Archives Law of the People's Republic of China
(Adopted at the 22nd meeting of the Standing Committee of the Sixth National People's Congress on September 5, 1987, in accordance with the "About the Amendment to the "Chinese People's The first revision of the Decision on the Archives Law of the Republic is based on the 24th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Twelfth National People's Congress on November 7, 2016, "About Amending the Foreign Trade Law of the People's Republic of China" and other twelve laws The second revision of the "Decision" was revised at the 19th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Thirteenth National People's Congress on June 20, 2020)
Table of contents
Chapter 1 General Provisions
Chapter II Archives Institutions and Their Responsibilities
Chapter III Management of Archives
Chapter IV Utilization and Publication of Archives
Chapter Five Archives Information Construction
Chapter VI Supervision and Inspection
Chapter VII Legal Responsibilities
Chapter VIII Supplementary Provisions
Chapter 1 General Provisions
Article 1 This Law is formulated in order to strengthen archives management, standardize the collection and arrangement of archives, effectively protect and utilize archives, improve the level of archives informatization, promote the modernization of the national governance system and governance capabilities, and serve the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
Article 2 This Law shall apply to the collection, arrangement, protection, utilization and supervision and management of archives.
The term “archives” as mentioned in this Law refers to the archives directly formed by past and present agencies, groups, enterprises, institutions and other organizations and individuals engaged in economic, political, cultural, social, ecological civilization, military affairs, foreign affairs, scientific and technological activities, etc. Various historical records in various forms, such as text, diagrams, audio and video, etc., are valuable for preservation in society.
Article 3 Adhere to the leadership of the Communist Party of China on archives work. People's governments at all levels should strengthen archives work, incorporate archives into the national economic and social development plan, and include archives development funds in the government budget to ensure that the development of archives is compatible with the level of national economic and social development.
Article 4 The archival work implements the principle of unified leadership and hierarchical management to maintain the integrity and safety of the archives and facilitate the use of all aspects of society.
Article 5 All state organs, armed forces, political parties, groups, enterprises, public institutions and citizens have the obligation to protect archives and enjoy the right to use archives according to law.
Article 6 The state encourages and supports archives scientific research and technological innovation, promotes the transformation and application of scientific and technological achievements in the collection, arrangement, protection, and utilization of archives, and promotes the advancement of archives science and technology.
The state takes measures to strengthen archives publicity and education, and enhance the awareness of archives in the whole society.
The state encourages and supports international exchanges and cooperation in the field of archives.
Article 7 The state encourages social forces to participate in and support the development of archives.
Units and individuals who have made outstanding contributions in the collection, arrangement, protection, and utilization of archives shall be commended and rewarded in accordance with relevant state regulations.
Chapter II Archives Institutions and Their Responsibilities
Article 8 The national archives management department is in charge of the national archives work, responsible for the overall planning and organization and coordination of the national archives cause, establishing a unified system, and implementing supervision and guidance.
Local archives departments at or above the county level are in charge of archives work within their respective administrative areas, and supervise and guide the archives work of organs, groups, enterprises, public institutions, and other organizations within their own administrative areas.
Township people's governments shall designate personnel to be responsible for managing the archives of their own organs, and supervise and guide the archives work of affiliated units and grassroots self-governing mass organizations.
Article 9 Organs, organizations, enterprises, public institutions and other organizations shall designate archives institutions or archives personnel to be responsible for managing their own archives, and supervise and guide the archives work of their affiliated units.
According to the needs of archives management, the central state organs shall guide the archives business work of the system within the scope of their duties.
Article 10 The central and local archives at and above the county level are cultural institutions that manage archives in a centralized manner, and are responsible for collecting, sorting, keeping, and providing and utilizing archives within their respective jurisdictions.
Article 11 The state strengthens the cultivation of archives personnel and team building, and improves the professional quality of archives staff.
Archivists should be devoted to their duties, obey laws and regulations, and have corresponding professional knowledge and skills. Among them, archival professionals can be assessed professional technical titles in accordance with relevant state regulations.
Chapter III Management of Archives
Article 12 Organs, organizations, enterprises, public institutions and other organizations that should form archives according to state regulations shall establish an archives work responsibility system and improve the archives management system according to law.
Article 13 The following materials that are directly formed and have preservation value for the state and society shall be included in the scope of archiving:
(1) Reflecting the history and main functional activities of organs and organizations;
(2) Reflecting the main research and development, construction, production, operation and service activities of state-owned enterprises and institutions, as well as the protection of the rights and interests of state-owned enterprises and institutions and the rights and interests of employees;
(3) Reflecting urban and rural community governance and service activities of grassroots self-governing mass organizations;
(4) Reflecting national governance activities, economic and technological development, social and historical features, cultural customs, and ecological environment in various historical periods;
(5) The laws and administrative regulations stipulate that it should be archived.
Non-state-owned enterprises, social service organizations, and other units shall keep their relevant materials within the scope listed in Item 2 of the preceding paragraph.
Article 14 The materials that should be archived shall be regularly handed over to the archives organization or archives staff of the unit in accordance with the relevant state regulations, and shall be managed centrally. No individual may refuse to file or take it for himself.
Unauthorized filing is prohibited for materials that are not allowed to be archived according to state regulations.
Article 15 Organs, groups, enterprises, public institutions and other organizations shall, in accordance with the relevant state regulations, regularly hand over files to the archives, and the archives shall not refuse to accept them.
With the consent of the archives office, if the archives are handed over to the archives office for safekeeping in advance, before the expiration of the transfer period stipulated by the state, the government information disclosure matters involved in the archives will still be handled by the unit that originally produced or preserved the government information. When the transfer period expires, the archives involving government information disclosure matters shall be handled in accordance with the archives utilization regulations.
Article 16 When agencies, groups, enterprises, public institutions, and other organizations undergo organizational changes, cancellations, or mergers, they shall transfer their files to relevant units or archives in accordance with regulations.
Article 17 In addition to accepting the transferred archives in accordance with the relevant state regulations, the archives may also collect archives by accepting donations, purchasing, and depositing on behalf of others.
Article 18 Where the cultural relics and document information preserved by museums, libraries, memorial halls and other units are also archives, they may be managed by the above-mentioned units themselves in accordance with the provisions of relevant laws and administrative regulations.
Archives and the units listed in the preceding paragraph shall cooperate with each other in the use of archives, may exchange duplicates, reproductions or catalogs, jointly hold exhibitions, and jointly research, edit and publish relevant historical materials.
Article 19 Archives, government agencies, organizations, enterprises, public institutions and other organizations' archives institutions shall establish a scientific management system to facilitate the use of archives; configure warehouses suitable for archives preservation and necessary facilities and equipment in accordance with relevant state regulations, Ensure the security of files; adopt advanced technology to realize the modernization of file management.
Archives, agencies, groups, enterprises, institutions, and other organizations should establish and improve archives security working mechanisms, strengthen archives security risk management, and improve archives security emergency response capabilities.
Article 20 The management and use of archives involving state secrets, the change of classification and declassification shall be handled in accordance with the laws and administrative regulations on the protection of state secrets.
Article 21 The principles for assessing the preservation value of archives, the standards for the preservation period, and the procedures and methods for destroying archives shall be formulated by the national archives department.
Tampering, destroying and falsifying files are prohibited. Unauthorized destruction of files is prohibited.
Article 22: If the archives formed by non-state-owned enterprises, social service organizations and other units and individuals are of important preservation value to the state and society or should be kept secret, the owner of the archives shall properly keep them. If the storage conditions do not meet the requirements or there are other reasons that may lead to serious damage and insecurity of the archives, the competent archives department at or above the provincial level may provide assistance, or take measures to ensure the integrity and safety of the archives, such as designating archives to keep them on behalf of the archives after consultation; when necessary , may be purchased or requisitioned according to law.
For the archives listed in the preceding paragraph, the owner of the archives may deposit or transfer them to the National Archives. It is strictly forbidden to sell or give to foreigners or foreign organizations.
Those who donate important and precious archives to the state shall be rewarded by the National Archives in accordance with relevant state regulations.
Article 23 Prohibits the buying and selling of state-owned archives.
When the assets of state-owned enterprises and public institutions are transferred, the specific measures for the transfer of relevant archives shall be formulated by the competent state archives department.
The exchange and transfer of copies of archives shall be handled in accordance with relevant state regulations.
Article 24 Archives, agencies, groups, enterprises, institutions, and other organizations that entrust archives sorting, storage, development, utilization, and digitization services shall sign entrustment agreements with qualified archives service companies to agree on the scope and quality of services and technical standards, and supervise the entrusted party.
The entrusted party shall establish an archives service management system, abide by the relevant security and confidentiality regulations, and ensure the security of the archives.
Article 25 Archives belonging to the state and archives specified in Article 22 of this Law and their duplicates are prohibited from being transported, mailed, carried out of the country or transmitted out of the country through the Internet without authorization. Those who really need to leave the country shall go through the examination and approval procedures in accordance with the relevant state regulations.
Article 26 The national archives management department shall establish and improve working mechanisms for the collection, sorting, protection, and utilization of archives related to emergency response activities.
Archives should strengthen the research, arrangement, development and utilization of archives related to emergency response activities, and provide literature reference and decision support for emergency response activities.
Chapter IV Utilization and Publication of Archives
Article 27 The archives of the archives at or above the county level shall be open to the public for 25 years from the date of establishment. Economic, educational, scientific and technological, cultural and other archives may be opened to the public for less than 25 years; archives involving national security or major interests, and other archives that are not suitable for opening after the expiration date may be opened to the public for more than 25 years. The state encourages and supports other archives to open their archives to the society. The specific measures for the opening of archives shall be formulated by the competent archives department of the state and submitted to the State Council for approval.
Article 28 The archives shall regularly publish the catalog of open archives through its website or other means, constantly improve the utilization rules, innovate service forms, strengthen service functions, improve service levels, actively create conditions for the utilization of archives, simplify procedures, provide convenient.
Units and individuals with legal certificates can use the files that have been opened. If the archives are not opened for use according to the regulations, units and individuals may complain to the competent archives department, and the competent archives department that receives the complaint shall investigate and deal with it in a timely manner and inform the complainant of the result.
Where the use of archives involves intellectual property rights or personal information, relevant laws and administrative regulations shall be followed.
Article 29 Organs, organizations, enterprises, public institutions, and other organizations, as well as citizens, may, according to the needs of economic construction, national defense construction, teaching and scientific research, and other work, use the archives that are not open to the archives and the archives of relevant agencies and organizations in accordance with relevant state regulations. , files kept by enterprises, institutions and other organizations.
Article 30 The open examination of archives in the library shall be jointly responsible by the archives together with the archives formation unit or transfer unit. The open review of archives that have not been transferred into the library shall be the responsibility of the archives formation unit or storage unit, and opinions shall be attached when the transfer is made.
Article 31 Units and individuals that transfer, donate, or deposit archives to the archives can give priority to using the archives, and can put forward opinions on restricting the use of parts of the archives that are not suitable for opening to the public. The archives should support and provide convenience .
Article 32 Archives owned by the state shall be published by the archives authorized by the state or relevant agencies; without the consent of the archives or relevant agencies, no unit or individual has the right to publish. For the files formed by non-state-owned enterprises, social service organizations and other units and individuals, the file owners have the right to publish.
Publication of archives shall comply with the provisions of relevant laws and administrative regulations, and must not harm national security and interests, and must not infringe upon the lawful rights and interests of others.
Article 33 Archives shall, according to their own conditions, provide support and convenience for state organs to formulate laws, regulations, policies and carry out research on related issues.
Archives should be equipped with researchers, strengthen the research and arrangement of archives, organize the editing and publication of archival materials in a planned way, and distribute them in different scopes.
Archives researchers who study and sort out archives shall abide by the regulations on archives management.
Article 34 The state encourages archives to develop and utilize archives in their archives, conduct patriotism, collectivism, and socialism with Chinese characteristics education through special exhibitions, public lectures, media publicity and other activities, inherit and develop China's excellent traditional culture, and inherit revolutionary culture , develop advanced socialist culture, enhance cultural self-confidence, and carry forward socialist core values.
Chapter Five Archives Information Construction
Article 35 People's governments at all levels shall incorporate archives informatization into their informatization development plans to ensure the safe preservation and effective use of archive digital resources such as electronic archives and digital results of traditional carrier archives.
Archives, agencies, groups, enterprises, public institutions, and other organizations should strengthen the construction of archives information, and take measures to ensure the security of archives information.
Article 36 Organs, groups, enterprises, public institutions and other organizations shall actively promote the construction of electronic archives management information systems, and connect with office automation systems and business systems.
Article 37 Electronic archives shall have reliable sources, standardized procedures, and compliant elements.
Electronic files have the same effect as traditional carrier files and can be used as vouchers in electronic form.
Measures for the management of electronic archives shall be formulated by the competent national archives department in conjunction with relevant departments.
Article 38 The state encourages and supports archives, agencies, groups, enterprises, public institutions, and other organizations to promote the digitization of traditional carrier archives. Where digitization has been achieved, the original archives shall be properly kept.
Article 39 Electronic archives shall be handed over to the archives through a network or storage medium that meets the requirements of security management.
The archives shall test the received electronic archives to ensure the authenticity, integrity, usability and security of the electronic archives.
Archives can back up and keep important electronic files in different places.
Article 40 Archives are responsible for the collection, preservation and provision of archive digital resources. Conditional archives should build digital archives.
Article 41 The state promotes the construction of archives information resource sharing service platforms, and promotes the sharing and utilization of archival digital resources across regions and departments.
Chapter VI Supervision and Inspection
Article 42: According to the provisions of laws and administrative regulations on archives management, the department in charge of archives may inspect the following situations of archives, agencies, organizations, enterprises, public institutions, and other organizations:
(1) The implementation of the archival work responsibility system and management system;
(2) The allocation and use of archival warehouses, facilities, and equipment;
(3) The management of archivists;
(4) The collection, sorting, storage, provision and use of archives, etc.;
(5) Information construction of archives and information security guarantee;
(6) The supervision and guidance of the archival work of the affiliated units, etc.
Article 43: When conducting inspections based on illegal clues, the competent archives department may inspect relevant warehouses, facilities, and equipment, consult relevant materials, question relevant personnel, and record relevant information, provided that the requirements for security and confidentiality are met. Relevant units and individuals shall Cooperate.
Article 44 Archives, agencies, organizations, enterprises, public institutions and other organizations shall promptly take remedial measures to eliminate hidden dangers of archives security if they discover that there are hidden dangers in archives security in their units. In the event of file damage, information leakage, etc., it shall be reported to the archives department in a timely manner.
Article 45 If the competent archives department finds that there are archives security risks in archives, agencies, groups, enterprises, public institutions, and other organizations, it shall order rectification within a time limit to eliminate the file security risks.
Article 46 Any unit or individual has the right to report to the archival department in charge and other relevant agencies of any violation of the law.
The department in charge of archiving or relevant agencies that receive the report shall deal with it in a timely manner according to law.
Article 47 The archives management department and its staff shall carry out supervision and inspection work in accordance with the statutory powers and procedures, to be scientific, fair, strict, and efficient, and shall not use their powers to seek benefits, and shall not disclose state secrets learned during the performance of duties , business secrets or personal privacy.
Chapter VII Legal Responsibilities
Article 48: If a unit or individual commits any of the following acts, the competent archives department at or above the county level and relevant organs shall punish the directly responsible person in charge and other directly responsible persons according to law:
(1) Lost files belonging to the state;
(2) Providing, transcribing, duplicating, and publishing archives belonging to the state without authorization;
(3) buying, selling or illegally transferring archives owned by the state;
(4) Tampering, destroying, forging files or destroying files without authorization;
(5) Selling or donating files to foreigners or foreign organizations;
(6) Failing to file according to regulations or failing to hand over files on time, and being ordered to make corrections but refusing to make corrections;
(7) Failure to open and provide use files to the public in accordance with regulations;
(8) Not taking remedial measures knowingly that there are hidden dangers to archives security, resulting in damage or loss of archives, or being ordered to rectify within a time limit if there are hidden dangers to archives security, but failing to make corrections within the time limit;
(9) Failing to take rescue measures or concealing or refusing to investigate after an archives security accident occurs;
(10) Archives staff neglect their duties, causing damage or loss of archives.
Article 49 Anyone who uses the archives of the archives and commits any of the violations in Item 1, Item 2, and Item 4 of Article 48 of this Law shall be given a warning by the archives department at or above the county level, and the unit shall be punished. A fine of not less than 10,000 yuan but not more than 100,000 yuan, and a fine of not less than 500 yuan but not more than 5,000 yuan for individuals.
If an archival service enterprise commits any of the violations in Item 1, Item 2, and Item 4 of Article 48 of this Law during the service process, the competent archives department at or above the county level shall give a warning and impose a fine of not less than 20,000 yuan and 200,000 yuan. A fine of less than ten thousand yuan.
If a unit or individual commits any of the illegal acts in Item 3 or Item 5 of Article 48 of this Law, the competent archives department at or above the county level shall give a warning, confiscate the illegal gains, and impose a fine of not less than 10,000 yuan but not more than 100,000 yuan on the unit or individual. Individuals shall be fined not less than 500 yuan but not more than 5,000 yuan; and the archives sold or donated may be requisitioned in accordance with the provisions of Article 22 of this Law.
Article 50 Anyone who, in violation of the provisions of this law, transports, mails, carries, or transmits through the Internet prohibited files or copies of them out of the country shall be confiscated by the customs or the relevant departments, and the transmission shall be blocked, and the unit shall be fined more than 10,000 yuan. For a fine of less than 100,000 yuan, a fine of not less than 500 yuan but not more than 5,000 yuan will be imposed on individuals; the confiscated or blocked files or their copies will be handed over to the archives department.
Article 51 Anyone who violates the provisions of this Law and constitutes a crime shall be investigated for criminal responsibility according to law; if property loss or other damage is caused, he shall bear civil responsibility according to law.
Chapter VIII Supplementary Provisions
Article 52 The Central Military Commission shall formulate management measures for the archives work of the Chinese People's Liberation Army and the Chinese People's Armed Police Force in accordance with this Law.
Article 53 This Law shall come into force on January 1, 2021.
