The new "Industry Standard Management Measures" released! Officially implemented on June 1 next year

　　To implement the spirit of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council on deepening the reform of standardization work, as well as the relevant requirements of the "National Standardization Development Outline," the State Administration for Market Regulation recently revised and issued the "Industry Standard Management Measures" (hereinafter referred to as the "Measures"), which will officially come into effect on June 1, 2024. Industry standardization work is of great significance for improving the standardization system and rules, building a high-standard market system, promoting fair market competition, and advancing the construction of a unified national market.

　　The "Measures" focus on the transformation of government functions, promote reform and innovation in standardization, strengthen coordination and support of standards, provide normative support to break industry monopolies and market restrictions, and lead and support the construction of a unified national market through standardization work.

　　The main contents and highlights of this revision are: First, efforts to improve the industry standard coordination mechanism. According to new requirements such as the "Standardization Law of the People's Republic of China," coordination and supporting provisions between standards are set in the drafting and implementation stages of industry standards, improving the coordination and promotion mechanism for industry standards and establishing a coordinated, simplified, and efficient industry standard management system. Second, focus on preventing the use of industry standards to restrict competition. The "Measures" clearly prohibit using industry standards to set qualification rewards, licensing certification, approval registration, evaluation and compliance, etc., and prohibit the government from excluding or restricting market competition through industry standards, promoting continuous optimization of the business environment and unleashing the vitality of market entities. Third, systematically build an industry standard supervision system. It adds requirements for self-supervision by relevant administrative departments of the State Council, supervision sampling by the State Council's standardization administrative department, and social supervision through complaint and reporting channels, improving the legal responsibilities of industry standard management and establishing a comprehensive supervision system with clear main responsibilities. Fourth, promote the lawful disclosure of industry standards. To create a good social environment for standardization and promote the lawful disclosure of industry standards, the "Measures" clarify the main responsibility for disclosure and encourage the publication of industry standard texts through the National Standard Information Public Service Platform for public consultation.

　　The State Administration for Market Regulation will take the issuance of the "Measures" as an opportunity to further optimize the industry standard system structure, adhere to unified management and division of responsibilities, coordinate the formulation and implementation of industry standards, effectively strengthen standardization publicity, continuously consolidate the foundation for standardization development, and deeply promote the construction of an efficient, standardized, fair, competitive, and fully open unified national market.

The original text is as follows↓↓↓

Industry Standard Management Measures

(Promulgated by the State Administration for Market Regulation on November 28, 2023, Order No. 86, effective from June 1, 2024)

　　 Article 1 To strengthen the management of industry standards, these Measures are formulated in accordance with the "Standardization Law of the People's Republic of China."

　　 Article 2 The formulation, organization, implementation, and supervision of industry standards shall be governed by these Measures.

　　 Article 3 Industry standards are standards formulated by relevant administrative departments of the State Council based on their administrative management responsibilities for technical requirements that need to be unified within a certain industry nationwide but do not have recommended national standards.

　　Industry standards focus on important products, engineering technology, services, and industry management needs within the industry field.

　　Industry standards shall not be formulated under any of the following circumstances:

　　(1) Recommended national standards already exist;

　　(2) Technical requirements for general products and services;

　　(3) Technical requirements that cross departments or industries;

　　(4) Work requirements, management norms, etc., that constrain the internal system of administrative departments.

　　 Article 4 Industry standards are recommended standards. If laws, administrative regulations, or State Council decisions provide otherwise, those provisions shall prevail.

　　 Article 5 The formulation of industry standards shall be based on scientific and technological research results and social practice experience, ensuring the scientific, normative, and timely nature of industry standards, achieving technical advancement and economic rationality.

　　 Article 6 The technical requirements of industry standards shall not be lower than the relevant requirements of mandatory national standards and shall be coordinated and matched with related standards.

　　It is prohibited to stipulate qualifications, licensing certification, approval registration, evaluation compliance, regulatory subjects, and responsibilities in industry standards.

　　It is prohibited to use industry standards to implement behaviors that hinder the free circulation of goods and services or exclude or restrict market competition.

　　 Article 7 The State Council's standardization administrative department shall uniformly guide, coordinate, and supervise the formulation and related management of industry standards. It shall establish a national standard information public service platform to support industry standard filing, information disclosure, and other work.

　　 Article 8 Relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall uniformly manage industry standards within their departmental responsibilities, be responsible for the formulation, implementation, review, and supervision of industry standards, and file approved and published industry standards with the State Council's standardization administrative department according to law.

　　 Article 9 The codes and scope of industry standards shall be reviewed, approved, and announced by the State Council's standardization administrative department based on applications and responsibilities of relevant administrative departments of the State Council. Industry standard codes that have not been approved and announced shall not be used.

　　 Article 10 Disputes arising during the formulation and implementation of industry standards shall be negotiated by the State Council's standardization administrative department; if negotiation fails, the State Council's standardization coordination mechanism shall be requested to resolve them.

　　 Article 11 Industry standards are formulated by relevant administrative departments of the State Council. The general procedures for formulating industry standards include: project initiation, organizing drafting, soliciting opinions, technical review, numbering, approval and publication, and filing.

　　 Article 12 Before initiating an industry standard project, relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall organize verification. Projects with existing recommended national standards or related standard project plans shall not be initiated.

　　 Article 13 Drafting of industry standards shall be coordinated with existing national and industry standards to avoid overlap, duplication, and contradictions.

　　Drafts of industry standards for soliciting opinions shall be publicly solicited from society, generally for no less than thirty days.

　　Foreign-invested enterprises shall participate equally with domestic enterprises in the formulation and revision of industry standards according to law.

　　 Article 14 Relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall entrust standardization technical committees or establish expert review groups to conduct technical reviews of industry standard drafts, focusing on the scientific, rational, applicable, and normative nature of technical requirements.

　　Standardization technical committees and expert groups shall be professional, independent, and broadly representative. Standard drafters shall not undertake the technical review of the same standard.

　　If there are existing national professional standardization technical committees that can meet industry needs, no new professional industry standardization technical committees shall be added.

　　 Article 15 Industry standards generally do not involve patents. Patents involved in industry standards should be essential patents for implementing the standard, and their management shall follow the relevant management provisions for patents involved in national standards.

　　 Article 16 If industry standards must adopt international standards, they shall comply with the copyright policies of relevant international organizations and obtain consent from the Chinese member body of the international standard organization. Industry standards drafted based on foreign standards shall comply with the copyright policies of the foreign standard issuing body.

　　 Article 17 The numbering of industry standards consists of the industry standard code plus "/T", the sequence number of the industry standard issuance, and the year of issuance. "/T" indicates a recommended standard, and the sequence number is a natural number.

　　 Article 18 Industry standards are approved and issued by the relevant administrative departments of the State Council. The issuance of industry standards follows a public announcement system.

　　 Article 19 The relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall, within sixty days from the date of approval and issuance of the industry standard and before the implementation date of the standard, submit filing materials to the administrative department for standardization of the State Council through the National Standard Information Public Service Platform or other means. The filing materials shall include the announcement of the industry standard issuance and the officially approved standard text. If a foreign language version of the standard is also issued, the filing materials shall include the announcement of the foreign language version issuance and the officially approved foreign language version text.

　　The relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall promote the public disclosure of industry standards according to law. It is encouraged to disclose industry standard texts through the National Standard Information Public Service Platform for public consultation.

　　It is encouraged that the industry standard drafting departments establish information platforms covering project initiation, drafting, solicitation of opinions, review, approval, and issuance stages to strengthen the openness of standard drafting information and social supervision.

　　 Article 20 After the issuance of industry standards, the relevant administrative departments of the State Council may entrust units with relevant publishing qualifications to complete the publication of the standard texts.

　　 Article 21 A reasonable transition period shall be reserved between the issuance and implementation of industry standards.

　　Before the implementation of the new industry standard after its issuance, either the original industry standard or the new industry standard may be chosen for execution.

　　After the new industry standard is implemented, the original industry standard shall be simultaneously abolished.

　　After the corresponding national standard is implemented, the industry standard shall be abolished by the relevant administrative departments of the State Council on their own initiative.

　　 Article 22 The relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall organize the promotion and implementation of industry standards and carry out the promotion and implementation of industry standards in conjunction with their statutory duties.

　　 Article 23 The relevant administrative departments of the State Council are responsible for the interpretation of industry standards. The interpretation of industry standards has the same legal effect as the standard text. After the interpretation is issued, the relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall disclose the interpretation text on their department portal or standardization work website within twenty days from the date of issuance and also disclose it on the National Standard Information Public Service Platform.

　　 Article 24 The review cycle of industry standards generally does not exceed five years. Timely review shall be conducted under any of the following circumstances:

　　(1) Significant changes occur in laws, administrative regulations, departmental rules, or relevant national provisions;

　　(2) Significant changes occur in relevant national standards or industry standards;

　　(3) Significant changes occur in key technologies or applicable conditions;

　　(4) Other circumstances requiring timely review.

　　The relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall announce the review conclusions. The review conclusions include three situations: continue to be valid, revise, or abolish. If the review conclusion is to revise, the industry standard drafting procedures stipulated in these measures shall be followed. If the review conclusion is to abolish, public opinions shall be solicited before the abolition announcement. The abolition announcement shall be disclosed on the National Standard Information Public Service Platform.

　　 Article 25 The relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall establish an information feedback and evaluation mechanism for the implementation of industry standards and review industry standards based on feedback and evaluation results.

　　 Article 26 The relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall regularly supervise and inspect the industry standards they have issued and promptly correct issues such as industry standards not complying with mandatory national standards, duplication or inconsistency with national standards or other industry standards, exceeding scope, and non-compliance in numbering and drafting.

　 　Article 27 The administrative department for standardization of the State Council shall regularly organize spot checks on industry standards and report the results.

　　 Article 28 If there is duplication, overlap, or inconsistency between industry standards and national standards or other industry standards, the administrative department for standardization of the State Council shall, together with relevant administrative departments of the State Council, propose opinions on integration, revision, or abolition of industry standards, and the relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall be responsible for handling them. If the relevant administrative departments of the State Council do not handle them, the administrative department for standardization of the State Council shall organize consultations, and if consultations fail, report to the State Council standardization coordination mechanism for resolution.

　　 Article 29 If the relevant administrative departments of the State Council violate the provisions of Article 3 Paragraph 3, Article 6 Paragraphs 1 and 2, and Article 9 of these measures, or if the industry standard drafting subject, numbering, filing, or review does not comply with these measures, the administrative department for standardization of the State Council shall require them to explain the situation and make corrections within a time limit. If corrections are not made within the time limit, the administrative department for standardization of the State Council shall announce the abolition of the relevant standards.

　　 Article 30 Violations of the provisions of Article 6 Paragraph 3 of these measures shall be handled in accordance with the provisions of the Anti-Monopoly Law of the People's Republic of China and other laws and administrative regulations.

　　 Article 31 The administrative department for standardization of the State Council and relevant administrative departments of the State Council shall establish and improve the complaint and report handling system for industry standards, keep complaint and report channels open, accept social supervision, and handle complaints and reports promptly.

　　 Article 32 These measures shall come into effect on June 1, 2024. The "Measures for the Administration of Industry Standards" promulgated by the former State Bureau of Technical Supervision on August 24, 1990, Order No. 11, shall be repealed simultaneously.

　　Source: State Administration for Market Regulation