Similar as the effect of the “Civil Code”, which, upon its implementation, simultaneously repealed nine laws including the “General Principles of the Civil Law”, the “General Provisions of the Civil Law”, the “Contract Law” and etc. The “Civil Code” integrates the content of the nine repealed laws, relevant judicial interpretations, and adds certain new provisions. Similarly, the “Ecological and Environmental Code” consolidates the vast majority of the content of the ten aforementioned laws and introduces new provisions. A brief overview of the Code follows.

1. Structure

The Code consists of five parts: General Provisions, Pollution Prevention and Control, Ecological Protection, Green and Low‑Carbon Development, and Legal Liability, in which, Green and Low‑Carbon Development is a newly added dedicated part, which systematically regulates carbon peaking and carbon neutrality (dual carbon goals), circular economy, and cleaner production.

2. Pollution Prevention and Control

This Part integrates the content of seven pollution prevention and control laws (air, water, soil, solid waste, noise, radioactive, and marine pollution), by which it breaks down the boundaries between pollution media. Key new additions include:

(1) Air Pollution Prevention and Control: To enhance supervision of mobile sources, including railway locomotives and non‑road mobile machinery; strengthen emission control for heavy‑duty trucks, ships, and construction machinery; and set special regulations on catering fume and malodorous pollution.

(2) Water Pollution Prevention and Control: To establish of a risk management, control, and remediation system for groundwater pollution.

(3) Soil Pollution Prevention and Control: To establish a system for the identification and tracking of soil pollution liability, clarifying the responsibilities of the government, enterprises, and third‑party institutions.

(4) Solid Waste Pollution Prevention and Control: To set mandatory recycling obligations for new energy vehicle power batteries, photovoltaic modules, waste plastics, etc. And establish an information platform for inter‑provincial transfer of solid waste and full‑process traceability.

(5) Noise Pollution Prevention and Control: To control noise in key areas such as urban rail transit, aviation, and construction.

(6) Radioactive and New Pollutant Prevention and Control: To set dedicated sections on new pollutants, light pollution, and electromagnetic radiation; establish a new pollutant inventory management system and full‑cycle regulation (risk assessment, control, and governance) of chemical substances.

(7) Marine Pollution Prevention and Control: To establish systems for marine ecological protection red lines, blue carbon sinks, and coastal wetland protection, in alignment with terrestrial ecological protection mechanisms.

3. Ecological Protection

Key newly added provisions include: (1) To set systematic regulation of the principles, procedures, and key areas of ecological restoration activities. (2) To establish an invasive alien species prevention and control system. (3) To adopt the principle of integrated protection and restoration of mountains, rivers, forests, farmlands, lakes, grasslands, and deserts. And (4) To specify restoration procedures and standards for forests, grasslands, wetlands, oceans, mining areas, etc.

4. Green and Low‑Carbon Development

This Part integrates relevant provisions from laws and regulations including the “Cleaner Production Promotion Law”, “Circular Economy Promotion Law”, “Energy Law”, “Energy Conservation Law”, and “Renewable Energy Law”. Unlike the Part on Pollution Prevention and Control, this Part only repeals the “Cleaner Production Promotion Law”; other energy‑related laws remain in force and their relevant provisions must still be complied with. Additionally, this Part establishes a system for controlling total carbon emissions and emission intensity, incorporates the dual carbon goals into national economic and social development plans, and clarifies statutory obligations for carbon reduction. This section incorporates content from the “Interim Regulations on the Administration of Carbon Emission Trading”, which came into force on May 1, 2024.

Overall, the legislative status of the “Ecological and Environmental Code” elevates environmental protection from mere pollution control to ecological conservation and the commercial transformation of ecological resources. In the future, the Part on Green and Low‑Carbon Development will offer significant scope for further research.

Recognition and registration of technology contracts are not mandatory requirements, instead they are conducted on a voluntary application basis. What are the benefits of such procedures? Similar to copyright registration, its main value lies in proving ownership and the formation date of rights in the event of infringement disputes. If procedures have been completed, the registration certificate will serve as strong evidence in subsequent disputes over infringement, breach of contract, or other claims.

This 2026 revision introduces several major changes:

First, the scope of registrable contracts adds more type. On the basis of the 4 contract types specified in the 2000 version—technology development contract, technology transfer contract, technology consulting contract, and technology service contract—technology license contract is newly added. This addition is highly necessary. In cases of patent infringement or trade secret misappropriation, where the infringer’s gains or the right holder’s losses cannot be determined, royalty fees serve as a key reference for calculating compensation. In many cases, however, infringers defend by claiming that the license contract was forged after the infringement. Registration effectively defeats such defenses. Right holders should also ensure that payment and invoicing comply with the contract to form a complete chain of evidence.

Second, adjustment of the registration party. The 2000 version required registration by the seller. The 2026 version addresses frequent disputes in practice by adding two scenarios: (1) If the seller is reluctant to register, the buyer may register upon mutual agreement of all parties; and (2) For contracts with multiple sellers, each seller shall register separately at its locality based on its respective transaction volume. It shall be noted that registration by the buyer is not automatic when the seller refuses, and it requires the seller’s consent. This rule ensures that registration decisions are made by the right holder and prevents improper acts such as forgery of technology contracts by the buyer.

Third, confidentiality protection. The 2026 version adds provisions requiring that technology contracts involving state secrets be registered after declassification processing, or be submitted for recognition and registration to registration institutions with confidentiality qualifications. It is a pity that such special requirement could not be applied to ordinary trade secrets. Given the importance of trade secret protection, enterprises may also consider applying for recognition and registration at institutions with confidentiality qualifications.

To strengthen the legislative regulation of hazardous chemicals, the “Law on the Safety of Hazardous Chemicals” was officially issued on December 27, 2025. This marks the upgrade of hazardous chemicals safety administration from the administrative regulation level to the law level. The new law introduces reforms in concepts, structure, liabilities, supervision and technical means to establish a sound safety governance system covering the entire life cycle of hazardous chemicals. The key points of the new law are as follows:

1.More diversified supervision methods

In the past, the primary supervision method was the enterprises’ responsibility system, where only the principal persons in charge were held liable for serious consequences. However, Article 5 of the new law stipulates the implementation of the “full staff work safety responsibility system”, the “dual prevention mechanism for hierarchical control of safety risks and hidden danger investigation and treatment”, and “work safety standardization and information-based supervision”, while emphasizing the “comprehensive responsibility system of the principal persons in charge”. The more diversified supervision methods stipulated in the new law are actually consistent with the tendency of the revised “Work Safety Law” in recent years, which is to assign more liabilities to individuals, take people as the starting point, and stimulate the motivation for prevention.

2.Source control

Previously, hazardous chemicals enterprises were encouraged to move into designated parks. The new law sets up a special chapter to regulate the planning and layout of hazardous chemicals. In short, all newly-built or expanded production projects must be located in designated parks from now on. In fact, since 2010, many provinces and cities have practically guided hazardous chemicals enterprises to relocate and formed relevant parks. However, the new law stipulates a number of hard indicators for parks, and it will be a challenge to determine whether the existing parks built in the past need to be renovated or relocated.

3.Technology-enabled supervision

With the development of information technology, the new law also incorporates technology-enabled supervision methods such as information-based supervision, automatic control, satellite positioning, and even monitoring of drivers’ driving behavior and fatigue levels.

4.Strengthened penalties

In the past, the maximum fine was CNY 1 million, the fine for most violations was below CNY 200,000, and penalties on individuals were rare. The new law not only sets fixed fine amounts, but also adds a multiple fine method based on the value of the goods. At the same time, a dual penalty system, that is, imposing penalties on both the entity and the individual, which is established for most illegal acts. This revision is also consistent with the tendency of the “Work Safety Law”.

After the implementation of the new law, the provisions of the “Regulations on the Safety Administration of Hazardous Chemicals” that do not conflict with the new law shall remain in force and must still be complied with. In the future, the relevant departments may revise and improve the “Regulations on the Safety Administration of Hazardous Chemicals” to adapt to the new safety management needs.

1. To add 4 punishment measures

The Measures add 4 types of administrative punishments for illegal acts in work safety, namely, circular of criticism, reduction of relevant qualifications, restriction on conducting production and business activities, and restriction on employment.

2. To further specify the jurisdiction over illegal acts

In response to the previous situation where multiple emergency management departments with jurisdiction either competed for jurisdiction or shirked responsibility, the Measures clearly stipulate that the department that files the case first shall have jurisdiction.

3. Administrative law enforcement procedures are more open and transparent

This is mainly reflected in the following aspects:

• Information such as the authority implementing the administrative punishment, the basis for filing the case, the implementation procedures, and the channels for remedy shall be publicly announced in accordance with the law.
• In terms of protecting the rights of the parties, the emergency management department shall promptly inform the parties of the facts of the violation and their rights to make statements, defend themselves, and request a hearing, and provide convenience for the parties to inquire, make statements, and defend themselves.
• The entire process of administrative law enforcement shall be recorded in the form of text, audio, video, etc., and archived for preservation.
• Stricter requirements are put forward for the seizure and detention, including the need for approval by the person in charge of the emergency management department; in case of emergency, actions may be taken first, but approval by the person in charge of the emergency management department shall be obtained within 24 hours; the time limit for seizure and detention and the extension of such time limit shall be strictly restricted.
• During the administrative law enforcement process, state secrets, trade secrets, or personal privacy shall be protected.
• The conditions for filing a case under the ordinary procedure shall be clearly defined to avoid artificial “facilitating case filing” or “blocking case filing”.
• Requirements for collecting and obtaining various types of evidence have been clarified. For example, electronic evidence shall have the original carrier, and if necessary, experts may be invited to assist in obtaining electronic evidence; or evidence of illegal acts may be collected and fixed by using the Internet, etc.
• To add more circumstances which are applicable to the hearing procedure, such as the confiscation of a relatively large amount of illegal gains. At the same time, the definitions of “relatively large amount” and “relatively large value” have been revised. That is, if there are no local regulations, the fine amount for enterprises shall be increased from CNY50,000 to CNY100,000. In addition, an avoidance mechanism is added to the hearing procedure.

1. Identification of “Working Time”

The identification of “working time” shall take into account whether it falls within the time stipulated by law or required by the employer for employees to work. It includes but is not limited to: (1) Working time stipulated by law; (2) Working time agreed in the labor contract; (3) Working time specified by the employer; (4) Time for completing temporary assignments or specific work tasks assigned by the employer; and (5) Overtime hours.

2. Identification of “Workplace”

The identification of “workplace” shall take into account whether it is an area related to employees performing their job duties and a reasonable area necessary for fulfilling such duties. It includes but is not limited to: (1) Areas where the employer can effectively manage employees’ daily production and business activities; (2) Relevant areas outside the employer’s premises involved in employees completing specific work tasks; and (3) Reasonable areas between multiple workplaces related to employees’ job duties that they travel through for work purposes.

3. Identification of “Work-related Reason”

The identification of “work-related reason” shall take into account whether there is a causal relationship between the performance of job duties by the employee and the injury suffered. It includes but is not limited to: (1) Injury sustained while engaging in one’s own production and business activities; (2) Injury sustained while completing work assigned by the employer; (3) Injury sustained while safeguarding the legitimate interests of the employer; and (4) Injury sustained while meeting necessary basic physiological needs in a reasonable place during working hours, excluding injuries entirely caused by personal reasons.

4. Identification of “Work from Home”

If an employee works from home as arranged by the employer, and there is sufficient evidence to prove that the employee suffered an accidental injury due to work-related reasons during the work-from-home period, the recognition of work-related injury shall not be affected by the fact that the work was performed at home. However, simple work communication through modern communication methods such as WeChat, telephone, or email which is temporary and occasional shall not be deemed a work-related reason. For determining whether an employee’s sudden illness at home constitutes an occurrence “during working time and at the work post”, factors such as the employee’s occupational requirements and job responsibilities shall be fully considered. If the applicant provides sufficient evidence to prove that handling work at home was conducted in accordance with the employer’s work requirements and needs, was basically consistent with the daily work intensity and work status, and obviously occupied the employee’s rest time, it may be deemed as “during working time and at the work post”.

In addition, Opinions III sets forth specific provisions on the concurrence of work-related injury and tort, the basis for identifying “non-prime liability” in traffic accidents occurring on the way to and from work, the identification of the “on-the-way-to-and-from-work” roadmap, and the basis for determining the time of death, etc.

1. Entities for Applying for and Producing Electronic Seals

Article 12 of the “Measures” stipulates that electronic seals involved in e-government affairs shall be provided by legally established e-government electronic certification service institutions, while other electronic seals shall be provided by legally established electronic certification service institutions. Therefore, for enterprises, if electronic seals are used to handle business related to administrative departments such as market supervision and administration bureaus, customs and so on, the electronic seals shall be certified by the corresponding e-government electronic certification service institutions.

2. Rules for the Use of Electronic Seals

Article 17 stipulates that an enterprise shall file the electronic seals with the electronic seal production and management entity. In addition, if there is a change in status such as suspension or resumption of the use of electronic seals, the enterprise shall promptly file the change with the electronic seal production and management entity.

Article 18 stipulates that if an enterprise undergoes circumstances such as name change, dissolution, revocation, revocation of license, bankruptcy, division, or merger, it shall promptly apply to the electronic seal production and management entity for cancellation of its electronic seals. If the enterprise fails to apply for cancellation or is unable to promptly apply for cancellation of its electronic seals, the electronic seal issuance department shall put forward opinions on cancellation, and the electronic seal production and management entity shall conduct filing for the cancellation of the relevant electronic seals.

Article 21 stipulates that the administration of the uses of electronic seals shall adhere to the principle of “who owns it, who controls it; who affixes the seal, who is responsible”. Enterprises shall formulate relevant rules and regulations to properly keep and manage the use of electronic seals.

1. Scope of Application

The Implementation Measures specify that compulsory deregistration applies to companies that have not applied to the registration authority for deregistration within three years from the date of having their business licenses revoked, being ordered to close down, or being cancelled. This provision is consistent with the “Company Law” (Revised in 2023).

2. Compulsory Deregistration Process

The company registration authority shall issue a 90-days public notice through the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System. If no objection is received during the public notice period, a decision on compulsory deregistration shall be formulated within 10 working days and served in accordance with the law to the company’s registered domicile. However, if the company to be compulsorily deregistered has been included in the list of abnormal business operations because it cannot be contacted via its registered domicile or business premises, the notice shall be served through a 30-days public announcement. Generally speaking, if no objection is raised, the compulsory deregistration process will take a maximum of four and a half months.

3. Handling of Objections During the Public Notice Period

If relevant authorities, creditors, or other interested parties have objections to the compulsory deregistration process, they may submit the grounds for objection and relevant materials to the company registration authority through the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System or in writing. The company registration authority shall conduct a formal review within 7 working days after receiving the application. After review, if the objection is determined to be valid, the compulsory deregistration process shall be terminated. It should be noted that the Implementation Measures do not specify a time limit for substantive review.

If the compulsory deregistration process is terminated, the company shall promptly conduct voluntary liquidation and apply for deregistration. Furthermore, if three years have passed since the termination of the compulsory deregistration process and the company still fails to conduct voluntary liquidation and apply for deregistration, the compulsory deregistration process will be reinitiated. Although the Implementation Measures do not specify whether the relevant parties may raise objections again, based on the design of the relevant provisions, it is understood that there should be no opportunity to raise a second objection.

4. Legal Consequences of Completing the Compulsory Deregistration Process

First, the company’s title may be used by a newly registered company one year after the deregistration is completed. Second, compulsory deregistration does not affect the liabilities that the original company’s shareholders and liquidation obligors shall bear.

5. Restoration of Registration

Within three years after the completion of the compulsory deregistration process, if there are statutory reasons, relevant authorities, creditors, and other interested parties may apply for the restoration of the company’s registration. These reasons include: the company is under investigation, subject to administrative compulsory measures, or has not yet fulfilled administrative penalties such as fines; the company is involved in proceedings such as litigation, administrative reconsideration, arbitration, mediation, or execution; the company is in the process of liquidation or bankruptcy; or there are other circumstances that necessitate the restoration of registration. In addition, for the protection of national interests and public interests, the company registration authority may restore the company’s registration ex officio.

After the company’s registration is restored, if its original title has been registered by a third party, the original title will not be restored—only the unified social credit code or registration number will be reinstated.

Similar to the termination of the process due to objections during the public notice period, if the company fails to apply for deregistration within three years after its registration is restored, the compulsory deregistration process will be reinitiated.

1. Handling of labor relations in special circumstances

2. Rules for determining failure to sign a labor contract

The Interpretation specifies exceptions where an employer is exempt from paying double wages for failing to sign a written labor contract, including cases of force majeure, intentional misconduct or gross negligence of the worker himself/herself, and other circumstances prescribed by laws or administrative regulations.

The Interpretation emphasizes that circumstances where the term of a labor contract is automatically extended in accordance with the law do not constitute a situation where the employer fails to conclude a written labor contract.

3. To add circumstances of “consecutively concluding two fixed-term labor contracts”

To regulate some enterprises that use legal forms to cover up illegal purposes, thereby covertly extending the term of labor contracts and evading the obligation to renew contracts, the Interpretation adds 2 circumstances that shall be deemed as “consecutively concluding two fixed-term labor contracts”, including: (1) The cumulative extension of the labor contract term reaches 1 year or more and the extended term expires; and (2) The labor contract is automatically extended after its expiration and the extended term expires.

4. To set stricter requirements in terms of confidentiality and non-compete obligations

The Interpretation stipulates that if a worker is unaware of or has no access to confidential matters, the claim to confirm that the non-compete clause is ineffective shall be supported. At the same time, the agreement on non-compete clauses shall be compatible with the scope of confidential matters that the worker is aware of or has access to.

5. To add circumstances of “labor contract being unenforceable”

The Interpretation provides that a labor contract may be deemed as “unenforceable” when the term of the labor contract expires during the arbitration or litigation process and there is no circumstance requiring renewal or extension of the labor contract in accordance with the law; the worker begins to enjoy basic pension insurance benefits in accordance with the law; and other circumstances where the labor contract is objectively unenforceable.

There are flexible interpretations regarding the newly added circumstances, it is recommended to follow up with the subsequent judicial decisions.

6. Exceptions concerning pre-dismissal occupational health examination for occupational diseases

According to the Interpretation, the exceptions include: (1) before the conclusion of court debate in the first instance, the enterprise has arranged for the worker to undergo an examination and the examination confirms that the worker does not suffer from an occupational disease; or (2) The worker refuses to undergo the examination without justifiable reasons.

7. Exceptions to labor arbitration acceptance of social insurance disputes

The Interpretation stipulates that if a worker terminates the labor contract on the ground that the enterprise fails to pay or fully pay social insurance and claims economic compensation, such claim shall be supported. At the same time, if the enterprise and the worker have agreed on separate compensation for social insurance payment, the enterprise may request the worker to return such compensation.

On June 9, 2025, the Ministry of Finance issued the “Notice on Financial Treatments following the Effectiveness of the Company Law and the Foreign Investment Law ” (Cai Zi〔2025〕No. 101), which stipulates issues such as the use of public reserve funds to make up for losses, the valuation of non-monetary property as capital contributions, and the disposal of the balance of the “three funds”. The key points regarding the disposal of the balance of the “three funds” are as follows:

1. The balance of the reserve fund shall be converted into statutory public reserve funds for management and use, and the balance of the enterprise development fund shall be converted into discretionary public reserve funds for management and use.
2. The staff incentive and welfare fund shall be used in accordance with the purposes, usage conditions, and procedures determined at the time of withdrawal. During liquidation, except for those that should be managed as liabilities in accordance with the provisions of the “Notice of the Ministry of Finance on Issues Concerning Enterprise Financial Handling after the Implementation of the Company Law” (Cai Qi〔2006〕No. 67), the staff incentive and welfare fund shall be handled in accordance with the “Notice on Relevant Provisions of Financial and Fiscal Management during the Liquidation Period of Foreign-invested Enterprises” (Cai Gong Zi [1995] No. 222).

According to the above provisions, there are no mandatory rules on the use of staff incentive and welfare funds by foreign-invested enterprises in normal operation. Therefore, if the purposes, usage conditions, and procedures of the staff incentive and welfare fund at the time of withdrawal are unclear, it is recommended to formulate such rules as soon as possible. For foreign-invested enterprises in the liquidation stage, the staff incentive and welfare fund will not be part of the liquidation property. However, if the foreign party withdraws, it shall be merged into the public welfare fund of the surviving company; if the company is dissolved, it shall be owned by the enterprise where the Chinese staffs work; if the company is terminated, it shall be handed over to the receiving unit, which is understood here to refer to the shareholders.

In addition, it is worth noting that Cai Zi〔2025〕No. 101 clearly stipulates that the reserve fund, enterprise development fund, and staff incentive and welfare fund shall no longer be accrued from January 1, 2025. Moreover, any accruals made after January 1, 2025 shall be reversed.

In view of this, on June 22, 2025, the State Council issued the “Implementation Plan for Further Improving the Credit Repair System” (Guo Ban Fa [2025] No. 22), which came into effect on the same day. Its main contents are as follows: 

1. Unify the credit information publicity platform, and specify that the “Credit China” website centrally publicizes various types of public credit information.
2. Improve the classification standards for dishonest information, divide dishonest information into three categories: “minor, general, and serious”, and clarify the corresponding publicity periods.
3. Clarify the credit repair application channels as the “Credit China” website, which will accept credit repair applications actively submitted by various entities, and offline service windows are set up in government service halls across the country.
4. Simplify credit repair application materials, and encourage industry authorities to directly obtain supporting materials through their own information systems.
5. Compact the responsibility for handling credit repair, and carry out repair work in accordance with the principle of “who determines, who repairs”.
6. Specify the processing period for credit repair, and generally feedback the repair results within 10 working days from the date of receiving the credit repair application.
7. Update credit repair results synchronously, and lift corresponding dishonest punishment measures in accordance with laws and regulations.
8. Improve the objection and appeal handling mechanism, and promptly handle objections and appeals.
9. Collaboratively promote efficient credit repair for enterprises under bankruptcy reorganization and bankruptcy compromise to ensure their normal operation and follow-up development.
10. Regulate the use of credit information by credit investigation institutions, strengthen data quality control throughout the credit investigation business process, and improve accuracy and timeliness of data.