Decree of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, No. 225
July 21, 1997
Regulations on Funeral Management have been passed at the 60th Executive Meeting of the State Council held on July 11, 1997, and are now issued and shall come into effect from the date of issuance.
Premier Peng Li
July 21, 1997
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1: In order to strengthen funeral management, promote funeral reform, and facilitate socialist spiritual civilization construction, these Regulations are formulated.
Article 2: The guideline for funeral management is: actively and gradually implement cremation, reform earth burial, save land for funerals, abolish outdated funeral customs, and advocate civilized and thrifty handling of funerals.
Article 3: The national civil affairs department under the State Council is responsible for the country’s funeral management. Civil affairs departments of local people's governments at or above the county level are responsible for funeral management within their administrative regions.
Article 4: Areas with dense population, less farmland, and convenient transportation should implement cremation; areas that temporarily do not have the conditions to implement cremation may allow earth burial.
Areas implementing cremation and allowing earth burial shall be demarcated by the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government, and the civil affairs departments of these levels of government shall file with the civil affairs department under the State Council.
Article 5: In areas where cremation is implemented, the State advocates methods of dealing with ashes such as keeping ashes in a columbarium or other ways that do not occupy or occupy little land. County-level people's governments and municipal or autonomous prefecture people's governments with districts shall formulate specific plans for the implementation of cremation, including the construction and renovation of funeral homes, crematoriums, and columbaria in urban and rural construction plans and basic construction plans.
In areas where earth burial is allowed, county-level people's governments and municipal or autonomous prefecture people's governments with districts shall include public cemeteries in urban and rural construction plans.
Article 6: Respect the funeral customs of ethnic minorities; voluntary reforms of funeral customs by others shall not interfere.
Chapter II Administration of Funeral Facilities
Article 7: Civil affairs departments of provincial, autonomous region, and municipal people's governments shall propose the number and layout planning of funeral facilities such as funeral homes, crematoriums, columbaria, cemeteries, and funeral service stations based on the funeral needs of their administrative regions, and report to their respective people's governments for approval.
Article 8: The construction of funeral homes and crematoriums shall be proposed by the civil affairs departments of county-level people's governments and municipal or autonomous prefecture people's governments with districts, and reported to their respective people's governments for approval; the construction of funeral service stations and columbaria shall be approved by the civil affairs departments of county-level people's governments and municipal or autonomous prefecture people's governments with districts; the construction of cemeteries shall be reviewed and agreed upon by the civil affairs departments of county-level people's governments and municipal or autonomous prefecture people's governments with districts, and then reported to the civil affairs departments of provincial, autonomous region, and municipal people's governments for approval.
The construction of funeral facilities using foreign investment shall be reviewed and agreed upon by the relevant departments of provincial, autonomous region, and municipal people's governments, and then reported to the civil affairs department under the State Council for approval.
The establishment of public welfare cemeteries for villagers in rural areas shall be reviewed and agreed upon by township-level people's governments, and then reported to the civil affairs departments of county-level people's governments for approval.
Article 9: No unit or individual may construct funeral facilities without approval.
Public welfare cemeteries in rural areas may not provide grave sites to persons other than villagers.
The establishment or restoration of clan cemeteries is prohibited.
Article 10: It is forbidden to build graves in the following areas:
(1) Farmland, forest land;
(2) Urban parks, scenic spots, and cultural relic protection zones;
(3) Reservoirs and river embankments nearby and water source protection zones;
(4) Both sides of railways and main highways.
Existing graves in the aforementioned areas, except those protected by the State which have historical, artistic, and scientific value and are retained, shall be relocated within a time limit or buried deep without leaving a grave mound.
Article 11: Strict restrictions are imposed on the area occupied by cemetery plots and the period of use. For areas where earth burial is permitted according to the plan or where ash burial is permitted, the area occupied by plots for burying bodies or ashes and the period of use shall be specified by the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government according to the principle of saving land and not occupying farmland.
Article 12: Funeral service units shall strengthen the management of funeral service facilities, update and renovate old cremation equipment, and prevent environmental pollution.
Funeral service personnel shall abide by operating procedures and professional ethics, implement standardized civilized services, and shall not solicit property using their work convenience.
Chapter III Management of Body Disposal and Funeral Activities
Article 13: The disposal of bodies must comply with the following provisions:
(1) Bodies must be transported after necessary technical treatment to ensure hygiene and prevent environmental pollution;
(2) Cremation of bodies must be carried out with death certificates issued by public security organs or medical institutions designated by the health administrative department under the State Council.
Article 14: When conducting funeral activities, one must not hinder public order, endanger public safety, or infringe upon the legitimate rights and interests of others.
Article 15: In areas where earth burial is allowed, it is forbidden to bury bodies or build graves in any place other than public cemeteries or public welfare cemeteries in rural areas.
Chapter IV Management of Funeral Equipment and Funeral Supplies
Article 16: Cremation machines, body transport vehicles, body refrigerators, and other funeral equipment must meet the technical standards stipulated by the State. The manufacture and sale of funeral equipment that does not meet the technical standards stipulated by the State are prohibited.
Article 17: The manufacture and sale of feudal superstitious funeral supplies are prohibited. The sale of coffins and other earth burial supplies in areas where cremation is implemented is prohibited.
Chapter V Penalties
Article 18: If anyone constructs funeral facilities without approval, they will be dismantled by the civil affairs department together with the construction and land administration departments, ordered to restore the original state, fined up to three times the illegal gains, and may also be fined between one and three times the illegal gains.
Article 19: If the area of a grave plot exceeds the standard set by the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government, the civil affairs department shall order rectification within a time limit, confiscate illegal gains, and may also impose a fine of one to three times the illegal gains.
Article 20: If a body that should be cremated is buried in the earth, or if a body is buried or a grave is built in any place other than a public cemetery or a public welfare cemetery in a rural area, the civil affairs department shall order rectification within a time limit; if the person refuses to correct, forced execution may be carried out.
Article 21: If funeral activities hinder public order, endanger public safety, or infringe upon the legitimate rights and interests of others, the civil affairs department shall stop them; if the act constitutes a violation of public security management, the public security organ shall impose public security management penalties according to law; if the act constitutes a crime, criminal responsibility shall be pursued according to law.
Article 22: If anyone manufactures or sells funeral equipment that does not meet the technical standards stipulated by the State, the civil affairs department shall cooperate with the industry and commerce administrative department to order the cessation of manufacture and sale, and may also impose a fine of one to three times the amount of manufacture and sale.
If anyone manufactures or sells feudal superstitious funeral supplies, the civil affairs department shall cooperate with the industry and commerce administrative department to confiscate them, and may also impose a fine of one to three times the amount of manufacture and sale.
Article 23: If funeral service personnel solicit property using their work convenience, the civil affairs department shall order them to refund and compensate; if the act constitutes a crime, criminal responsibility shall be pursued according to law.
Chapter VI Supplementary Provisions
Article 24: These Regulations shall come into effect from the date of issuance. The Interim Provisions on Funeral Management issued by the State Council on February 8, 1985, shall be abolished simultaneously.