The database contains a wide variety of policy documents, each with its unique characteristics and functions. Some of the key types of policy documents include:

The issuing authorities have varying preferences for different types of policy documents. For instance, the State Council tends to issue a wide range of document types, including Notices, Opinions, and Regulations. Meanwhile, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China focuses more on Rules and Regulations. The General Office of the Central Committee issues a diverse set of documents, covering a broad spectrum of policy types. Jointly issued documents by the Central Committee and State Council Offices encompass a comprehensive array of policy types.

State Council (国务院):

• "国发" documents issued by the State Council include a variety of policy types such as Notices (通知), Opinions (意见), and Regulations (规定).
• "国令" documents mainly consist of Regulations (规定), Decisions (决定), and Rules (规则).
• "国函" documents are primarily related to Rules (规则) and Strategies (规划).

State Council Office (国务院办公厅):

• "国办发" documents from the State Council Office encompass Notices (通知) and Opinions (意见).
• "国办函" documents are mainly Notices (通知) and Opinions (意见).

Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (中共中央):

• Documents issued by the Central Committee are primarily related to Rules (规则) and Regulations (规定).

General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (中共中央办公厅):

• The General Office of the Central Committee issues a wide range of policy documents, including Opinions (意见), Notices (通知), Procedures (办法), Rules (规则), Decisions (决定), and Regulations (规定).

Joint Issuance by Central Committee and State Council Offices (中共中央办公厅 国务院办公厅):

• Jointly issued documents cover various policy types, including Notices (通知), Opinions (意见), Plans (方案), Procedures (办法), Rules (规则), Decisions (决定), and Provisions (规定).

Guofa 国法, guobanfa 国办发, guoling 国令, zhongfa 中发, and zhongbanfa 中办发 documents are all numbered seriatim. Often, when they are published in the news media such as Xinhua News, the numbers are deleted making it difficult to keep track of the numbering. In general, numbering is applied in relation to important document, whereas bulletins (gongbao 公报), notices (tonggao,通告), letters (han 含) normally do not carry numbers.

There are a special set of internal party documents dealing with internal party regulations and laws (fagui 法规). Among them are 211 internal party regulations formulated by the Central Committee, 163 regulations formulated by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the working organs of the Central Committee, and many more local party regulations formulated by party Committees of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government (Shanghai, Beijing, Chongqing and Tianjin). Party committees below the provincial level cannot issue regulations related to internal Party organization.

Policy documents in the database are interrelated and often build upon each other. For instance, Five-Year Plans are China’s leading guidelines for economic and social development and are endorsed by the National People’s Congress (NPC) in March every 5th year, while being approved and discussed in October the previous year at the CCP Central committee plenary sessions. These Five-Year Plans cover all sectors of the economy as well as societal development. They function as guidelines for thousands of specific Five-Year Plans that are developed at lower levels and in relevant state organizations. The network of sub-plans is evolved over the entire five-year period, and are better thought of as a planning, coordination, and evaluation cycle rather than one decision. They are strong tool of policy coordination in a fragmented system. The plans can be separated into overall comprehensive plans, special or industry specific plans, and regional plans. Understanding these relationships and hierarchies is vital for comprehending China's policy-making process.

The database also highlights the differences between formal laws and regulations and policy documents. While regulations have the force of law and are legally binding, policy documents are in principle guidelines, recommendations, and directives. However, policies, directives, and documents issued by the Central Committee do have paramount authority and legal status. They guide law-making, governance, and implementation of laws and policies at all levels of government. The Party's decisions and directions are effectively the highest authority as they shape legislative and administrative actions.

The policies outlined by the party are typically implemented through laws, regulations, and other legal instruments by the State Council and the National People’s Congress (NPC), along with local governments and local people’s congresses. Legislative bodies at various levels will often enact, modify, or repeal laws and regulations to ensure alignment with Party policies and objectives. Most party documents serve as guidance, outlining broad policy goals, ideological principles, and developmental strategies, which are then operationalized through specific laws, rules, and administrative actions. However, while most Party policy documents are more directional and strategic, others can be specific and binding, with clear mandates and requirements for implementation by government agencies and officials. Overall, the legal instruments and administrative measures developed by the state are intended to reflect and operationalize the policies and objectives set forth by the Party.

China Law Translate
China Law Translate (CLT) is a collaborative translation project. CLT allows many users to translate small pieces of legal texts between Chinese and English, to promote mutual understanding and provide a resource to legal professionals around the world. The sum of these small pieces, contributed in any order or no order at all, gradually creates a completed translation. You can translate as little or as much as you like, or leave comments to discuss the work of others or suggest better translations.
https://www.chinalawtranslate.com

European China Law Studies Association
欧洲中国法研究协会
The European China Law Studies Association (ECLS) has become a major international venue for scholars and practitioners who are engaged in the study of Chinese law, from both comparative and interdisciplinary perspectives. The Association currently counts about 300 members from all over the world, who are committed to advance the research on Chinese law.
https://www.ecls.eu/

NPC Observer
NPC Observer is dedicated to improving the accessibility of China’s national legislature, the National People’s Congress (NPC) and its Standing Committee (NPCSC), to English readers across the globe and to helping them better understand the institution, through free, independent, and high-quality reporting, analysis, and original research.
https://npcobserver.com/

PKU Law
pkulaw.cn is one of the most comprehensive bilingual databases for searching PRC laws and regulations (since 1949), cases, journal articles, and gazettes.
https://www.pkulaw.com/english

ChinaFile (Jessica Batke) Chinese policy document database, 2002 - 2016
https://jessicabatke.com/research&writing/China_Policy_Documents_Database/