Law of the People's Republic of China on Tobacco Monopoly (2015Amendment)

Law of the People's Republic of China on Tobacco Monopoly (2015Amendment)

(Adopted at the 20th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Seventh National People's Congress on June 29, 1991, amended for the first time in accordance with the Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on Amending Some Laws adopted at the 10th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eleventh National People's Congress on August 27, 2009, and amended for the second time in accordance with the Decision on Amending Seven Laws Including the Marine Environment Protection Law of the People's Republic of China adopted at the 6th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Twelfth National People's Congress on December 28, 2013; and amended for the third time in accordance with the Decision on Amending Five Laws Including the Metrology Law of the People's Republic of China adopted at the 14th Session of the Standing Committee of the Twelfth National People's Congress on April 24, 2015)

Content

Chapter I General Provisions

Chapter II Plantation, Purchase and Allocation of Leaf Tobacco

Chapter III Production of Tobacco Products

Chapter IV Sale and Transportation of Tobacco Products

Chapter V Production and Sale of Cigarette Paper, Filter Rods, Cigarette Tow and Special Tobacco Machines

Chapter VI Import and Export Trade and Foreign Economic and Technological Cooperation

Chapter VII Legal Liability

Chapter VIII Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1 This Law is formulated for purposes of exercising tobacco monopoly administration, organizing the production and management of tobacco monopoly commodities in a planned way, improving the quality of tobacco products, safeguarding consumers' interests and ensuring the national revenue.

Article 2 For the purpose of this Law, “tobacco monopoly commodities” refers to cigarettes, cigars, cut tobacco, redried leaf tobacco, leaf tobacco, cigarette paper, filter rods, cigarette tow and special tobacco machines.
Cigarettes, cigars, cut tobacco and redried leaf tobacco are generally referred to as “tobacco products”.

Article 3 The State shall exercise monopoly administration in accordance with law over the production, sale, import and export of tobacco monopoly commodities, and adopt a tobacco monopoly license system.

Article 4 The tobacco monopoly administrative department under the State Council shall take charge of the nationwide tobacco monopoly affairs. The tobacco monopoly administrative departments in provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government shall take charge of the tobacco monopoly affairs within their respective jurisdictions, and shall be under the dual leadership of the tobacco monopoly administrative department under the State Council and the people's governments of the relevant provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government, with the tobacco monopoly administrative department under the State Council as the main leading authority.

Article 5 The State shall strengthen the scientific research and technical development of tobacco monopoly commodities, so as to improve the quality of tobacco products and reduce the content of tar and other hazardous ingredients in such products.
The State and society shall intensify the publicity of and education in the fact that smoking is hazardous to health, forbid or restrict smoking on public transport vehicles and in public places, dissuade adolescents from smoking, and forbid middle or primary school students to smoke.

Article 6 The State shall exercise administration of tobacco monopoly in ethnic autonomous areas and shall, according to the relevant provisions of this Law and the Law on Regional Autonomy by Ethnic Minorities, take the interests of ethnic autonomous areas into account and give preferential treatment to the plantation of leaf tobacco and the production of tobacco products in such areas.

Chapter II Plantation, Purchase and Allocation of Leaf Tobacco

Article 7 For the purpose of this Law, “leaf tobacco” means flue-cured tobacco and selected air-and sun-cured tobacco needed for the production of tobacco products. The catalogue of selected air-and sun-cured tobacco items shall be determined by the tobacco monopoly administrative department under the State Council.
Other air-and sun-cured tobacco items which are not included in the above-mentioned catalogue may be sold at fairs and trade markets.

Article 8 In growing tobacco, good varieties of tobacco shall be cultivated and popularized in line with the local conditions. The supply of good varieties of tobacco shall be organized by local tobacco companies.

Article 9 Leaf tobacco purchasing plans shall be assigned by the planning departments of the local people's governments at or above the county level on the basis of the plans assigned by the planning department under the State Council. No other organizations or individuals may make any modifications thereto.
Tobacco companies or the entities they authorize shall conclude leaf tobacco purchasing contracts with tobacco growers. A leaf tobacco purchasing contract shall specify the agreed area for leaf tobacco plantation and the purchasing price of leaf tobacco.

Article 10 A unified purchase of leaf tobacco shall be effected by tobacco companies or the entities they authorize in accordance with the purchasing standards set by the State. No other organizations or individuals may effect any leaf tobacco purchase.
Tobacco companies and the entities they authorize shall, after contractual purchasing price, purchase all the leaf tobacco grown by leaf tobacco growers within the plantation areas specified in the leaf tobacco purchasing contracts. The grades and prices thereof shall not be forced down, and disputes arising from leaf tobacco purchasing shall be dealt with properly.

Article 11 The plans for allocating leaf tobacco and redried leaf tobacco among the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government shall be assigned by the planning department under the State Council; the plans for allocating leaf tobacco and redried leaf tobacco within areas under the jurisdiction of each province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government shall be assigned by the planning department of the relevant province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government. No other organizations or individuals may make any modifications thereto.
A contract must be concluded for any allocation of leaf tobacco or redried leaf tobacco.

Chapter III Production of Tobacco Products

Article 12 Whoever intends to establish an enterprise producing tobacco products shall obtain the approval of the tobacco monopoly administrative department under the State Council and a license for tobacco monopoly production enterprises, and then go through the registration formalities with the administrative department for industry and commerce upon approval; the split-up, merger or cancellation of an enterprise producing tobacco products shall be subject to the approval of the tobacco monopoly administrative department under the State Council, and the formalities for the change and cancellation of the registration shall be handled at the administrative department for industry and commerce. The administrative department for industry and commerce shall not approve and register an enterprise that has not obtained a license for tobacco monop......