中国婚姻法英文版本 Marriage Law of the People's Republic of China

2021年1月26日发(作者：鸵鸟政策)
Marriage Law of the People's Republic of China

发表于
2006-11-1








（
Adopted at the Third Session of the Fifth National People's Congress on September 10,1980,
and
amended
in
accordance
with
Decision
Regarding
the
Amendment
(of
Marriage
Law
of
the
People's
Republic
of
China)
passed
at
21st
Session
of
the
Standing
Committee
of
the
Ninth
National People's Congress on April 28,2001
）


Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1 This Law is the Fundamental code governing marriage and family relations.

Article 2 A marriage system based on the free choice of partners, on monogamy and on equality
between man and woman shall be applied.

The lawful rights and interests of women, children and old people shall be protected.

Family planning shall be practised.

Article 3 Marriage upon arbitrary decision by any third party, mercenary marriage and any other
acts of interference in the freedom of marriage shall be prohibited. The exaction of money or gifts
in connection with marriage shall be prohibited.

Bigamy
shall
be
prohibited.
Cohabitation
of
a
married
person
with
any
third
party
shall
be
prohibited. Domestic violence shall be prohibited. Within the family maltreatment and desertion of
one family member by another shall be prohibited.

Article 4 Husband and wife shall be faithful to and respect each other. Within the family family
members
shall
respect
the
old
and
cherish
the
young,
help
one
another,
and
maintain
equal,
harmonious and civilized marriage and family relations.

Chapter II Marriage Contract

Article 5 Marriage must by based upon the complete willingness of both man and woman. Neither
party may use compulsion on the other party and no third party may interfere.

Article
6
No
marriage
may
be
contracted
before
the
man
has
reached
22
years
of
age
and
the
woman 20 years of age. Late marriage and late childbirth shall be encouraged.

Article 7 No marriage may be contracted under any of the following circumstances:

(1)if the man and the woman are lineal relatives by blood, or collateral relatives by blood up to the
third degree of kinship; and

(2)if the man or the woman is suffering from any disease, which is regarded by medical science as
rendering a person unfit for marriage.

Article 8 Both the man and the woman desiring to contract a marriage shall register in person with
the marriage registration office. If the proposed marriage is found to conform with the provisions
of this Law, the couple shall be allowed to register and issued marriage certificates. The husband
and wife relationship shall be established as soon as they acquire the marriage certificates. In the
absence
of
the
marriage
registration,
the
man
and
the
woman
shall
go
through
the
procedures
subsequently.

Article 9 After a marriage has been registered, the woman may become a member of the man
family or vice versa, depending on the agreed wishes of the two parties.

Article 10 Marriage shall be invalid under any of the following circumstances:

(1)if one party commits bigamy;

(2)if the man and the woman are relatives by blood up to the third degree of kinship;

(3)if, before marriage, one party is suffering from a disease which is regarded by medical science
as rendering a person unfit for marriage and, after marriage, a cure is not effected; and

(4)if the legally marriageable age is not attained.

Article 11 In the case of a marriage made under coercion, the coerced party may make a request to
the marriage registration office or the people's court for the dissolution of the marriage contract.
Such
a
request
shall
be
made
within
one
year
as
of
the
marriage
registration
date.
The
party
concerned whose personal freedom is curbed illegitimately shall make a request for dissolution of
the
marriage
contract
within
one
year
as
of
the
date
on
which
his
or
her
personal
freedom
is
restored.

Article 12 V
oid or dissolved marriage shall be invalid from its inception. Neither party concerned
shall
have
the
rights
and
duties
of
husband
or
wife.
The
property
acquired
during
their
cohabitation shall be subject to disposition by mutual agreement. If they fail to reach an agreement,
the
people's
court
shall
give
a
ruling
on
the
principle
of
caring
for
the
no-fault
party.
The
disposition of the property of void marriage caused by bigamy may not be to the detriment of the
property rights and interests of the party concerned to the lawful marriage. The provisions of this
Law regarding parents and children shall apply to the children born from the parties concerned.

Chapter III Family Relations

Article 13 Husband and wife shall have equal status in the family.

Article 14 Both husband and wife shall have the right to use his or her own surname and given
name.

Article 15 Both husband and wife shall have the freedom to engage in production and other work,
to study and to participate in social activities; neither party may restrict or interfere with the other
party.

Article 16 Both husband and wife shall have the duty to practise family planning.

Article
17
The
following
items
of
property
acquired
by
husband
and
wife
during
the
period
in
which they are under contract of marriage shall be jointly possessed:

(1)pay and bonus;

(2)earnings from production and operation;

(3)earnings from intellectual property rights;

(4)property obtained from inheritance of gift except as provided for in Article 18(3) of this Law;
and

(5)Any other items of property which shall be in his or her separate possession.

Article 19 So far as the property acquired during the period in which they are under contract of
marriage and the prenuptial property are concerned, husband and wife may agree as
to whether
they should be in the separate possession, joint possession or partly separate possession and partly
joint possession. The agreement shall be made in writing. The provisions of Articles 17 and 18 of
this Law shall apply to the absence of such an agreement or to a vague one.

The agreement reached between the husband and wife on the property acquired during the period
in which they are under contract of
marriage and on the prenuptial property is binding on both
parties.

If
husband
and
wife
agree,
as
is
known
to
the
third
party,
to
separately
possess
their
property
acquired during their marriage life, the debt owed by the husband or the wife to any other person,
shall be paid off out of the property separately possessed by him or her.

Article 20 Husband and wife shall have the duty to maintain each other.

If
one
party
fails
to
perform
this
duty,
the
party
in
need
of
maintenance
shall
have
the
right
to
demand maintenance payments from the other party.

Article 21 Parents shall have the duty to bring up and educate their children; children shall have
the duty to support and assist their parents.

If parents fail to perform their duty, children who are minors or who are incapable of living on
their own shall have the right to demand the cost of upbringing from their parents.

If
children
fail
to
perform
their
duty,
parents
who
are
unable
to
work
or
have
difficulties
in
providing for themselves shall have the right to demand support payments from their children.

Infant drowning, deserting and any other acts causing serious harm to infants and infanticide shall
be prohibited.

Article 22 Children may adopt their father's or their mother's surname.

Article
23
Parents
shall
have
the
right
and
duty
to
subject
their
children
who
are
minors
to
discipline and to protect them. If children who are minors cause damage to the state, the collective,
or individuals, their parents shall have the duty to bear civil liability.

Article 24 Husband and wife shall have the right to inherit each other's property.

Parents and children shall have right to inherit each other's property.

Article 25 Children born out of wedlock shall enjoy the same rights as children born in wedlock.
No one may harm or discriminate against them.

The natural father or the natural mother who does not rear directly his or her child born out of
wedlock shall bear the child's living and educational expenses until the child can support himself
or herself.

Article 26 The state shall protect lawful adoption. The relevant provisions of this Law governing
the
relationship
between
parents
and
children
shall
apply
to
the
rights
and
duties
in
the
relationship between foster parents and foster children.

The right and duties in the relationship between a foster child and his or her natural parents shall
terminate with the establishment of this adoption.

Article
27
Maltreatment
or
discrimination
shall
not
be
permitted
between
stepparents
and
stepchildren.

The relevant provisions in this Law governing the relationship between parents and children shall
apply
to
the
rights
and
duties
in
the
relationship
between
stepfathers
or
stepmothers
and
their
stepchildren who receive care and education from them.

Article 28 Grandparents or maternal grandparents who can afford it shall have the duty to bring up
their grandchildren or maternal grandchildren who are minors and whose parents are dead or have
no capacity of bringing them up. Grandchildren or maternal grandchildren who can afford it shall
have the duty to support their grandparents or maternal grandparents whose children are dead or