China to Curb Arbitrary Law Enforcement and Expand 24/7 Legal Services

China's Ministry of Justice has outlined key directions for advancing a rule-of-law government over the next five years, placing particular emphasis on rectifying arbitrary and excessive administrative enforcement. The ministry plans to institutionalize long-term oversight mechanisms, including a nationwide rollout of "scan-code" enterprise inspections to curb disruptive business audits. In parallel, authorities plan to introduce 24/7 round-the-clock public legal services to improve citizen access to dispute resolution, building upon an administrative review system that resolved over 1.1 million cases in 2025.

Unpredictable and overlapping administrative inspections have long been a major complaint among private enterprises in China. By tightening procedural requirements on frontline regulators and standardizing inspection protocols, authorities aim to stabilize commercial expectations. Simultaneously, expanding around-the-clock legal aid and strengthening administrative dispute resolution mechanisms are designed to channel civil grievances into institutional pathways before they escalate into formal litigation or public petitions.

China's Ministry of Justice is targeting arbitrary and excessive administrative law enforcement as part of its blueprint to advance rule-of-law governance over the next five years, according to state and financial media reports. Addressing longstanding enterprise concerns regarding erratic regulatory scrutiny, the ministry signaled plans to establish long-term supervision mechanisms to ensure enforcement reforms are not treated as temporary campaigns. A central component of this effort includes the nationwide introduction of mandatory "scan-code" registrations for corporate administrative inspections, according to a report by Yicai. Under this model, inspecting officials must log their visits digitally before entering business premises, creating a clear operational trail to deter unauthorized or duplicative audits. The enforcement push comes alongside growing reliance on administrative reconsideration as a frontline dispute resolution tool. In 2025, the total volume of administrative review cases reached 1.115 million, reflecting a year-on-year increase of nearly 40 percent, Yicai reported. Following administrative review proceedings, 93.6 percent of the cases concluded without proceeding further into formal litigation or petition channels, underscoring the mechanism's role in absorbing disputes between citizens and state bodies. In addition to disciplining regulatory enforcement, the Ministry of Justice is expanding citizen-facing legal resources. The ministry pledged to deliver 24-hour, round-the-clock public legal services to better accommodate public demand, according to coverage by China News Service. While specific technical standards and rollout schedules for the expanded legal aid infrastructure remain to be detailed in upcoming regulatory filings, the dual initiatives reflect a push to reinforce administrative predictability for the private sector while lowering institutional barriers for individual dispute resolution.