Release time: 2016-12-21
Contents
Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II The Conclusion of Contracts
Chapter III The Performance of Contracts and Liability for Breach of
Contract
Chapter IV The Assignment of Contracts
Chapter V The Modification, Rescission and Termination of Contracts
Chapter VI The Settlement of Disputes
Chapter VII Supplementary Provisions
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1
This Law is formulated with a view to protecting the lawful rights and
interests of the parties to Chinese-foreign economic contracts and
promoting the development of China's foreign economic relations.
Article 2
This Law shall apply to economic contracts concluded between enterprises
or other economic organizations of the People's Republic of China and
foreign enterprises, other economic organizations or individuals.
(hereinafter referred to as "contracts"). However, this provision shall
not apply to international transport contracts.
Article 3
Contracts shall be concluded according to the principle of equality and
mutual benefit and the principle of achieving agreement through
consultation.
Article 4
In concluding a contract, the parties must abide by the law of the
People's Republic of China and shall not harm the public interest of the
People's Republic of China.
Article 5
The parties to a contract may choose the proper law applicable to the
settlement of contract disputes. In the absence of such a choice by the
parties, the law of the country which has the closest connection with the
contract shall apply. The law of the People's Republic of China shall
apply to contracts that are to be performed within the territory of the
People's Republic of China, namely contracts for Chinese-foreign equity
joint ventures, Chinese-foreign contractual joint ventures and Chinese-
foreign cooperative exploration and development of natural resources. For
matters that are not covered in the law of the People's Republic of China,
international practice shall be followed.
Article 6
Where an international treaty which is relevant to a contract, and to
which the People's Republic of China is a contracting party or a
signatory, has provided differently from the law of the People's Republic
of China, the provisions of the international treaty shall prevail, with
the exception of those clauses on which the People's Republic of China has
declared reservation.
Chapter II The Conclusion of Contracts
Article 7
A contract shall be formed as soon as the parties to it have reached a
written agreement on the terms and have signed the contract. If an
agreement is reached by means of letters, telegrams or telex and one party
requests a signed letter of confirmation, the contract shall be formed
only after the letter of confirmation is signed. Contracts which are
subject to the approval of the state, as provided for by the laws or
administrative regulations of the People's Republic of China, shall be
formed only after such approval is granted.
Article 8
Appendices specified in a contract shall be integral parts of the
contract.
Article 9
Contracts that violate the law or the public interest of the People's
Republic of China shall be void.
In case any terms in a contract violate the law or the public interest of
the People's Republic of China, the validity of the contract shall not be
affected if such terms are cancelled or modified by the parties through
consultations.
Article 10
Contracts that are concluded by means of fraud or duress shall be void.
Article 11
A party which is responsible for the invalidity of a contract shall be
liable for the losses suffered by the other party as a result of the
contracts becoming invalid.
Article 12
A contract shall, in general, contain the following terms:
(1) the corporate or personal names of the contracting parties and their
nationalities and principal places of business or domicile;
(2) the date and place of the signing of the contract;
(3) the type of contract and the kind and scope of the object of the
contract;
(4) The technical conditions, quality, standard, specifications and
quantity of the object of the contract;
(5) the time limit, place and method of performance;
(6) the price, amount and method of payment, and various incidental
charges;
(7) whether the contract is assignable and, if it is, the conditions for
its assignment;
(8) liability to pay compensation and other liabilities for breach of
contract;
(9) the ways for settling contract disputes; and
(10) the language(s) in which the contract is to be written and its
validity.
Article 13
So far as it may require, a contract shall provide for the limits of the
risks to be borne by the parties in performing the object; if necessary,
it shall provide for the coverage of insurance for the object.
Article 14
Where a contract needs to be performed continuously over a long period,
the parties shall set a period of validity for the contract and may also
stipulate conditions for its extension and its termination before its
expiry.
Article 15
In the contract the parties may agree to provide a guaranty. The guarantor
shall be held liable within the agreed scope of guaranty.
Chapter III The Performance of Contracts and Liability for Breach of Contract
Article 16
A contract shall be legally bindings as soon as it is established in
accordance with the law. The parties shall perform their obligations
stipulated in the contract. No party shall unilaterally modify or rescind
the contract.
Article 17
A party may temporarily suspend its performance of the contract if it has
conclusive evidence that the other party is unable to perform the
contract. However, it shall immediately inform the other party of such
suspension. It shall perform the contract if and when the other party
provides a sure guarantee for performance of the contract. If a party
suspends performance of the contract without conclusive evidence of the
other party's inability to perform the contract, it shall be liable for
breach of contract.
Article 18
If a party fails to perform the contract or its performance of the
contractual obligations does not conform to the agreed terms. which
constitutes a breach of contract, the other party is entitled to claim
damages or demand other reasonable remedial measures. If the losses
suffered by the other party cannot be completely made up after the
adoption of such remedial measures, the other party shall still have the
right to claim damages.
Article 19
The liability of a party to pay compensation for the breach of a contract
shall be equal to the loss suffered by the other party as a consequence of
the breach. However, such compensation may not exceed the loss which the
party responsible for the breach ought to have foreseen at the time of the
conclusion of the contract as a possible consequence of a breach of
contract.
Article 20
The parties may agree in a contract that, if one party breaches the
contract, it shall pay a certain amount of breach of contract damages to
the other party; they may also agree upon a method for calculating the
damages resulting from such a breach. The breach of contract damages as
stipulated in the contract shall be regarded as compensation for the
losses resulting from breach of contract. However, if the contractually
agreed breach of contract damages are far more or far less than is
necessary to compensate for the losses resulting from the breach, the
party concerned may request an arbitration body or a court to reduce or
increase them appropriately.
Article 21
If both parties breach the contract, each shall be commensurately liable
for the breach of contract that is its responsibility.
Article 22
A party which suffers losses resulting from a breach of contract by the
other party shall promptly take appropriate measures to prevent the losses
from becoming severer. If the losses are aggravated as a result of its
failure to adopt appropriate measures, it shall not be entitled to claim
compensation for the aggravated part of the losses.
Article 23
If a party fails to pay on time any amount stipulated as payable in the
contract or any other amount related to the contract that is payable, the
other party is entitled to interest on the amount in arrears. The method
for calculating the interest may be specified in the contract.
Article 24
If a party is prevented from performing all or part of its obligations
owing to force majeure, it shall be relieved of all or part of its
obligations.
If a party cannot perform its obligations within the contractually agreed
time limit owing to force majeure, it shall be relieved of the liability
for delayed performance during the aftereffect of the event.
Force majeure means an event that the parties could not have foreseen at
the time of conclusion of the contract, both parties being unable to
either avoid or overcome its occurrence and consequences.
The scope of force majeure may be specified in the contract.
Article 25
The party which fails to perform wholly or in part its contractual
obligations owing to force majeure shall promptly inform the other party
so as to mitigate possible losses inflicted on the other party, and shall
also provide a certificate issued by the relevant agency within a
reasonable period of time.
Chapter IV The Assignment of Contracts
Article 26
When a party assigns, wholly or in part, its contractual rights and
obligations to a third party, it must obtain the consent of the other
party.
Article 27
In the case of a contract which, according to the laws or administrative
regulations of the People's Republic of China, is to be formed with the
approval of the state, the assignment of the contractual rights and
obligations shall be subject to the approval of the authority which
approved the contract, unless otherwise stipulated in the approved
contract.
Chapter V The Modification, Rescission and Termination of Con- tracts
Article 28
A contract may be modified if both parties agree through consultation.
Article 29
A party shall have the right to notify the other party that a contract is
rescinded in any of the following situations:
(1) if the other party has breached the contract, thus adversely affecting
the economic benefits they expected to receive at the time of the
conclusion of the contract;
(2) if the other party fails to perform the contract within the time limit
agreed upon in the contract, and again fails to perform it within the
reasonable period of time allowed for delayed performance;
(3) if all the obligations under the contract cannot be performed owing to
force majeure; or
(4) if the contractually agreed conditions for the rescission of the
contract are present.
Article 30
For a contract consisting of several independent parts, some may be
rescinded according to the provisions of the preceding article while the
other parts remain valid.
Article 31
A contract shall be terminated in any one of the following situations:
(1) if the contract has already been performed in accordance with the
agreed terms;
(2) if an arbitration body or a court has decided that the contract shall
be terminated; or
(3) if the parties agree through consultation to terminate the contract.
Article 32
Notices or agreements on the modification or rescission of contracts shall
be made in writing.
Article 33
In the case of a contract which, according to the laws or administrative
regulations of the People's Republic of China, is to be established with
the approval of the state, any significant modification of the contract
shall be subject to the approval of the authority which approved the
contract, and the rescission of the contract shall be filed with the same
authority for the record.
Article 34
The modification, rescission or termination of a contract shall not affect
the rights of the parties to claim damages.
Article 35
The contractually agreed terms for the settlement of disputes shall not
become invalid because of the rescission or termination of a contract.
Article 36
The contractually agreed terms for the settlement of accounts and
liquidation of a contract shall not become invalid because of the
rescission or termination of the contract.
Chapter VI The Settlement of Disputes
Article 37
If disputes over a contract develop, the parties shall, as far as
possible, settle them through consultation, or through mediation by a
third party.
If the parties are unwilling to settle their dispute through consultation
or mediation, or if consultation or mediation proves unsuccessful, they
may, in accordance with the arbitration clause provided in the contract or
a written arbitration agreement reached by the parties afterwards, submit
the dispute to a Chinese arbitration body or any other arbitration body
for arbitration.
Article 38
If no arbitration clause is provided in the contract, and a written
arbitration agreement is not reached afterwards, the parties may bring
suit in a people's court.
Chapter VII Supplementary Provisions
Article 39
The time limit for filing suit or applying for arbitration in a dispute
over a contract for the purchase and sale of goods shall be four years,
counting from the day when the party was aware or ought to have been aware
of its rights' being infringed upon. The time limit for filing suit or
applying for arbitration in a dispute over any other contract shall be
stipulated separately by law.
Article 40
If new legal provisions are formulated while contracts for Chinese-foreign
equity joint ventures, Chinese-foreign contractual joint ventures, or
Chinese-foreign cooperative exploration and development of natural
resources, which have been concluded with the approval of the state, are
being performed within the territory of the People's Republic of China,
the performance may still be based on the terms of the contracts.
Article 41
This Law may apply to contracts concluded before it goes into effect if
this is agreed to by the parties through consultation.
Article 42
The State Council shall, in accordance with this Law, formulate rules for
its implementation.
Article 43
This Law shall go into effect on July 1, 1985.
