Law of the People's Republic of China on Land Contract in Rural Areas
Law of the People's Republic of China on Land Contract in Rural Areas
Law of the People's Republic of China on Land Contract in Rural Areas
Order of the President [2002] No.73
August 29 2002
(Adopted at the 29th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress on August 29, 2002 and promulgated by Order of the President [2002] No.73 on August 29, 2002)
The Law of the People's Republic of China on Land Contract in Rural Areas has been adopted at the 29th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress on August 29, 2002, and hereby promulgated, which shall come into force as of March 1, 2003.
the President of the People's Republic of China Jiang Zemin
Contents
Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II Household Contract
Section 1 Rights and Obligations of the Party Giving out the Contract and of the Contractor
Section 2 Principles and Procedures for Contracting
Section 3 Term of Contract and the Contract
Section 4 Protection of the Right to Land Contractual Management
Section 5 Circulation of the Right to Land Contractual Management
Chapter III Contract in Other Forms
Chapter IV Settlement of Disputes and Legal Responsibility
Chapter V Supplementary Provisions
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 In accordance with the Constitution, this Law is enacted for the purposes of stabilizing and improving the two-tier management system that combines centralized and decentralized management on the basis of household contractual management, granting to the peasants long-term and guaranteed land-use right, safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the parties to land contracts in rural areas, and promoting the development of agriculture and rural economy and social stability in the countryside.
Article 2 For purposes of this Law, land in rural areas includes the arable land, forestlands and grasslands owned collectively by the peasants and by the State and used collectively by the peasants according to law, as well as other lands used for agriculture according to law.
Article 3 The State applies the contractual management system in respect of land in rural areas.
Land contract in rural areas shall take the form of household contract within the collective economic organizations in the countryside, while such land in rural areas as barren mountains, gullies, hills and beaches, which are not suited to the form of household contract, may be contracted in such forms as bid invitation, auction and public consultation.
Article 4 The State protects, in accordance with law, the long-term stability of the relationship of land contract in rural areas.
After the land in rural areas is contracted, the nature of ownership of the land shall remain unchanged. The contracted land may not be purchased or sold.
Article 5 Members of the collective economic organizations in rural areas shall, according to law, have the right to undertake rural land contracts with their own collective economic organizations that give out the contracts.
No organizations or individuals may deprive the members of the rural collective economic organizations of their right to undertake contracts or illegally restrict such right.
Article 6 In undertaking land contracts in rural areas, women shall enjoy equal rights with men. The legitimate rights and interests of women shall be protected in contract. No organizations or individuals may deprive their rights to land contractual management, which they are entitled to, or infringe upon such right.
Article 7 In land contract in rural areas, the principles of openness, fairness and impartiality shall be adhered to and the relationship of interests among the State, the collective and the individual shall be correctly handled.
Article 8 In undertaking land contract in rural areas, laws and administrative rules and regulations shall be observed, and the rational development and sustainable use of land resources shall be maintained. Without approval granted according to law, no contracted land may be used for non-agricultural development.
The State encourages the peasants and the rural collective economic organizations to increase their input in land, improve soil fertility and expand the capacity of agricultural production.
Article 9 The State protects the legitimate rights and interests of the owners of the collective land and the right of the contractors to land contractual management, which no organizations and individuals may infringe upon.
Article 10 The State protects the circulation of the right to land contractual management, which is effected according to law, on a voluntary basis and with compensation.
Article 11 The competent administrative departments for agriculture and forestry under the State Council shall, in compliance with their respective functions and duties defined by the State Council, be responsible for providing guidance to the administration of the contracting of land in the rural areas throughout the country and to the administration of the contracts. The competent administrative departments for agriculture and forestry under the local people's governments at or above the county level shall, in compliance with their respective functions and duties, be responsible for administration of the contracting of the rural land within their own administrative areas and the administration of the contracts. The township (town) people's governments shall be responsible for the administration of the contracting of the rural land within their own administrative areas and of the contracts.
Chapter II Household Contract
Section 1 Rights and Obligations of the Party Giving out the Contract and of the Contractor
Article 12 Where the land owned collectively by the peasants belongs, in accordance with law, to collective ownership by the peasants in a village, contracts shall be given out by the collective economic organization of the village or the villagers committee; where the land is already owned collectively by the peasants of more than two rural collective economic organizations in a village, contracts shall be given out respectively by the said organizations or villagers groups in the village. Where contracts are issued by the rural collective economic organizations or villagers committees in a village, the ownership of the land owned collectively by the peasants of the collective economic organizations in the village shall remain unchanged.
Where rural land owned by the State but is used collectively by the peasants according to law, contracts shall be issued by the rural collective economic organizations, villagers committees or villagers groups that use such land.
Article 13 The party giving out the contracts shall enjoy the following rights:
1.
......