23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions (zizhiqu, singular and plural), 4 municipalities (shi, singular and plural), and two special administrative regions (tebie xingzhengqu, singular and plural)
provinces: Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang; (see note on Taiwan)
autonomous regions: Guangxi, Nei Mongol (Inner Mongolia), Ningxia, Xinjiang Uyghur, Xizang (Tibet)
municipalities: Beijing, Chongqing, Shanghai, Tianjin
special administrative regions: Hong Kong, Macau
Dragon, giant panda; national colors: red, yellow.
Title | "Yiyongjun Jinxingqu" (The March of the Volunteers) |
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Lyric/music | TIAN Han/NIE Er |
Date of Independence | 1 October 1949 (People's Republic of China established); notable earlier dates: 221 B.C. (unification under the Qin Dynasty); 1 January 1912 (Qing Dynasty replaced by the Republic of China) |
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National holiday | National Day (anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949) |
Legal system | civil law influenced by Soviet and continental European civil law systems; legislature retains power to interpret statutes; note - on 28 May 2020, the National People's Congress adopted the PRC Civil Code, which codifies personal relations and property relations |
International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt |
Constitution | |
History | Several previous; latest promulgated 4 December 1982 |
Amendments | Proposed by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress or supported by more than one fifth of the National People’s Congress membership; passage requires more than two-thirds majority vote of the Congress membership; amended several times, last in 2018 |
Citizenship | |
Citizenship by birth | no |
Citizenship by descent only | least one parent must be a citizen of China |
Dual citizenship recognized | no |
Residency requirement for naturalization | while naturalization is theoretically possible, in practical terms it is extremely difficult; residency is required but not specified |
Executive Branch | |
Chief of state | President XI Jinping (since 14 March 2013) |
Head of government | Premier LI Qiang (since 11 March 2023) |
Cabinet | State Council appointed by National People's Congress |
Elections/appointments | president and vice president indirectly elected by National People's Congress; election last held on 10 March 2023 (next to be held in March 2028); premier nominated by president, confirmed by National People's Congress |
Election results | 2023: XI Jinping reelected president; National People's Congress vote - 2,952 (unanimously); HAN Zheng elected vice president with 2,952 votes 2018: XI Jinping reelected president; National People's Congress vote - 2,970 (unanimously); WANG Qishan elected vice president with 2,969 votes |
Legislative branch | |
Description | Unicameral National People's Congress (NPC) or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (maximum of 3,000 seats; members indirectly elected by municipal, regional, and provincial people's congresses, and the People's Liberation Army; members serve 5-year terms) |
Elections | The 14th NPC convened on 5 March 2023; the 15th NPC will convene in March 2028 |
Election results | Percent of vote - NA; seats by party - NA; the 14th NPC consists of 2,977 delegates; 2,187 men, 790 women, percentage women 26.5% |
Judicial branch | |
Highest court(s) | Supreme People's Court (consists of over 340 judges, including the chief justice and 13 grand justices organized into a civil committee and tribunals for civil, economic, administrative, complaint and appeal, and communication and transportation cases) |
Judge selection and term of office | Chief justice appointed by the People's National Congress (NPC); limited to 2 consecutive 5-year-terms; other justices and judges nominated by the chief justice and appointed by the Standing Committee of the NPC; term of other justices and judges determined by the NPC |
Subordinate courts | Higher People's Courts; Intermediate People's Courts; District and County People's Courts; Autonomous Region People's Courts; International Commercial Courts; Special People's Courts for military, maritime, transportation, and forestry issues |
Diplomatic representation in the US | |
Chief of mission | Ambassador XIE Feng (since 30 June 2023) |
Chancery | 3505 International Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 |
Telephone | [1] (202) 495-2266 |
FAX | [1] (202) 495-2138 |
Email address and website | [email protected] http://www.china-embassy.org/eng/ |
Consulate(s) general | Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco; note - the US ordered closure of the Houston consulate in late July 2020 |
Diplomatic representation from the US | |
Chief of mission | Ambassador Nicholas BURNS (since 2 April 2022) |
Embassy | 55 An Jia Lou Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100600 |
Mailing address | 7300 Beijing Place, Washington DC 20521-7300 |
Telephone | [86] (10) 8531-3000 |
FAX | [86] (10) 8531-4200 |
Email address and website | [email protected] https://china.usembassy-china.org.cn/ |
Consulate(s) general | Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang, Wuhan; note - the Chinese Government ordered closure of the US consulate in Chengdu in late July 2020 |
National heritage | |
Total World Heritage Sites | 57 (39 cultural, 14 natural, 4 mixed) |
Selected World Heritage Site locales | Imperial Palaces of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (c); Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor (c); The Great Wall (c); Summer Palace (c); Jiuzhaigou Valley (n); Potala Palace (c); Ancient Pingyao (c); Historic Macau (c); Dengfeng (c); Grand Canal (c); Mount Huangshan (m) |
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