On August 25, 2026, the draft Anti-Cross-Border Corruption Law (反跨境腐败法) was submitted for first reading at the 24th session of the 14th National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee. The six-chapter, 47-article bill covers the principles and scope of China’s cross-border anti-corruption efforts, institutional mechanisms and responsibilities, case handling and international cooperation, corporate integrity compliance obligations, and legal liability. For foreign companies operating in or with China, the bill signals that corporate anti-bribery compliance is moving from scattered regulatory requirements toward a dedicated legal framework.
What is in the draft law?
According to Xinhua News Agency, the draft consists of six chapters and 47 articles. Its main contents fall into five areas: (1) defining the principles, scope and positions of China’s cross-border anti-corruption work; (2) establishing the working mechanisms and responsibilities for cross-border anti-corruption; (3) strengthening case handling and international cooperation; (4) specifying corporate integrity compliance obligations; and (5) providing for legal liability.
The structure shows a dual approach: the bill addresses both the punishment of cross-border corruption and the prevention of it through mandatory corporate compliance. As the full text of the draft has not yet been published, the specific provisions will be confirmed when the NPC Standing Committee releases the final text after deliberation.
The road to this bill
The legislative process has been several years in the making:
In September 2023, the 14th NPC Standing Committee published its five-year legislative plan, listing the Anti-Cross-Border Corruption Law as a first-category project — a draft considered mature enough to be submitted for deliberation within the current term.
In July 2024, the Resolution of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (《中共中央关于进一步全面深化改革、推进中国式现代化的决定》) explicitly called for advancing national anti-corruption legislation and enacting an anti-cross-border corruption law. Shen Chunyao, director of the NPC Standing Committee’s Legislative Affairs Commission, highlighted the task at the plenary’s press conference.
In January 2025, the communique of the Fifth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection called for intensifying the investigation of cross-border corruption cases and supporting the NPC Standing Committee in formulating the law.
In March 2026, the NPC Standing Committee’s work report listed the Anti-Cross-Border Corruption Law among the year’s legislative agenda. On August 25, 2026, the draft was formally submitted for first reading at the 24th session of the 14th NPC Standing Committee.
Why China is legislating now
According to the Xinhua report, the law is intended to implement the central authorities’ decisions on cross-border corruption governance and accelerate the formation of a complete anti-corruption legal system with international dimensions; to reinforce China’s clear anti-corruption stance and safeguard national security and development interests; to regulate the healthy development of cross-border enterprises and foster a market-oriented, law-based and internationalized business environment; and to expand the legal “toolkit” for fugitive repatriation, asset recovery and the handling of foreign-related corruption cases.
In practice, cross-border corruption cases have long faced four difficulties: detection, evidence collection, asset recovery and conviction. Cross-border fund flows are opaque, overseas evidence gathering requires mutual legal assistance procedures, assets are scattered across jurisdictions, and jurisdictional conflicts complicate the characterization of conduct. Codifying the experience gained since the 18th CPC National Congress provides stronger legal tools to address these problems.
Cross-border corruption is not a uniquely Chinese challenge. As a party to the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), China has international obligations to prevent and combat corruption, including in the private sector. The UK Bribery Act 2010 goes further, creating the offence of “failure to prevent bribery”: a commercial organization is criminally liable where an associated person bribes another to obtain or retain business, unless the organization can prove adequate procedures were in place. These international models help explain the direction of China’s new bill.
What it means for foreign businesses
The bill’s inclusion of corporate integrity compliance obligations is its most significant feature for the business community. Experts cited in public reporting have noted that China’s existing anti-corruption rules focus largely on punishment, while preventive obligations are scattered across different regulations without a centralized statutory basis.
Once enacted, companies engaged in cross-border business — overseas investment, international trade, foreign engineering projects — should expect to build anti-corruption compliance systems proportionate to their operations, including anti-bribery policies, due diligence on suppliers and partners, and financial compliance controls for overseas projects. Drawing on the logic of the UK Bribery Act, a company that fails to prevent bribery by persons associated with it may face principal liability. Companies with China-related operations should start reviewing their compliance frameworks now, rather than waiting for the final text.
Impact on cross-border criminal cases
The law will expand the legal toolkit for fugitive repatriation, asset recovery and the handling of foreign-related corruption cases. For criminal defense lawyers, this means more cases involving cross-border corruption allegations, and a more formalized framework for mutual legal assistance, extradition and repatriation, and cross-border evidence gathering. It also means foreign nationals and companies facing corruption-related investigations in China should seek counsel familiar with both Chinese criminal procedure and international cooperation mechanisms.
What happens next
The draft is at the first-reading stage. It will go through further deliberations, public consultation and revision before the final text is adopted and published by the NPC Standing Committee. Nothing in this article should be read as a statement of the bill’s final provisions. For now, the practical takeaway is to monitor the legislative progress and assess corruption-compliance risks in cross-border operations early. Anyone facing a corruption-related investigation or charge with cross-border elements should engage counsel promptly to evaluate jurisdiction, evidence and asset-related issues.