Standards Are Updated, Risks Are Coming

National standards, industry standards, local standards, enterprise standards and association standards serve as the yardsticks for product quality. National mandatory standards must be strictly followed. Local standards are often categorized into the scope of quasi-mandatory standards based on local regulatory provisions. In cases where enterprise standards are unclear, industry standards may also become an important adjudication basis once quality disputes arise between enterprises over customized product transactions. Therefore, enterprises shall keep track of applicable standards. Once an update is released, they need to verify relevant matters and formulate response measures, which mainly include the following aspects:

1. Does the new standard specify a transition period?

Article 35 of the “Measures for the Administration of National Standards (2022)” and Article 21 of the “Measures for the Administration of Industry Standards (2023)” stipulate that a reasonable transition period shall be reserved between the issuance and implementation of the new standards.

The “Measures for the Administration of Local Standards (2020)” does not prescribe a transition period. In practice, however, provincial and municipal authorities generally set a transition period in their local standard administration rules.

The “Provisions on the Administration of Association Standards” also does not prescribe a transition period. Nevertheless, association standards only apply to enterprises that have joined the relevant association, resulting in limited impact scope.

In terms of normative hierarchy, the validity period of industry standards and local standards may be affected by the implementation of national standards. For instance, Article 21 of the “Measures for the Administration of Industry Standards (2023)” stipulates: “After the implementation of the corresponding national standards, industry standards shall be abolished by the competent administrative departments of the State Council on their own initiative.”

In practice, enterprises still need to check whether a transition period is specified in the updated standard, and make appropriate plans and arrangements for raw material procurement, production, sales and other business links in advance.

2. Which standard shall be applied during the transition period?

In accordance with Article 35 of the “Measures for the Administration of National Standards (2022)”, Article 39 of the “Measures for the Administration of Mandatory National Standards” and Article 21 of the “Measures for the Administration of Industry Standards (2023)”, enterprises may choose to implement either the original standard or the updated standard from the issuance date to the implementation date of the standard.

3. How to handle unsold inventory manufactured under the old standard before the new standard takes effect?

Article 25 of the “Standardization Law” stipulates that products and services that fail to comply with mandatory standards shall not be produced, sold, imported or provided. After an updated mandatory national standard comes into force, there is no one-size-fits-all rule on whether inventory goods manufactured under the old standard prior to the implementation date can be sold. For example, upon the implementation of China’s National VI Emission Standard, National V vehicles were prohibited from both production and subsequent sale of existing inventory. By contrast, the “Requirements for Restricting Excessive Packaging of Fresh Edible Agricultural Products” (GB43284-2023) stipulates that fresh edible agricultural products produced or imported prior to the implementation date may be sold until the end of their shelf life.

In principle, enterprises may independently choose the applicable non-mandatory standard. However, it shall be noted that some local regulations may impose non-mandatory standard from the local regulatory perspectives. For example, Hainan province has stipulated that milk tea cups must use fully degradable paper cups. In addition, voluntarily adopted association standards are binding on member enterprises of the association.

4. Are there special points related to imported products?

Enterprises shall pay special attention to the following two points in practice:

First, there is no unified rule governing the applicable timing of new standards for import procedures, which needs case-by-case confirmation. For example, Announcement No. 41 of 2012 (abolished in 2025) previously required the customs to inspect all imported food in accordance with the new national food safety standard based on the inspection application date starting from the implementation date of the newly issued standard. General Administration of Customs Announcement No. 136 of 2022, “Announcement on Relevant Requirements for Import Inspection of Products Such as Infant Formula Foods and Processed Cheese in Compliance with National Food Safety Standards” clearly specifies that products manufactured and imported prior to the implementation of the new national standard and complying with the old standard may continue to be imported and sold within their shelf life in accordance with domestic standard implementation rules and WTO rules. It is recommended that enterprises keep an eye on announcements issued by the General Administration of Customs for specific import and export commodities, and consult the customs in a timely manner in case of ambiguity.

Second, to keep track of updates to both domestic and foreign standards. Article 7 of the “Import and Export Commodity Inspection Law (Revised 2021)” provides that catalogued import and export commodities shall be inspected in accordance with mandatory national standards; if no mandatory national standards are available, inspection shall be conducted in accordance with relevant foreign standards designated by the national commodity inspection authority. Therefore, the basis for inspection is not limited to mandatory national standards.