Recently, the State Administration of Market Supervision and Administration issued the Measures for Handling Complaints and Reports of Market Supervision and Administration, which came into effect on April 15, 2026.
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Article 2 These Measures shall apply to the handling of complaints and reports by market supervision and management departments in accordance with their duties. Where laws, regulations and rules stipulate that it shall be handled by other departments, such provisions shall be followed. Article
3 The term "complaint" as mentioned in these Measures refers to the act of a consumer who purchases or uses goods or receives services for the purpose of living and consumption, and who has a dispute with a business operator over the rights and interests of a consumer and requests the market supervision and management department to resolve the dispute. The term "reporting" as mentioned in
these Measures refers to the acts of natural persons, legal persons or other organizations reporting to the market supervision and management departments that operators are suspected of violating the laws, regulations and rules of market supervision and management. Article
4 The State Administration of Market Supervision and Administration shall be in charge of the handling of complaints and reports throughout the country and shall guide the handling of complaints and reports by local market supervision and administration departments. Local market supervision and management departments at or above the
county level shall be responsible for the handling of complaints and reports within their respective administrative areas. Article
5 Market supervision and management departments shall follow the principles of fairness and efficiency in handling complaints and reports, and ensure that the applicable basis is correct and the procedures are legitimate. Article
6 The public and the news media are encouraged to conduct social supervision and public opinion supervision on acts suspected of violating the laws, regulations and rules of market supervision and management according to law.
Encourage and guide operators to build consumer rights service stations and green channels for consumer rights protection, establish and improve the system of first inquiry responsibility, advance compensation, online consumer dispute resolution, and timely prevent and resolve consumer rights disputes.
Encourage and guide consumers to negotiate with operators to resolve consumer rights disputes through consumer rights service stations, green channels for consumer rights protection, online consumer dispute resolution mechanisms, and third-party dispute resolution mechanisms. Article
7 Market supervision and management departments shall open, standardize and publish channels for complaints and reports, improve the procedures for handling complaints and reports, and handle complaints and reports in a timely manner according to law. When submitting complaints and reports
to the market supervision and management departments, they shall abide by laws, regulations, rules and relevant provisions, and shall not abuse the right to complain and report, use complaints and reports to seek illegitimate interests, infringe upon the legitimate rights and interests of operators, and disrupt the order of market economy and market supervision and management. Article
8 Complaints and reports to the market supervision and management department shall be made through the national 12315 platform, the 12315 hotline, or the mailing address and acceptance window published by the market supervision and management department. Article
9 Where complaints and reports are submitted to the market supervision and management department at the same time, or the materials provided contain both complaints and reports, the market supervision and management department shall handle the complaints and reports separately in accordance with the procedures prescribed in these Measures. Article
10 The complainant shall provide the following materials and be responsible for the authenticity of the contents of the materials provided:
(1) the name, telephone number, mailing address and other real identity information of the complainant;
(2) the name (name) and address of the respondent;
(3) Specific complaint requests and corresponding factual basis for disputes over consumer rights and interests. If the
complainant makes a complaint in a non-written form, the staff of the market supervision and management department shall record the information specified in the preceding paragraph. In order to verify the real identity information of the complainant, the
market supervision and management department may require the complainant to provide the corresponding identity certification materials. Article
11 Where a complaint is lodged on behalf of another person, in addition to the materials specified in the first paragraph of Article 10 of these Measures, the original power of attorney and the identity certificate of the trustee shall also be provided. The
power of attorney shall specify the entrusted matters, powers and duration, and shall be signed by the principal. Article
12 If two or more complainants complain about the same operator based on the same consumer's rights and interests dispute, the market supervision and management department may, with the consent of the complainants, handle the complaint as a joint complaint.
A joint complaint may be made by two representatives elected by the complainant in writing. The complaint of the representative shall be effective to the complainant represented by him, but if the representative changes or abandons the complaint request or reaches a mediation agreement with the respondent, it shall be subject to the consent of the complainant represented by him. Article
13 Complaints shall be handled by the market supervision and management department at the county level in the place where the respondent actually operates or resides. Complaints
about e-commerce platform operators and e-commerce operators who sell goods or provide services through self-built websites or other network services shall be handled by the county-level market supervision and management department in their place of residence. The complaint
against the operator in the platform shall be handled by the market supervision and management department at the county level of the place where the address is publicized on the platform or the market supervision and management department at the county level of the place where the operator of the platform resides; if the address is not publicized on the platform according to law, or the contact cannot be made through the address publicized on the platform, the complaint shall be handled by the market supervision and management department at the county level of the place where the operator of the platform resides. If the market supervision and management department
at a higher level deems it necessary, it may handle the complaints received by the market supervision and management department at a lower level. If the market supervision and management department at a lower level considers it necessary for the market supervision and management department at a higher level to handle the complaints received by the administrative organ, it may report them to the market supervision and management department at a higher level for decision. Article
14 Where two or more market supervision and management departments have the authority to handle complaints about disputes over the rights and interests of the same consumer, the market supervision and management department that receives the complaints first shall handle them. Article
15 The market supervision and management department with the authority prescribed in these Measures shall make a decision on acceptance or rejection within seven working days from the date of receipt of the complaint and inform the complainant. If a decision is made not to accept
the complaint, the complainant shall also be informed of the reasons for not accepting the complaint and other ways to resolve disputes over consumer rights and interests as stipulated in Article 39 of the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Consumer Rights and Interests. Article
16 The market supervision and administration department shall not accept a complaint under any of the following circumstances:
(1) The complaint does not fall within the responsibilities of the market supervision and administration department, or the administrative organ does not have the authority to handle it;
(2) Courts, arbitration institutions, market supervision and management departments or other administrative organs or consumer associations have accepted or handled disputes over the rights and interests of the same consumer;
(3) The purchase or use of commodities or acceptance of services is not for the purpose of daily consumption, or it cannot be proved that there is a dispute over the rights and interests of consumers with the respondent;
(4) Unless otherwise provided by law, the complainant knows or should know that his rights and interests have been infringed upon by the respondent for more than three years;
(5) Failing to provide the materials specified in the first paragraph of Article 10 and Article 11 of these Measures, or providing false materials;
(6) Fraudulently using the name of another person or refusing to cooperate with the market supervision and management department to verify the true identity information;
(seven) other circumstances that are not accepted by laws, regulations and rules. Article
17 The market supervision and administration department may consider the following factors when judging whether a complaint falls under the circumstances specified in Item 3 of Article 16 of these Measures:
(1) The quantity, frequency and frequency of the goods purchased are obviously inconsistent with the shelf life of the goods or the usual consumption habits of consumers;
(2) The same complainant makes a large number of complaints about the same operator, the same kind of goods or services, or the same kind of problems in a short period of time, or different complainants collude maliciously to make centralized complaints about the same operator, the same kind of goods or services, or the same kind of problems in a short period of time;
(3) Failure to prove the existence of a real consumption relationship or dispute over the rights and interests of consumers, such as the actual purchase of goods or acceptance of services, the actual infringement of their legitimate rights and interests;
(4) Complaints from more than one person using the same mobile phone number, address or other contact methods;
(Five) other factors that can be considered according to actual needs.The market supervision and management departments at or above the municipal level
with districts may, in light of the actual situation, refine the factors for judging the circumstances specified in Item 3 of Article 16 of these Measures. Article
18 With the consent of the complainant and the respondent, the market supervision and management department shall handle the complaint by mediation, but if there are other provisions in laws and regulations, such provisions shall be followed. Complainants and respondents are
encouraged to negotiate on an equal footing and reconcile on their own. Article
19 With the consent of the complainant and the respondent, the market supervision and management department may entrust the complaint to the consumer association or other mediation organizations established according to law for mediation.
The entrusted organization shall mediate in the name of the entrusted market supervision and management department within the scope of entrustment, and shall not entrust other organizations or individuals. Article
20 Mediation may take the form of on-site mediation or off-site mediation such as Internet, telephone, audio and video. If on-site mediation is
adopted, the market supervision and management department or its entrusted organization shall inform the complaint and the respondent of the time, place and mediator of mediation in advance. Article
21 Mediation shall be presided over by the market supervision and management department or the staff of its entrusted organization, and relevant personnel may be invited to assist as necessary. If the
mediator is a close relative of the complainant or the respondent or has other interests that may affect the fair handling of the complaint, he shall withdraw. If the complainant or the respondent applies for the withdrawal of the mediator, the market supervision and management department shall suspend the mediation and make a decision on whether to withdraw or not. Article
22 Where the quality of goods or services needs to be appraised or tested due to disputes over the rights and interests of consumers, the complainant and the respondent may negotiate to determine the appraisal and testing institutions that meet the corresponding conditions. If no consensus can be reached on the appraisal and testing institutions, the market supervision and management department accepting the complaints may designate the appraisal and testing institutions.
Unless otherwise stipulated by laws and regulations, the expenses required for identification and testing shall be borne by the complainant and the respondent through consultation. The time required for
identification and testing shall not be counted within the mediation period. Article
23 In any of the following circumstances, the mediation shall be terminated:
(1) the complainant withdraws the complaint or the two parties reconcile on their own;
(2) the complainant or the respondent fails to participate in the mediation without justified reasons, or explicitly refuses to mediate;
(3) After organizing mediation, the complainant or the respondent clearly indicates that a mediation agreement cannot be reached;
(4) The complainant and the respondent cannot reach a consensus on the cost of identification and testing;
(5) The complainant and the respondent fail to reach a mediation agreement within 60 days from the date of acceptance of the complaint;
(6) The market supervision and management department finds that there are circumstances specified in Articles 16 and 42 of these Measures after accepting the complaint;
(7) The complainant or the respondent dies or loses the subject qualification;
(8) Other circumstances under which the mediation shall be terminated as prescribed by laws, regulations and rules. If the
market supervision and management department terminates the mediation, it shall inform the complainant and the respondent within seven working days from the date of making the decision to terminate the mediation. Article
24 Where a mediation agreement is reached through on-site mediation, the market supervision and management department shall prepare a mediation letter, except that the mediation agreement has been fulfilled immediately or both parties agree not to prepare a mediation letter. The conciliation statement shall be signed or sealed by both the complainant and the respondent, and affixed with the seal of the market supervision and management department. The complainant and the respondent shall each hold one copy, and the market supervision and management department shall keep one copy for filing. If no mediation letter is
made, the market supervision and management department shall make a good record of mediation for reference. Article
25 If the complainant or the respondent is not satisfied with the decision to terminate the mediation made by the market supervision and management department or the result of the mediation, they may settle the disputes over consumers'rights and interests through civil litigation, arbitration and other means in accordance with Article 39 of the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Consumers' Rights and Interests. Article
26 Market supervision and management departments may strengthen the evaluation of complaint handling and improve the efficiency of complaint handling by means of spot checks and return visits. Article
27 If a market supervision and management department finds clues to suspected violations of market supervision and management laws, regulations and rules in mediation, it shall verify them within 15 working days from the date of discovery and deal with them in accordance with the Provisions on Procedures for Administrative Penalties for Market Supervision and Management. Under special circumstances, the time limit for verification may be extended by fifteen working days with the approval of the person in charge of the market supervision and management department. Where there are other provisions in laws, regulations and rules, such provisions shall be followed. Mediation of disputes
over the rights and interests of consumers does not exempt business operators from other legal liabilities they should bear according to law. Article
28 An informer shall provide specific clues and corresponding factual basis for suspected violations of market supervision and management laws, regulations and rules, and shall be responsible for the authenticity of the contents of the report. If the informer reports in a non-written way, the staff of the market supervision and management department shall record it. Operators are
encouraged to report their suspected violations of market supervision and management laws, regulations and rules according to law. Article
29 The report shall be handled by the market supervision and management department at or above the county level in the place where the reported act occurs. Where laws, administrative regulations and departmental rules provide otherwise, such provisions shall be followed. Article
30 The dispatched offices of the county-level market supervision and administration departments shall handle reports in the name of their own departments within the limits of their authority as determined by their own departments, except those authorized by laws and regulations to handle reports in the name of their own offices. Article
31 Reports of e-commerce platform operators and e-commerce operators who sell goods or provide services through self-built websites or other network services shall be handled by the market supervision and management departments at or above the county level in their places of residence.
The report of the operator in the platform shall be handled by the market supervision and management department at or above the county level where the operator actually operates. If the market supervision and management department at or above the county level in the place where the operator of the e-commerce platform resides receives the report first, it may also deal with it. Article
32 Reports of illegal advertisements published by mass media such as radio, film, television, newspapers, periodicals and the Internet shall be handled by the market supervision and administration department of the place where the advertisement publisher is located. If the market supervision and management department of the place where the
advertiser or the advertising operator is located receives the report in advance, it may also deal with it. Reports of illegal Internet advertisements published by
advertisers themselves shall be handled by the market supervision and management department where the advertisers are located. Article
33 Where two or more market supervision and management departments have a dispute over the handling authority, they shall settle it through consultation within seven working days from the date of the dispute. If the consultation fails, the dispute shall be reported to the common market supervision and management department at the next higher level to designate the handling organ, or the common market supervision and management department at the next higher level may directly designate the handling organ. Article
34 If the market supervision and management department receiving the report does not have the authority to handle it, it shall inform the informer; if it falls within the scope of the responsibilities of the market supervision and management department, it shall inform the informer to submit it directly to the market supervision and management department with the authority to handle it. Article
35 The market supervision and management department shall handle the report in accordance with the Provisions on Procedures for Administrative Penalties for Market Supervision and Management. If the same informer repeatedly reports the same informer on the same suspected illegal facts, the
market supervision and management department shall not deal with it separately; if the same informer reports the same informer again on the grounds of adding new facts, it may deal with it together, and the time limit for handling it shall be recalculated from the date of receiving the last report. Article
36 Where laws, regulations and rules stipulate that the market supervision and management department shall inform the informer of the results of the handling of the report or reward the informer, the market supervision and management department shall inform or reward the informer. Article
37 The market supervision and management department shall keep the information of the informer confidential, and shall not divulge the personal information of the informer or the handling of the report to the informer or to the person who has nothing to do with the handling of the report, but the materials provided shall include both the contents of the complaint and the report. Except for those who need to provide the informant with the necessary information for organizing mediation. Article
38 Market supervision and management departments shall strengthen the statistical analysis and application of complaint reporting information in their respective administrative regions, carry out consumer early warning and risk warning, publish statistical analysis reports of complaint reporting, and publicize consumer complaint information according to law.Article
39 The market supervision and management department shall keep strictly confidential the state secrets learned in the handling of complaints and reports and the information that may endanger national security, public security, economic security and social stability after being made public. If information
involving business secrets and personal privacy really needs to be disclosed, it shall be implemented in accordance with the Regulations of the People's Republic of China on the Disclosure of Government Information and other relevant provisions. Article
40 Market supervision and management departments shall implement unified complaint reporting data standards and user rules, handle complaint reporting through the national 12315 platform, and realize the integration of complaint reporting information throughout the country. Article
41 The working organs of the local market supervision and management departments at or above the county level that receive complaints and reports in a unified manner shall promptly distribute the complaints and reports to the lower market supervision and management departments with the authority to handle them or to the relevant organs of the market supervision and management departments at the same level. Where the relevant organs of the market supervision and management departments
at the same level receive complaints and reports, they shall handle them in a timely manner in accordance with the relevant provisions of these Measures. If they do not have the authority to handle them, they shall give timely feedback to the working bodies that receive complaints and reports in a unified manner, and shall not transfer them on their own. Article
42 In the course of handling complaints and reports, the market supervision and administration department shall, in accordance with the Law of the People's Republic of China on Administrative Penalties for Public Security, find that the complaint informer is suspected of defrauding the operator of compensation or extorting the operator by means of entrainment, switching, falsification, tampering with commodity information, fabricating facts, etc. Transfer to public security organs and other departments for processing. Article
43 Where the market supervision and management department handles complaints other than those specified in Article 3 of these Measures, it may refer to these Measures.
Reporting suspected violations of the Anti-monopoly Law of the People's Republic of China and the Regulations on Fair Competition Review shall be carried out in accordance with the relevant provisions of the State Administration of Market Supervision and Administration. These Measures shall apply to the handling of complaints and reports by
drug supervision and administration departments, but the reporting of suspected violations of the relevant provisions on the registration and filing of drugs, medical devices and cosmetics shall be carried out in accordance with the relevant provisions of the State Administration of Market Supervision and Administration or the National Medical Products Administration. Where there are other provisions in laws and regulations, such provisions shall prevail. Article
44 These Measures shall not apply to activities such as consultation, application for government information disclosure, application for administrative reconsideration, and accusation by discipline inspection and supervision in the form of complaints and reports, and the market supervision and management department may inform them to submit them through corresponding channels. Article
45 Where a time period is calculated on the basis of year, month and day, the day on which it begins shall not be counted, but shall be counted from the next working day or natural day. If the last day of the expiration of a time period is a statutory holiday, the expiration date shall be the first day after the statutory holiday. Article
46 These Measures shall come into force on April 15, 2026. The Interim Measures for Handling Complaints and Reports of Market Supervision and Administration promulgated by Decree No.20 of the State Administration of Market Supervision and Administration on November 30, 2019 shall be abolished at the same time.
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