China’s Abortion Provisions
China’s Abortion Provisions in English
Download a pdf copy of Law of the People’s Republic of China on Maternal and Infant Health Care (Adopted at the Tenth Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eighth National People’s Congress on October 27, 1994, promulgated by Order No.33 of the President of the People’s Republic of China on October 27, 1994, and effective as of June 1, 1995) (Revised 2017)
Law of the People’s Republic of China on Maternal and Infant Health Care (Adopted at the Tenth Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eighth National People’s Congress on October 27, 1994, promulgated by Order No.33 of the President of the People’s Republic of China on October 27, 1994, and effective as of June 1, 1995), Articles 18-19, 32, 36-37.*
Article 18 If one of the following cases is detected in the pre-natal diagnosis, the physician shall explain the situations to the married couple and give them medical advice on a termination of gestation:
(1) the fetus is suffering from a genetic disease of a serious nature,
(2) the fetus is with a defect of a serious nature, or
(3) continued gestation may jeopardize the safety of life of the pregnant woman or seriously impair her health, due to the serious disease she suffers from.
Article 19 Termination of gestation or performance of ligation operations practised in accordance with the provisions of this Law shall be subject to the consent and signing of the person per se. If the person per se has no capacity for civil conduct, it shall be subject to the consent and signing of the guardian of the person.
Whoever is to terminate gestation or receive ligation operations under this Law shall receive such services free of charge.
[…]
Article 32 Medical and health institutions that carry out pre-marital medical examination, genetic disease diagnosis and pre-natal diagnosis, ligation operations and operations for termination of gestation in accordance with the provisions of this Law must meet the requirements and technical standards set by the administrative department of public health under the State Council, and shall obtain the permission of the administrative departments of public health under the local people’s governments at or above the county level. Sex identification of the fetus by technical means shall be strictly forbidden, except that it is positively necessitated on medical grounds.
[…]
Article 36 Where anyone who has not obtained relevant qualification certificates issued by the State performs operations for termination of gestation or terminates gestation by other means, thus causing death, disability, loss or basic loss of working ability, shall be investigated for criminal responsibility in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Criminal Law.
Article 37 Where any person who engages in maternal and infant health care issues false medical certificates or conducts fetal gender identification in violation of this Law, a medical care institution or health administrative department shall impose administrative sanction on such personnel; where the circumstance is serious, the practicing qualification of such personnel shall be withdrawn.
