Notary Law of the People's Republic of China (2017 Amendment)

Notary Law of the People's Republic of China (2017 Amendment) Notary Law of the People's Republic of China (Adopted at the 17th Session of the Standing Committee of the Tenth National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on August 28, 2005; amended for the first time in accordance with the Decision on Amending the Five Laws Including the Compulsory Education Law of the People's Republic of China at the 14th session of the Twelfth National People's Congress on April 24, 2015; and amended for the second time in accordance with the Decision on Amending Eight Laws Including the Judges Law of the People's Republic of China at the 29th Session of the Twelfth National People's Congress on September 1, 2017) Contents Chapter I General Provisions Chapter II Notarial Offices Chapter III Notaries Chapter IV Notarization Procedures Chapter V The Effect of Notarization Chapter VI Legal Liabilities Chapter VII Supplementary Provisions Chapter I General Provisions Article 1 This Law has been enacted for the purposes of regulating notarization activities, ensuring that the notarization institutions and notaries perform their duties in accordance with the law, preventing disputes and protecting the lawful rights and interests of the natural persons, legal persons or other organizations. Article 2 Notarization means an act performed by a notarial institution, upon the application of a party concerned, such as certifying the authenticity and legality of a legal act, a document or a fact of legal significance according to the statutory procedures. Article 3 A notarial office shall comply with the law and shall stick to the principle of objectiveness and impartiality when performing notarial acts. Article 4 China Notary Association shall be set up as a national notary association and each province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government shall establish a local notary association. China Notary Association and local notary associations shall be social organizations with legal person status. The charter of China Notary Association shall be formulated by the general assembly of the representatives of its members and shall be reported to the judicial administrative department of the State Council for archival purposes. The notary associations are self-disciplinary organizations of the notarization industry. They shall carry out activities in accordance with the charter and shall supervise the practice of the notarial offices and notaries. Article 5 The judicial administrative department shall, under the law, supervise and offer guidance to the notarial offices, notaries and notary associations. Chapter II Notarial Offices Article 6 A notarial office is a lawfully established non-profit-making certification institution that independently exercises the notarial functions and bear corresponding civil liabilities. Article 7 A notarial office may, in compliance with the principle of overall planning and reasonable distribution, be established in a county, un-districted city, districted city, municipality directly under the Central Government or district directly under a city. One or more notarial office(s) may be established in a districted city or municipality directly under the Central Government. The notarial offices are not established on different levels according to administrative hierarchy. Article 8 A to-be-established notarial institution shall meet the following conditions: (1)Having its own name; (2)Having a fixed office; (3)Having 2 or more notaries; and (4)Having the fund necessary to carry out notarial work. Article 9 Where a notarial office is to be established, it shall be reported by the local judicial administrative department to the judicial administrative department of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government. After the judicial administrative department of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government grants approval according to the prescribed procedures, the local judicial administrative department shall issue a practicing certificate of notarial office. Article 10 The person-in-charge of a notarial office shall be selected or elected from the notaries who have 3 or more years of practicing experience, shall be subject to the examination and approval of the local judicial administrative department, and shall be reported to the judicial administrative department of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government for archival purposes. Article 11 Upon request of a natural person, legal person or any other organization, the notarial office shall performing notarial acts for the following matters: (1) Contract; (2)Inheritance; (3)Authorization, declaration, bestowal, will; (4)Distribution of property; (5)Bidding and tendering, auction; (6)Marriage status, kindred relationship, adoption relationship; (7)Birth, existence, death, identity, experience, education background, degree, job title, professional technical title, having or not having illegal and criminal record; (8)Articles of association; (9)Preservation of evidence; (10)Signature, seal and date as indicated in a document, duplicate or photocopy of a document conforming with the original document; and (11)Other matters that a natural person, legal person or any other organization voluntarily requests for notarization. As to any matter that shall be notarized under any law or administrative regulation, the relevant natural person, legal person or any other organization shall file a request with the notarial office for notarization. Article 12 Upon the request of a natural person, legal person or any other organization, the notarial office may handle the following affairs: (1)The affairs that shall be registered by a notarial office under any law or administrative regulation; (2)Preservation of evidence; (3)Preservation of will, heritage or other property, articles and documents relating to the notarization affair; (4)Making legal documents relating to the notarization matter instead of others; (5)Providing legal consultation services relating to notarization. Article 13 No notarial office may: (1)issue a notarial certificate for an untrue or illegal matter; (2)destroy or fraudulently alter any notarial document or archive file; (3)canvass notarial business by bespattering other notarial offices or notaries, or by paying kickbacks or commissions, or by any other unfair competition methods; (4)divulge any state secret, commercial secrete or personal privacy it has access to in its practice; (5)charge notarization fees by violating the prescribed standards; or (6)commit any other act as prohibited by any law or regulation, or provisions of the judicial administrative department of the State Council. Article 14 A notarial office shall work out rules for the management its business, financial affairs and assets, shall supervise the practices of its notaries and shall set up a responsibility system for wrong practices. Article 15 The notarial institution shall buy notarial practice responsibility insurance. Chapter III Notaries Article 16 A notary shall be a notarial practitioner who meets the conditions as prescribed by this Law and is working in a notarial office. Article 17 T......