China's Market Regulator to Issue New Rules Ensuring Proportional Administrative Penalties
On September 24, 2026, China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) announced it will soon issue the "Regulations on Discretion in Administrative Penalties for Market Regulation." The regulation upgrades discretion rules from a normative document to a departmental regulation, establishes five penalty tiers (no penalty, mitigated, light, standard, heavy), and unifies national standards for factors like "first-time violation" and "minor harm." It aims to ensure proportionate penalties and prevent arbitrary enforcement.
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China's Market Regulator to Issue New Rules Ensuring Proportional Administrative Penalties
China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) announced on September 24, 2026, that it will soon issue the 'Regulations on Discretion in Market Supervision and Administrative Penalties' to ensure penalties are proportionate to violations. The new regulation, set to be released at a department rule level, has three main features: first, it upgrades the discretion rules from a normative document to a departmental regulation, providing a unified national standard with stronger binding force. Second, it refines the penalty gradation into five tiers—no penalty, mitigated penalty, light penalty, standard penalty, and heavy penalty—with clear application criteria for each, particularly distinguishing between mitigated and light penalties to address enforcement concerns. Third, it unifies the identification standards for common discretionary factors such as 'first-time violation,' 'minor violation,' and 'minor harm consequences' across the country. The regulation aims to ensure consistent standards for similar cases, require comprehensive consideration of multiple factors to prevent mechanical or selective enforcement, and establish strict procedures for adjusting penalty levels, including collective discussion by department heads for changes from light to mitigated penalties.
Read sourceChina's Market Regulator to Issue New Rules Ensuring Proportional Administrative Penalties
On September 24, China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) announced at a quarterly press conference that it will soon issue the 'Regulations on Discretion in Market Supervision Administrative Penalties.' SAMR spokesperson Wang Qiuping stated the new rules aim to ensure penalties are proportionate to the offense. The regulations have three main features: elevating the discretionary rules from normative documents to departmental regulations for stronger enforcement; dividing discretion into five tiers (no penalty, mitigated, light, standard, and heavy) with clear criteria, particularly distinguishing between mitigated and light penalties to address enforcement confusion; and unifying national standards for common discretionary factors like 'first offense' and 'minor harm.' The regulation targets inconsistent penalties for similar cases and arbitrary discretion through three methods: standardizing criteria nationwide, requiring comprehensive consideration of multiple factors to prevent mechanical enforcement, and implementing strict procedural controls, such as requiring collective departmental discussion for adjustments from light to mitigated penalties.
Read sourceChina's Market Regulator to Issue New Rules on Administrative Penalty Discretion
According to a quarterly press conference by China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR), the agency will soon issue the 'Regulation on Discretion in Administrative Penalties for Market Regulation.' The regulation aims to ensure penalties are proportionate to violations. It has three main features: First, it elevates the discretion rules from a normative document to a departmental regulation, increasing legal binding force and providing a unified national standard for law enforcement. Second, it refines penalty tiers into five levels—no penalty, mitigated penalty, light penalty, standard penalty, and heavy penalty—with clear application criteria for each, particularly distinguishing between mitigated and light penalties to address enforcement officers' reluctance or confusion. Third, it standardizes the criteria for common discretionary factors such as 'first-time violation,' 'minor violation,' and 'minor harmful consequences,' based on local practices, making enforcement more predictable for grassroots officers and businesses. The report is attributed to CCTV News.
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China's market regulator to issue new rules ensuring proportionate administrative penalties
On September 24, China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) announced at a quarterly press conference that it will soon issue the 'Regulations on Discretion in Administrative Penalties for Market Supervision,' aiming to ensure penalties are proportionate to violations. The regulation has three main features: first, it elevates the discretionary rules from a normative document to a departmental regulation, providing stronger binding force and a unified national standard. Second, it refines penalty gradations into five tiers—no penalty, mitigated, lightened, standard, and aggravated—with clear application criteria for each, particularly distinguishing between mitigated and lightened penalties to address enforcement hesitation. Third, it unifies the criteria for common discretionary factors such as 'first-time violation,' 'minor violation,' and 'minor harmful consequences,' ensuring consistent treatment of similar cases nationwide. The regulation also requires comprehensive consideration of multiple aggravating or mitigating factors to prevent mechanical or selective enforcement, and mandates strict procedures for adjustments, such as requiring collective discussion by department heads to change a lightened penalty to a mitigated one, balancing flexibility for special cases with prevention of abuse of discretion.
China's Market Regulator to Issue New Rules Ensuring Proportional Administrative Penalties
On September 24, China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) announced at its third-quarter regular press conference that it will soon issue the 'Market Supervision and Administrative Penalty Discretion Regulations' to ensure that administrative penalties are proportionate to the offense. The new regulation has three main features: First, it upgrades the discretion rules from a normative document to a departmental regulation, providing stronger institutional rigidity and greater binding force, establishing a unified standard for law enforcement nationwide. Second, it refines the penalty gradations into five tiers: no penalty, mitigated penalty, light penalty, standard penalty, and heavy penalty, with clear application criteria for each tier. Notably, it distinguishes between mitigated and light penalties, which were often confused in practice, addressing law enforcement officers' reluctance and confusion in applying them. Third, it unifies the criteria for common discretionary factors such as 'first-time offense,' 'minor illegal act,' and 'minor harmful consequences' based on local practices, providing clear guidance for grassroots enforcement and certainty for business entities.