Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China

(npc.gov.cn)      Updated : 2015-12-01

Whoever, in addition to the crime mentioned in the preceding paragraph, kills, injures, rapes, or abducts and sells the persons for whom he makes arrangements to illegally cross the national border(frontier) or commits other criminal acts against them or kills, injures or commits other criminal acts against the inspectors shall be punished in accordance with the provisions on combined punishment for several crimes.

Article 319 Whoever, in the name of export of labour service, economic exchange, trade, etc. , practises fraud to obtain the passport, visa or other exit certificates for the purpose of helping other persons to illegally cross the national border(frontier) shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years and shall also be fined; if the circumstances are serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than 10 years and shall also be fined.

Where a unit commits the crime mentioned in the preceding paragraph, it shall be fined, and the persons who are directly in charge and the other persons who are directly responsible for the offence shall be punished in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

Article 320 Whoever provides another person with a counterfeit or altered passport, visa or other exit and entry certificates or sells passports, visa or other exit and entry certificates shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years and shall also be fined; if the circumstances are serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years and shall also be fined.

Article 321 Whoever transports another person to illegally cross the national border (frontier) shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years, criminal detention or public surveillance and shall also be fined; if he falls under any of the following categories, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years but not more than 10 years and shall also be fined:

(1) repeatedly transporting persons to illegally cross the national border(frontier), or transporting a large number of persons;

(2) the vessels, vehicles or other means of transportation employed not meeting the necessary safety conditions to such an extent that it would cause serious consequences;

(3) the sum of illegal earnings being huge,; or

(4) other especially serious circumstances being involved.

Whoever in transporting other persons to illegally cross the national border (frontier) causes serious injury or death to the persons being transported or resists inspection by means of violence or threat shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than seven years and shall also be fined.

Whoever, in addition to any of the crimes mentioned in the preceding two paragraphs, kills, injures, rapes, or abducts and sells the persons being transported or commits other criminal acts against them or kills, injures or commits other criminal acts against the inspectors shall be punished in accordance with the provisions on combined punishment for several crimes.

Article 322 Whoever, in violation of the laws or regulations on administration of the national border (frontier), illegally crosses the national border (frontier), if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than one year, criminal detention or public surveillance and shall also be fined.

Article 323 Whoever intentionally damages the boundary tablets, boundary markers or permanent survey indicators along the national border shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or criminal detention.

Section 4 Crimes Against Control of Cultural Relics

Article 324 Whoever intentionally damages or destroys valuable cultural relics under State protection or the major sites designated to be protected at the national or provincial level for their historical and cultural value shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or criminal detention and shall also, or shall only, be fined; if the circumstances are serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than 10 years and shall also be fined.

Whoever intentionally damages or destroys places of historical and cultural interest under State protection, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention and shall also, or shall only, be fined.

Whoever negligently damages or destroys valuable cultural relics under State protection or the major sites designated to be protected at the national or provincial level for their historical and cultural value, if the consequences are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or criminal detention.

Article 325 Whoever, in violation of the laws or regulations on protection of cultural relics, sells or presents as a gift to a foreigner without authorization any valuable cultural relic in his collection, the export of which is prohibited by the State, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention and may also be fined.

Where a unit commits the crime mentioned in the preceding paragraph, it shall be fined, and the persons who are directly in charge and the other persons who are directly responsible for the offence shall be punished in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

Article 326 Whoever, for the purpose of profit, resells the cultural relics, the sale of which is prohibited by the State, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention, and shall also be fined; if the circumstances are especially serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years but not more than 10 years and shall also be fined.

Where a unit commits the crime mentioned in the preceding paragraph, it shall be fined, and the persons who are directly in charge and the other persons who are directly responsible for the offence shall be punished in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

Article 327 Where a State-owned museum, library or other institution sells or presents as gifts without permission any cultural relics in its collection, which is under State protection, to any non-State-owned institution or individual, it shall be fined, and the persons who are directly in charge and the other persons who are directly responsible for the offence shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or criminal detention.

Article 328 Whoever excavates and robs a site of ancient culture or ancient tomb of historical, artistic or scientific value shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than 10 years and shall also be fined; if the circumstances are relatively minor, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, criminal detention or public surveillance and shall also be fined; if he falls under any of the following categories, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than 10 years, or life imprisonment or death and shall also be fined or be sentenced to confiscation of property:

(1) excavating and robbing a site of ancient culture or ancient tomb which is designated as a major site to be protected at the national or provincial level for their historical and cultural value;

(2) being a ringleader of a gang engaged in excavating and robbing sites of ancient culture or ancient tombs;

(3) repeatedly excavating and robbing sites of ancient culture or ancient tombs; or

(4) excavating a site of ancient culture or ancient tomb and robbing valuable cultural relics therein, or causing serious damage to such relics.

Whoever excavates and robs fossils of paleoanthropoids or paleovertebrates of scientific value which is under State protection shall be punished in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

Article 329 Whoever forcibly seizes or steals archives owned by the State shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention.

Whoever, in violation of the provisions of the Archives Law, sells or transfers without authorization State-owned archives, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or criminal detention.

Whoever commits any of the acts mentioned in the preceding two paragraphs, which concurrently constitutes another crime provided in this Law, shall be convicted and punished in accordance with the provisions on heavier punishment for such crime.