Article 1

These Regulations are formulated with a view to ensuring the basic livelihood of the unemployed during unemployment and encouraging re-employment.

Article 2

Enterprises and institutions in cities and towns and their staff members and workers shall, pursuant to the provisions of these Regulations, effect payment of unemployment premium.

The unemployed of enterprises and institutions in cities and towns shall enjoy unemployment insurance benefits in accordance with the stipulations of these Regulations.

The enterprises referred to in these Regulations mean state-owned enterprises, enterprises under collective ownership in cities and towns, enterprises with foreign investment, private enterprises in cities and towns and other enterprises in cities and towns.

Article 3

The administrative departments of labor security under the State Council is in charge of unemployment insurance work throughout the country. The administrative departments of labor security under the people’s governments at different levels above the county level are in charge of unemployment insurance work within their respective administrative areas. The bodies handling social insurance that deal with unemployment insurance set up by administrative departments of labor security in accordance with the stipulations of the State Council specifically undertake unemployment insurance work pursuant to the provisions of these Regulations.

Article 4

The collection and payment of unemployment premium shall be governed by the relevant stipulations of the state.

Chapter II Unemployment Insurance Funds

Article 5

Unemployment insurance funds shall be composed of the following items:

(1) The unemployment premium paid by the enterprises and institutions in cities and towns and their staff members and workers;
(2) The interest of unemployment insurance funds;
(3) Financial subsidy;
(4) Other funds brought into unemployment insurance funds according to law.

Article 6

The enterprises and institutions in cities and towns shall pay unemployment premium in accordance with 2 percent of the total amount of their wages in their units. The staff members and workers of the enterprises and institutions in cities and towns shall pay unemployment premium according to 1 percent of personal wage. The peasant contract workers enrolled by the enterprises and institutions in cities and towns do not pay unemployment premium.

Article 7

Citywide overall planning for the unemployment insurance funds shall be carried out in municipalities directly under the Central Government and in cities with subordinate districts. The overall planning structures in other areas shall be stipulated by the people’s governments of provinces and autonomous regions.

Article 8

The provinces and autonomous regions may set up unemployment insurance regulatory funds.

Unemployment insurance regulatory funds shall take the unemployment insurance funds as basis, which are levied in accordance with law within overall planning regions and it shall be accumulated according to the proportion stipulated by the people’s governments of provinces and autonomous regions.

Where the unemployment insurance funds in overall planning regions is inadequate for payment, they shall be adjusted by unemployment insurance regulatory funds
and subsidized by local finance.

Specific measures for the raising and readjustment in use of unemployment insurance regulatory funds and subsidy by local finance shall be formulated by the people’s governments of provinces and autonomous regions.

Article 9

The people’s governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government may, upon approval by the State Council after submission, adjust the rate of unemployment premium in their respective administrative regions in accordance with the number of unemployed and the amount of unemployment insurance funds.

Article 10

Unemployment insurance funds may serve the purpose of the following expenditures:

(1) Unemployment insurance funds;
(2) Medical subsidy in the period of drawing unemployment insurance money;
(3) Funeral and burial subsidy for the unemployed who died in the period of drawing unemployment insurance money and pension for the spouse and lineal relatives supported by the deceased;
(4) The subsidies for receiving vocational training and employment by assignment in the period of drawing unemployment insurance money. Measures and rates for
subsidy shall be stipulated by the people’s governments of provinces autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government;
(5) Other expenses relevant to unemployment insurance stipulated or approved by the State Council.

Article 11

Where unemployment insurance funds must be deposited in the designated financial accounts for social security funds opened with state owned commercial banks by financial departments, it shall carry out the management of two lines of revenue and expenditure and be supervised by financial departments in accordance with law.

To the unemployment insurance funds deposited in banks or used to buy treasury bonds according to the stipulations of the state, the interest is computed in accordance with the rate of urban and rural residents’ bank deposit of the corresponding period and the interest rate of treasury bonds. The interest of unemployment insurance funds shall be incorporated into unemployment insurance funds.

Unemployment insurance funds must be used for their specified purpose only, and it shall not be diverted for any other purposes, and it shall not be used to balance financial revenue and expenditure.

Article 12

The budget and final accounting of revenue and expenditure of unemployment insurance funds shall be drawn up by the bodies handling social insurance in overall planning regions, and it shall be checked by the administrative departments of labor security at the same level and examined and checked by the financial departments at the same level and submitted to the people’s government at the same level for examination and approval.

Article 13

The enforcement of the financial and accounting rules shall be governed by the relevant stipulations of the state.

Chapter III Unemployment Insurance Benefits

Article 14
The unemployed who satisfies the following conditions may draw unemployment insurance money:

(1) Having joined unemployment insurance in accordance with stipulations, and their employer units and individuals themselves have fulfilled the obligation of premium payment for over one year;
(2) Breaking off employment is not because of one’s desire;
(3) Having made an entry in unemployment registration and having the desire to seek a job.

The unemployed enjoys other unemployment insurance benefits at the same time in the period of drawing unemployment insurance money according to stipulations.

Article 15

The unemployed who has any of the following circumstances in the period of drawing unemployment insurance money shall be stopped from drawing unemployment insurance money and enjoying other unemployment insurance benefits at the same time:

(1) One who is re-employed;
(2) One who is enlisted for military service;
(3) One who has emigrated to a foreign country;
(4) One who enjoys the basic old-age insurance benefits;
(5) One who has been sentenced and jailed for carrying out the execution or subjected to re-education through labor;
(6) One who refuses to accept the job offered by the department or body designated by local people’s government without proper reasons;
(7) One who has other circumstances stipulated by laws and administrative regulations.

Article 16

The enterprises and institutions in cities and towns shall issue the certificates concerning terminating or rescinding labor relationship for the unemployed in time and inform them of their rights to unemployment insurance benefits in accordance with stipulations and submit the unemployed list to the bodies handling social insurance within seven days as of the date of terminating or rescinding labor relationship for the record.

Where the staff members and workers of the enterprises and institutions in cities and towns are out of job, they shall take the certificates concerning terminating or rescinding labor relationship issued by their units and go to appointed bodies handling social insurance for unemployment registration in time. The unemployment insurance money shall be computed as of the date of unemployment registration.

Unemployment insurance money shall be granted by the bodies handling social insurance on a monthly basis. The bodies handling social insurance shall issue vouchers for the unemployed for drawing unemployment insurance money. The unemployed shall go and draw unemployment insurance money from the appointed banks on the strength of the vouchers.

Article 17

Where the units to which the unemployed belong before unemployment and the persons who have paid accumulatively premiums for over one year and less than 5 years in accordance with stipulations, the longest period for them to draw unemployment insurance money is 12 months; where the period of accumulative premium payment is over 5 years and less than 10 years, the longest period for them to draw unemployment insurance money is 18 months; where the period of accumulative premium payment is over 10 years, the longest period for them to
draw unemployment insurance money is 24 months. The time of premium payment shall be recalculated for the person who has again become unemployed after being re-employed. The period of drawing unemployment insurance money may be calculated together with the period that the unemployed should have drawn but not yet drawn unemployment insurance money. However, the longest period shall not be over 24 months.

Article 18

The rates for unemployment insurance money should be determined by the people’s governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government in accordance with the level that is lower than the lowest local wage standard and higher than the lowest standard of ensuring livelihood for urban residents.

Article 19

Where in the period of drawing unemployment insurance money, the unemployed who suffers from illness and seeks medical advice may apply for medical subsidy from the body handling social insurance in accordance with stipulations. The rates of medical subsidy shall be stipulated by the people’s governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government.

Article 20
To the unemployed who has passed away in the period of drawing unemployment insurance money, the subsidy for funeral and burial and pension for the family of the deceased shall be given for a single time to the unemployed’s dependents in accordance with the local stipulations with regard to the on-the-job staff members and workers.

Article 21

Where the peasant contract workers employed by units, who have worked continuously over one year and their units have paid unemployment insurance premiums for them and do not renew their labor contract when the contract expires or rescinds the labor contract ahead of time shall be given subsidy for living expenses by the bodies handling social insurance for a single time in accordance with the length of their working time. The measures and standard for subsidy shall be stipulated by the people’s governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government.

Article 22

The relationship of unemployment insurance shall be transferred along with the shift across overall planning regions of the enterprises and institutions in cities and towns as a formed organization and with the unemployed’s movement across overall planning regions.

Article 23

The unemployed who meet the conditions for urban residents’ for ensuring the lowest livelihood may enjoy benefits for ensuring the lowest live hood in accordance with stipulations.

Chapter IV Management and Supervision

Article 24

The administrative departments of labor security manage the work of unemployment insurance and perform the following duties and responsibilities:

(1) To implement and carry out unemployment insurance laws and regulations;
(2) To guide the work of bodies handling social insurance;
(3) To supervise and check the collection of unemployment premiums and payment of unemployment insurance benefits.

Article 25

The bodies handling social insurance shall specifically undertake the work of unemployment insurance and perform the following duties and responsibilities:

(1) To be in charge of the registration, investigation and statistics of the unemployed;
(2) To be in charge of the management of unemployment insurance funds in accordance with stipulations;
(3) To check unemployment insurance benefits and issue vouchers for the unemployed to draw unemployment insurance money and other subsidies from appointed banks in accordance with stipulations;
(4) To appropriate funds for vocational training and employment recommendation for the unemployed;
(5) To provide free consulting service for the unemployed;
(6) Other duties and responsibilities the performance of which by them is stipulated by the state.

Article 26

Financial departments and auditing departments shall carry out supervision with regard to the revenue and expenditure and management of unemployment insurance funds in accordance with law.

Article 27

The funds needed by the bodies handling social insurance shall be listed into budget and be appropriated by finance.

Chapter V Penalty Provisions

Article 28

Where the persons who do not meet the conditions for unemployment insurance benefits gain unemployment insurance money and other unemployment insurance benefits by cheating, the bodies handling social insurance shall order them to refund; where the circumstances are serious, a fine of more than one time less than three times of the amount gained by cheating shall be imposed by the administrative departments of labor security.
Article 29

Where staff members of the bodies handling social insurance issue vouchers for the unemployed to draw unemployment insurance money or enjoy other unemployment insurance benefits in violation of stipulations resulting in losses to unemployment insurance funds, the administrative departments of labor security shall order them to recover; where the circumstances are serious, administrative sanctions shall be imposed according to law.

Article 30

Where functionaries of the administrative departments of labor security and the bodies handling social insurance abuse their powers, commit malpractices for selfish gains and neglect their duties, thus causing losses to the unemployment insurance funds, the administrative departments of labor security shall recover the losses of unemployment insurance funds; where a crime has been constituted, criminal responsibility shall be investigated according to law; where a crime has not been constituted, administrative sanctions shall be imposed according to law.

Article 31

Where any units or individuals divert unemployment insurance funds for other purposes, the unemployment insurance funds diverted shall be recovered; where there are illegal gains, they shall be confiscated and brought into unemployment insurance funds; where a crime has been constituted, criminal responsibility shall be investigated according to law; where a crime has not been constituted, the person-in-charge directly responsible and other persons directly responsible shall be subjected to administrative sanctions according to law.

Chapter VI Supplementary Provisions

Article 32

The people’s governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central government may, in the light of actual local conditions, make a decision on the applicability of these Regulations to the social organizations and their full-time staff, mass-run non-enterprise units and their staff and workers, individual industrial and commercial businesses with hired laborers and their hired laborers in their respective administrative regions.

Article 33

These Regulations shall come into force as of the date of promulgation. The Provisions for Insurance for Staff Members and Workers of State-owned Enterprises Waiting for Employment promulgated by the State Council on April 12, 1993 shall be annulled simultaneously.

Promulgated by The State Council on 1999-1-22