Regulations on the Ranks of Customs Officers of the PRC — Full English Translation (2003)

Adopted at the 32nd Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People’s Congress on February 28, 2003

Promulgated by Order No. 85 of the President of the People’s Republic of China on February 28, 2003

Effective: February 28, 2003

Table of Contents

Chapter I — General Provisions

Article 1 — This Regulation is formulated in accordance with the Constitution for the purpose of strengthening the building of the customs contingent, enhancing the sense of responsibility, the sense of honor and the organizational discipline of customs officers, and facilitating the performance of their duties by customs officers in accordance with law.

Article 2 — The customs authorities shall implement a system of customs ranks. State public servants of the General Administration of Customs, its sub-administrations, the offices of special commissioners, and the customs offices directly subordinate to it, the customs offices subordinate to them and the offices thereof may be conferred customs ranks.

The anti-smuggling police of the customs shall implement the police rank system of the people’s police.

Article 3 — A customs rank is a title and insignia distinguishing the grades of customs officers and indicating their status, as well as an honor conferred by the State upon customs officers.

Article 4 — Customs officers shall be conferred customs ranks according to the scheme of ranks corresponding to their posts and grades.

Article 5 — As between customs officers, the one with a higher rank shall be the superior of the one with a lower rank. Where a customs officer with a higher rank is subordinate in post to a customs officer with a lower rank, the one with a higher post shall be the superior.

Article 6 — The General Administration of Customs shall be in charge of the work relating to customs ranks.

Chapter II — Establishment of Ranks

Article 7 — The following five grades and thirteen classes of customs ranks are established:

(1) Commissioner General of Customs and Deputy Commissioner General of Customs;

(2) Customs Supervisor: Classes I, II and III;

(3) Customs Inspector: Classes I, II and III;

(4) Customs Superintendent: Classes I, II and III;

(5) Customs Clerk: Classes I and II.

Article 8 — Customs officers shall be conferred ranks according to the following scheme of posts and grades:

(1) the principal post at the level of the General Administration: Commissioner General of Customs;

(2) the deputy post at the level of the General Administration: Deputy Commissioner General of Customs;

(3) the principal post at the bureau level: Customs Supervisor Class I to Customs Supervisor Class II;

(4) the deputy post at the bureau level: Customs Supervisor Class II to Customs Supervisor Class III;

(5) the principal post at the division level: Customs Supervisor Class III to Customs Inspector Class II;

(6) the deputy post at the division level: Customs Inspector Class I to Customs Inspector Class III;

(7) the principal post at the section level: Customs Inspector Class II to Customs Superintendent Class II;

(8) the deputy post at the section level: Customs Inspector Class III to Customs Superintendent Class III;

(9) the post of a section member: Customs Superintendent Class I to Customs Clerk Class I;

(10) the post of an office clerk: Customs Superintendent Class II to Customs Clerk Class II.

Chapter III — Conferment of Ranks

Article 9 — The conferment of customs ranks shall be based on the current post of a customs officer, his or her moral integrity and professional competence, length of service in the post, and years of work.

Article 10 — A customs officer recruited through examination or transferred from another department shall, upon the determination of his or her post, be conferred the corresponding customs rank.

Article 11 — Customs ranks shall be conferred with approval in accordance with the following limits of authority:

(1) the ranks of Commissioner General of Customs, Deputy Commissioner General of Customs, Customs Supervisor Class I and Customs Supervisor Class II shall be conferred with the approval of the Premier of the State Council;

(2) the ranks from Customs Supervisor Class III through Customs Inspector Class III shall be conferred with the approval of the Director General of the General Administration of Customs;

(3) the ranks at or below Customs Superintendent Class I within the organs of the General Administration of Customs and the agencies dispatched by the General Administration of Customs shall be conferred with the approval of the Director of the Political Department of the General Administration of Customs;

(4) the ranks at or below Customs Superintendent Class I of the customs offices directly subordinate to the General Administration of Customs and the customs offices subordinate to them shall be conferred with the approval of the director general of the respective customs office directly subordinate to the General Administration of Customs.

Chapter IV — Promotion of Ranks

Article 12 — A customs officer holding a rank at or below Customs Inspector Class II shall be promoted within the range of ranks corresponding to his or her post and grade in accordance with the following periods:

from Customs Clerk Class II through Customs Superintendent Class I, one class shall be promoted every three years;

from Customs Superintendent Class I through Customs Inspector Class I, one class shall be promoted every four years.

Article 13 — Where a customs officer holding a rank at or below Customs Inspector Class II has reached the end of the period for promotion, if he or she meets the conditions for promotion upon assessment, he or she shall be promoted class by class; if he or she does not meet the conditions for promotion, the promotion shall be postponed. A customs officer with outstanding meritorious achievements in work may, with approval, be promoted ahead of the prescribed period.

Article 14 — The promotion of customs officers holding ranks at or above Customs Inspector Class I shall be effected by selection within the range of ranks corresponding to their posts and grades on the basis of their moral integrity, professional competence and actual work achievements.

Article 15 — Where a customs officer is promoted to a higher post and his or her rank is lower than the lowest rank corresponding to the new post and grade, he or she shall be promoted to the lowest rank corresponding to the new post and grade.

Article 16 — A Customs Clerk may not be promoted to Customs Superintendent, a Customs Superintendent to Customs Inspector, or a Customs Inspector to Customs Supervisor until he or she has passed the required training.

Article 17 — The limits of authority for approving the promotion of customs ranks shall be governed by the provisions of Article 11 of this Regulation.

Chapter V — Retention, Demotion and Revocation of Ranks

Article 18 — The rank of a customs officer shall be retained after his or her retirement, but he or she may not wear the rank insignia.

The rank of a customs officer shall not be retained if he or she is transferred away from the customs, resigns, or is dismissed.

Article 19 — Where a customs officer is transferred to a lower post because he or she is incompetent for the current post, and his or her rank is higher than the highest rank corresponding to the new post and grade, he or she shall be demoted to the highest rank corresponding to the new post and grade. The limits of authority for approving the demotion of a rank shall be the same as those for the original rank.

Article 20 — Where a customs officer receives an administrative sanction of demotion or removal from office, his or her rank shall be correspondingly lowered. The limits of authority for approving the demotion of a rank shall be the same as those for the original rank. After a rank is demoted, the period for the promotion of the rank shall be recalculated in accordance with the grade of the demoted rank.

The demotion of rank shall not apply to a Customs Clerk Class II.

Article 21 — Where a customs officer receives an administrative sanction of expulsion, or is sentenced by law to deprivation of political rights or to fixed-term imprisonment or a heavier penalty for a crime, his or her rank shall be correspondingly revoked, without going through the approval formalities.

Where a retired customs officer commits a crime, the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall apply.

Chapter VI — Supplementary Provisions

Article 22 — The styles of the rank insignia of customs officers and the measures for wearing them shall be prescribed by the State Council.

Article 23 — This Regulation shall be effective as of the date of promulgation.

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