Here's the Latest on Regulations Taking Effect in July

Today marks the official half point of 2020, which has been nothing short of surprising and hectic, to say the least. 

As we’re getting ready to embark on a new journey throughout the rest of the year, a slew of new national and local regulations are expected to come into effect in China effective this month, affecting things such as masks, cars, and tickets.

Duty-free shopping in Hainan

The total amount of duty free purchases consumers can make on the offshore islands in Hainan has been raised to RMB 100,000.

On June 29, the Ministry of Finance, the General Administration of Customs and the State Administration of Taxation jointly issued the Notice on the Duty-free Shopping Policy for Tourists from offshore Islands in Hainan, which will take effect on July 1, 2020 and grants unlimited number of trips to the region. 

The previous annual duty-free shopping quota had been set at RMB 30,000.

New standards for face masks

The State Administration for Market Regulation and the Standardization Administration of China issued a new respiratory protection standard, including a filtering element system that can be divided into KN100, KN95 and KN90 according to the filtering efficiency level of non-oily particles. This new standard will also take effect on July 1, 2020.

In the new standard, the filtering efficiency of non-oily particles above 0.075 microns can reach 99.97%, 95% and 90% for the KN100, KN95, and KN90 respectively. The higher the protection level and filtering efficiency, the higher the safety of the dust respiratory system. 

New railway lines 

China’s national railway system will start introducing new lines from July 2020, including the opening of the Hefei - Huzhou section of the He-Hang high-speed railway, as well as the opening of the Nantong - Shanghai railway, Kazuo - Chifeng high-speed railway, Anshun - Liupanshui high-speed railway, and the Qinghai section of the Geku Railway.

E-bike regulation enforcement

In Jiangsu province, e-bike drivers and passengers are required to wear helmets whenever driving their vehicle. Failure to do so will result in fines.

Zhejiang, Shaanxi, Jiangxi, Xiaogan in Hubei, Huanggang in Hubei and Chenzhou in Hunan will also begin enforcing similar traffic rules, effective July 1, most of which emphasize wearing helmets, being listed on roads and cracking down on illegal modifications.

More cities are added to China’s waste classification system

Yantai, a port city in eastern China’s Shandong province, and Wuhan, Hubei’s capital city, will begin implementing the country’s increasingly widespread classification system to sort through household waste and demand their citizens to abide by those recycling rules. 

Those who violate them will be required to “make corrections” immediately. Refusing to make the required corrections will result in fines ranging between RMB 50-200.

Editor: Crystal H

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