes] The uniform social credit code is the sole entity identification code for credit information subjects' engagement in social credit activities. The aggregation, processing, provision, and storage of credit information shall be based on uniform social credit codes.

Natural persons' citizen identification numbers are their uniform social credit codes; where they have no citizen identification number, their other valid identification document numbers are to be their uniform social credit code.

The uniform social credit codes for legal persons and unincorporated organizations are to be issued by the registration departments, and where they are not required to register in accordance with law, the relevant management department is to issue them.

Article 60: [Handling of Credit Information] The handling of credit information shall respect the principles of legality, propriety, necessity, and creditworthiness, and methods such as misdirection, fraud, or coercion must not be used in handling credit information.

The handling of credit information shall have a clear and reasonable purpose, shall be directly related to that purpose, and employ the means with the smallest impact on credit information subjects' rights and interests.

Article 61: [Handling Natural Persons' Credit Information] The handling of natural persons' credit information should strictly comply with the relevant provisions of laws and administrative regulations.

State organs handling natural persons' credit information in order to perform their legally-prescribed duties are not required to obtain the individual's authorization but shall perform obligations to give notice except where they are handling information that is already publicly disclosed or where notice would impede the performance of their legally-prescribed duties.

Article 62: 【Prohibitions on the handling of credit information] Organizations and individuals must not carry out the following conduct:

(1) Make inquiries into Credit Information exceeding their authority;

(2) Use credit information beyond the scope agreed to with the credit information subjects;

(3) Steal, alter, fabricate, or improperly delete credit information;

(4) Leak credit information for which there is no authorization for disclosure;

(5) Leak Credit Information related to state secrets, commercial secrets, and personal privacy;

(6) Other conduct prohibited by laws or regulations.

Article 63: [Storage of Credit Information] From the date on which it is produced, credit information is to be stored long-term and promptly updated.

Where credit information subjects' information involves decisions or judgments of administrative or judicial organs, it is to be stored for five years from the date on which the administrative or judicial organ made an effective decision or judgment. Where laws and administrative regulations provide a validity period for information, the storage period is to be calculated from the completion of the validity period. At the completion of the storage period, credit information handlers shall delete the related information.

Where laws and regulations have separate provisions for the storage of Credit Information, follow those provisions.

Article 64: [Management of the Export of Credit Information] The handling of credit information should be conducted with the mainland territory. There is an exception where laws and administrative regulations provide otherwise or other agreements have been made between governments.

Article 65: [Handling of Public Credit Information] The State authorizes the State Public Credit Information Center to handle public credit information.

The state is to establish a national public credit information sharing platform and local public credit information sharing platforms (hereinafter public credit information sharing platforms) responsible for the collection, processing, provision, storage, and disclosure of Public Credit Information. Public Credit Information sharing platforms are the hubs for sharing and exchanging all types of public credit information.

The state implements directory management for Public Credit Information, with the State Council departments for managing the establishment of the social credit system and organizing the compilation in conjunction with relevant departments. State organs shall provide information to the Public Credit Information sharing platforms in accordance with the directory, and the Public Credit Information sharing platform is to promptly carry out updates.

"Public Credit Information" as used in this Law refers to credit information produced or acquired by state organs and organizations authorized by laws or regulations to have public affairs management duties in the course of performing legally-prescribed duties or in the provision of public services.

Article 66: [Public Credit Reports] "Public Credit Information Reports" as used in this Law refers to the activities of state organs and organizations authorized by laws or regulations to have public affairs management duties to centralize the provision or display of a credit information subjects' Public Credit Information in accordance with law based on that credit information subjects' application or authorization.

Article 67: [Public credit appraisal] The departments for the management of the establishment of the social credit system are to carry out public credit appraisals of market entities. Other state organs may carry out industry credit appraisals on the foundation of the public credit appraisal. The related appraisal results may be a basis for state organs' and organizations authorized by laws or regulations to have public affairs management duties' allocation of public resources and carrying out regulation by credit level and category. Market entities may voluntarily use credit appraisal results as a reference.

"Public Credit Information appraisal" as used in this Law refers to activities in the comprehensive use of diverse methods such as statistical methods, modeling, and field certification based on Public Credit Information, to conduct an assessment of credit information subjects' credit status and to present or display it in a suitable form such as a grade or quantitative standard.

Article 68: [Public Credit Information Sharing Platform Services] The Public Credit Information sharing platforms providing public information services to the public may collect fees in accordance with the principle of compensating costs, and the fee standards are to be provided by the State Council departments in charge of pricing.

Article 69: [Management of Public Credit Information Sharing Platforms] The departments in charge of social credit for people's governments at the county level or above are to conduct oversight and management of the Public Credit Information sharing platform for the same level. The State Public Credit Information Center and each level of Public Credit Information Center is responsible for the establishment and operation of the Public Credit Information sharing platform.

Article 70: [The Collection and Display of Public Credit Information] Through the Public Credit Information sharing platforms, the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System, and government portal websites, and so forth, each level of people's government shall lawfully collect and publicly display the Public Credit Information that may be disclosed under the name of each credit information subject.

Chapter VII: Development and Regulation of the Credit Reporting Industry

Article 71: [Credit Reporting System] A credit reporting system that covers the entire society should follow the development orientation of being marketized, brought under the rule of law, and scientific.

"Credit reporting system" as used by this law refers to the arrangement of relevant institutions, systems, and regulations based on credit reporting operations.

Article 72: [Credit Reporting Operations] "Credit Reporting Operations" as used in this Law refers to activities in the collection, sorting, storage, and processing of credit information, and its provision to credit users.

State organs and organizations authorized by laws or regulations to have public affairs management duties' handling of credit information for the performance of their duties in accordance with laws, administrative regulations, and provisions of the State Council, are not credit reporting operations.

Article 73: [Credit Reporting Establishments] “Credit Reporting Establishments" as used in this Law refers to lawfully established institutions primarily carrying out credit reporting operations.

Article 74: [Regulatory Duties]The People's Bank of China is the State Council department in charge of oversight and management of the credit reporting industry, responsible for researching and drafting a strategy, plans, and policies for the development of the credit reporting industry, and for drafting rules for entry into the credit reporting market and operations rules, organizing the drafting of related standards, and carrying out oversight and management of the nation's credit reporting industry in accordance with law.

The main stock holders and actual controllers of credit reporting establishments, and others engaged in activities related to credit reporting operations should accept the oversight of the State Council's department for oversight and management of the credit reporting industry.

Rules related to credit reporting establishments' handling of Public Credit Information are to be formulated separately by the National Development and Reform Commission in conjunction with the People's Bank of China.

Where the Public Credit Information sharing platforms provide services for financial activities, the relevant service activities are to accept operational management by the departments for oversight and management of the credit reporting industry.

Credit reporting establishments' information providers and information users should comply with credit reporting laws, regulations, and regulatory provisions.

Article 75: [Permit Management] The state is to carry out uniform permit management for credit reporting establishments' engagement in credit reporting operations, including the scope of credit reporting, qualifications for director, supervisor, or senior management positions, and other ex-ante approvals. The State Council department for the oversight and management of the credit reporting industry is responsible for drafting specific requirements for relevant permits.

The "scope of credit reporting operations" as used in this law includes credit reports, credit scoring, credit rating, credit investigations, credit consultation, and related activities.

Without the approval of the State Council department for the oversight and management of the credit reporting industry, institutions and individuals must not register to carry out credit reporting activities under the name of credit reporting and its operations.

Article 76: [Basic Financial Credit Information Databases] The state is to establish Basic Financial Credit Information Databases to prevent financial risks and urge the finance industry to provide credit information services and establish dedicated institutions responsible for their operation. Institutions engaged in lending and financing guarantee operations should provide and share credit information with them. The State Council department for the oversight and management of the credit reporting industry is to lawfully conduct oversight and management of the activities of the Basic Financial Credit Information Databases and their access institutions.

Article 77: [Credit Reports] "Making credit reports" as used in this law refers to the activities in the collection, sorting, storage, and processing of credit information, forming information databases, and lawfully providing or displaying credit information based on the application or authorization of the related entity.

Article 78: [Credit Scoring] "Credit scoring" as used in this law refers to activities using statistical methods and modeling based on relatively more systematic credit information to assess credit information subjects' credit status and present or display it in the forms such as a score.

Article 79: [Credit Rating]"Credit Rating" as used in this Law refers to activities of conducting an analysis of credit risk factors that impact legal person economic entities or their debt financing tools and making a comprehensive appraisal of their ability and willingness to repay debts, and displaying this through a credit rating symbol defined in advance.

Article 80: [Credit Investigation] "Credit Investigation" as used in this Law refers to activities at the commission of clients using methods such as information queries, interviews, and on-site inspections to learn about and appraise the credit status of the investigation's subject and provide an investigation report to provide a reference for clients in making transactions, addressing overdue accounts and economic disputes, selecting trading partners, and so forth.

Article 81: [Credit Consultation] "Credit Consultation" as used in this law refers to activities such as using credit information data and professional analysis techniques to assist individuals, enterprises, and other organizations in recognizing, preventing, and managing credit risks, as well as providing credit risk monitoring and credit risk resolution plans.

Article 82: [Requirements for Credit Reporting Operations] Credit reporting establishments issuing reports shall employ reasonable measures to ensure the timeliness, accuracy, and completeness of the information they provide.

Credit reporting establishments engaging in credit scoring operations shall have objective and equitable methods of credit scoring. Credit reporting establishments shall increase the transparency of credit scoring operations.

Credit reporting establishments engaged in credit rating operations shall fully carry out due diligence investigations, certify the reliability and validity of materials and information needed for the rating, comply with credit rating norms and procedures, improve internal control mechanisms, and strengthen independence and the management of information disclosures. Credit reporting establishments engaged in credit rating operations should comply with regulatory provisions of relevant departments for the management of credit rating services.

Credit reporting establishments engaged in credit investigation and credit consultation operations must not harm the national interest, the societal public interest, or the lawful rights and interests of citizens, legal persons, and unincorporated organizations, and must not disclose state secrets, commercial secrets, and personal privacy.

Article 83: [Management of Credit Reporting Standards] In conjunction with relevant departments, the State Council department for the oversight and management of credit reporting operations is to organize the drafting and revision at appropriate times of standards related to credit reporting data formats, credit reporting information technology, and credit reporting products and services. The state is to support enterprises and social groups, educational or research bodies, and so forth, participating in drafting standards.

Article 84: [Industry Self-discipline Management] The state is to establish a credit reporting industry association to conduct self-discipline and management of the credit reporting industry. Credit reporting establishments shall join the credit reporting industry association, and information-providing establishments and information-using establishments that have operations related to credit reporting establishments are encouraged to join the credit reporting industry association. The State Council department for the oversight and management of the credit reporting industry is to conduct guidance and oversight of the credit reporting industry association's industry self-discipline and management activities in accordance with law.

Article 85: [Management of Information Security] Credit reporting establishments shall appoint dedicated personnel and establish complete systems for information security management, and fulfill obligations to protect information security as required by laws and regulations. The State Council department for the oversight and management of the credit reporting industry is to periodically conduct inspections of credit reporting establishments' information security management situation.

Article 86: [Oversight and Management of the Credit Reporting Industry] The State Council department for the oversight and management of the credit reporting industry should improve laws and regulations related to the credit reporting industry in accordance with law, strengthen industry regulation, protect individuals' private information and enterprises' commercial secrets, protect the lawful rights and interests of credit information subjects, and protect the security of the nation's credit reporting information.

Chapter VIII: Praising creditworthiness and punishing untrustworthiness

Article 87: [Main Direction] The state is to establish and improve the system of incentives for trustworthiness and punishments for untrustworthiness, advocating for and praising honesty and trustworthiness and conducting punishment and restraint of untrustworthy conduct in accordance with law.

Article 88: [Incentive Measures for Trustworthiness 1] The state organs may employ the following incentive measures within the scope of their legally-prescribed authority for credit information subjects with good credit:

(1) Apply facilitation measures such as priority handling or simplified procedures, on the basis of actual conditions when providing public services;

(2) Where other requirements are equal, make them priority choices for public financing and project support;

(3) Give priority consideration in public resource trading where other conditions are equal;

(4) Reduce the frequency of inspections and the ratio of spot inspections in routine regulation;

(5) Give priority consideration when giving commendations and awards or bestowing honors where other conditions are equal;

(6) Other measures provided by laws and regulations.

Article 89: [Incentive Measures for Trustworthiness 2] Aside from state organs, other organizations and individuals may provide facilitation and preferential measures to credit information subjects with good credit in areas such as credit services, financing credit, bidding and tendering, and commercial cooperation, in accordance with laws and regulations and based on their own duties and needs.

Article 90: [Punishment measures for untrustworthiness 1] The punishment measures for untrustworthiness are to implement a list management system. The State Council department for managing the establishment of the social credit system shall collaborate with relevant regions and departments to organize the compilation of a National Basic List of Punishment Measures for Untrustworthiness, and periodically update it and release it to the public.

State organs may carry out the following punishment measures for untrustworthiness based on the list:

(1) Centralized display of negative information;

(2) Inclusion in the scope of key oversight and management;

(3) Restrict applications for government fund programs, restrict the enjoyment of preferential policies and facilitation measures, and restrict participation in awards selections;

(4) Inclusion in lists of seriously untrustworthy entities in accordance with laws and regulations;

(5) Carrying out market or sector entry prohibitions in accordance with laws and regulations;

(6) Restrict participation in bidding and tendering and government procurement activities in accordance with laws and regulations;

(7) Restrict practice in industry, restrict the holding of positions, and restrict related consumer conduct in accordance with laws and regulations;

(8) Restrict exit from the country in accordance with laws and regulations.

Where punishment measures for untrustworthiness in the preceding paragraph are administrative punishments, they shall be enforced in accordance with provisions on administrative punishment.

Article 91: [Punishment measures for untrustworthiness 2] Aside from state organs and organizations authorized by laws or regulations to have public affairs management duties, other organizations and individuals may impose restrictions and restraints on credit information subjects with relatively poor credit in areas such as credit services, financing credit, bidding and tendering, and commercial cooperation, in accordance with laws and regulations and based on their own duties and needs.

Article 92: [Management systems for lists of seriously untrustworthy entities] The setup of lists of seriously untrustworthy entities must be directly based on laws and regulations.

Where setting up a list of seriously untrustworthy entities, central state organs and relevant localities shall formulate an accompanying management system for the list of seriously untrustworthy entities in the form of laws, regulations, or department rules, and clarify content such as the standards for entry into the list, requirements for removal, adverse impacts, remedial channels, and relevant procedures.

Except where effective legal documents serve as the basis for entry into the list of seriously untrustworthy entities, before state organs decide to enter credit information subjects into the list of seriously untrustworthy entities, they shall notify the credit information subjects of the reasons and basis for the decision and of the rights enjoyed by the credit information subjects in accordance with law. Where credit information subjects request a hearing, state organs shall arrange a hearing in accordance with law. Where state organs decide to enter a credit information subject into a list of seriously untrustworthy entities, they shall draft a written decision. The decision document shall indicate content such as the reasons and basis for entering the credit information subjects into the list of seriously untrustworthy entities, warnings of punishment measures for untrustworthiness, requirements for removal, and remedial channels, and procedures.

Chapter IX: Protection of Rights and Interests

Article 93: [Credit Information subjects' right to know] Credit information subjects have the right to know about conditions such as the collection, aggregation, processing, and sharing, of Credit Information related to them, as well as the sources of information contained in their credit reports and the reason for any changes.

Article 94: [Credit information subjects' right to make inquiries] The national public credit information sharing platform and local public credit information sharing platforms shall provide credit information subjects with an unlimited number of free inquiry services. Natural persons may receive their own credit reports without charge twice each year from Basic Financial Credit Information Databases and credit reporting establishments engaged in operations such as making credit reports.

Article 95: [Credit information subjects' right to make objections] Where credit information subjects feel that any of the following situations exists, they may submit an objection to the credit information handlers:

(1) There were situations such as errors or omissions in the collection, processing, provision, or storage of credit information;

(2) commercial secrets of the credit information subjects were violated;

(3) Personal privacy and other lawful rights and interests of individuals were violated.

Article 96: [Outcomes of handling objections] Credit information handlers shall make an objection label within 3 working days of receiving the objection materials, review and verify within 20 working days of making the objection label, and complete handling in accordance with the following methods:

(1) Where the information is found to be without error, make no corrections;

(2) Where there are errors in the information, correct it;

(3) Where there are omissions in the information, supplement them;

(4) Where the credit information subjects' information has exceeded the period for storage, delete it;

(5) Where the information violates the credit information subjects' commercial secrets, personal privacy, and other lawful rights and interests of individuals; delete it.

After the handling of the objection is completed, the credit information handlers shall immediately cancel the objection label and notify the person who submitted the objection of the outcome in writing. During the period of handling the objection, inquiries into the related information and its storage are not impacted.

Credit information providers should cooperate with credit information handlers in completing efforts on handling objections; credit information users must not make discriminatory arrangements for handling objections.

Article 97: [Handling dissatisfaction with the handling of objections] Where credit information subjects are not satisfied with credit information handlers' handling of objections, they may make a complaint to the higher-level management department for the information handler or directly initiate litigation.

Article 98: [Credit restoration after correction of untrustworthy conduct] Where credit information subjects have corrected their untrustworthy conduct, they have the right to apply to the designating unit for credit restoration. Where credit information subjects submit applications and satisfy the requirements for credit restoration, the designating units shall promptly employing the following credit restoration measures:

(1) Removal from lists of seriously untrustworthy entities;

(2) Ending inquiries, centralized display, and other conduct providing information on untrustworthy conduct;

(3) Delete information on untrustworthy conduct.

Designating units must not accept fees in any form from entities applying for credit restoration. Designating units shall establish and improve coordination mechanisms for credit restoration, promptly and simultaneously updating credit restoration information following the correction of untrustworthy conduct. After the completion of credit restoration, relevant units should promptly stop punishment measures against credit information subjects.

Article 99: [Rights to complain and for reconsideration and litigation] Where state organs employ punishment measures for untrustworthiness against credit information subjects, the credit information subjects have the right to submit complaints against the unit carrying out the punishment, and may also apply for an administrative reconsideration or initiate administrative litigation. The implementation of punishment measures for untrustworthiness is not impacted during the period of handling the complaints, administrative reconsideration, or administrative litigation.

Article 100: [Oversight of Credit Information subjects' complaints] The State Council department for the oversight and management of the credit reporting industry should guide the Basic Financial Credit Information Databases and credit reporting establishments in establishing and improving systems for handling credit information subjects' complaints, and conduct oversight of their implementation.

Chapter X: Legal Responsibility

Article 101: Where the staff of state organs violates the provisions of this law by abusing authority, dereliction of duties, or twisting the law for personal gain in processes such as the management of credit information, credit oversight and management, handling objections, and credit restoration, the sanction decision-making organ is to give sanctions in accordance with law based on the severity of the circumstances, and where a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility is pursued in accordance with law.

Article 102: Where, without approval from the State Council department for the oversight and regulation of the credit reporting industry, credit reporting establishments are set up or credit reporting operations are engaged in without authorization, the State Council department for the oversight and regulation of the credit reporting industry is to shut it down in accordance with law confiscate unlawful gains, and give a fine of up to two times the unlawful gains; where the circumstances are serious or serious consequences are caused, confiscate unlawful gains and give a fine of between 2 and 5 times the unlawful gains. Where losses are caused to information subjects, civil liability is to be borne in accordance with law; and where a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility is pursued in accordance with law.

ARticle 103: Where Basic Financial Credit Information Database operating establishments or credit reporting establishments engaged in operations of making credit reports fail to employ reasonable measures to ensure that the legality of the sources of the information they provide, its timeliness, accuracy, or completeness, and cause adverse consequences, the State Council department for the oversight and regulation of the credit reporting industry is to order corrections and give a concurrent fine of between 500,000 and 2,000,000 RMB; where the circumstances are serious or serious consequences are caused, give a fine of between 2,000,000 and 5,000,000 RMB, and where corrections are refused, cancel permits for credit reporting operations. Give warnings to directly responsible personnel and give concurrent fines of between 10,000 and 200,000 RMB. Where losses are caused to information subjects, civil liability is to be borne in accordance with law.

Article 104: Where Basic Financial Credit Information Databases operating establishments and credit reporting establishments violate requirements for managing the protection of information security by failing to appoint designated information security management personnel, failing to establish complete and strictly implement information security systems, or failing to employ necessary technical measures to effectively ensure information security, the State Council department for the oversight and management of the credit reporting industry is to order corrections and give a fine of between 500,000 and 2,000,000 RMB. Where the failure to employ effective measures causes leaks of credit information data, the State Council department for the oversight and regulation of the credit reporting industry is to order corrections and give a concurrent fine of between 500,000 and 2,000,000 RMB; where the circumstances are serious or serious consequences are caused, give a fine of between 5,000,000 and 10,000,000 RMB, and cancel permits for credit reporting operations. Where relevant establishments and individuals cause losses to information subjects, civil liability is to be borne in accordance with law; and where a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility is pursued in accordance with law.

Article 105: Where credit reporting establishments engaged in credit rating operations violate independence requirements, rating procedures and operations rules, requirements for information disclosure, requirements for internal control and management, and so forth, the State Council department for oversight and management of the credit reporting industry is to give fines in accordance with law. Where there are unlawful gains, confiscate the unlawful gains and give a concurrent fine of between 2 and 5 times the unlawful gains; where there are no unlawful gains, or there is no way to calculate the unlawful gains, give a fine of between 5,000,000 and 10,000,000 RMB, and give warnings and a concurrent fine of between 30,000 and 100,000 RMB to directly responsible persons. Where the circumstances are serious or serious consequences are caused, the State Council department for oversight and management of the credit reporting industry is to cancel their qualifications for credit rating operations.

Article 106: Where credit reporting establishments' information providers or information users fail to comply with laws, regulations, and regulatory provisions on credit reporting, the State Council department for oversight and management of the credit reporting industry is to give fines; and where a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility is pursued in accordance with law.

Article 107: Where Public Credit Information handlers violate this law, the department for the establishment of the social credit system of local people's governments at the county level or above is to have a meeting with the principal responsible person or relevant responsible persons for the unit, and order corrections; where corrections are refused, they may give a punishment of restricting production and business activities and restricting practice for one year or more.

Where Public Credit Information handlers violate this law by failing to complete review obligations or making improper external inquiries, the departments for the establishment of the social credit system of local people's governments at the county level or above are to give fines of between 100,000 and 1,000,000 RMB.

Where laws and administrative regulations have other provisions on the subject to be sanctioned and on the method of punishment, follow those provisions.

Article 108: Where an individual's credit information is stolen, pried into, bought, or illegally obtained, provided, or sold in violation of state provisions, violating related laws and regulations, the relevant (regulatory) department in charge is to give fines in accordance with law; where this Law's provisions on information security are violated, the (regulatory) departments in charge of information security are to order corrections and give fines in accordance with relevant management provisions; and where a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility is pursued in accordance with law.

Article 109: Where this law is violated by encroaching on the lawful rights and interests of credit information subjects, civil liability shall be borne in accordance with law, and where a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility is pursued in accordance with law.

Chapter XI: Supplementary Provisions

Article 110: 【Effective Date】This Law is to take effect on XX-XX-XXXX.