Article 1    These Provisions are formulated according to the Audit Law of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the Audit Law) and the Practice Directions for Documentation in State Administrative Bodies laid down by the State Council for the purpose of standardizing documentation in audit institutions and ensuring the quality of audit.

Article 2     The term "documents of audit institutions" mentioned herein refers to official documents formulated by audit institutions in the course of audit which are of statutory effects and standard styles.

Article 3     The term "documentation" mentioned herein refers to the preparation, implementation, management and filing of official documents.

Article 4    General offices of audit institutions are the managing organizations of documentation whose major task is to take charge of documentation of their own audit institutions and provide instructions for documentation of audit institutions at lower levels.

Article 5    Documentation must be done timely, accurately and in safety with strict implementation of the Practice Directions on Documentation in State Administrative Bodies.

Article 6    Documents of audit institutions shall mainly include the following categories:

(1) General documents

a.  Order  
This category is applicable to promulgation of departmental regulations  according to relevant laws, declarations for implementation of material mandatory administrative measures, awards and punishments for relevant individuals, removal of inappropriate decisions made by audit institutions at lower levels.

b. Decision  
This category is applicable to making arrangements for important issues or material acts.

c. Instruction  
This category is applicable to assigning jobs and explaining guiding principles on working activities to audit institutions at lower levels.

d. Proclamation and announcement
"Proclamation" is applicable to proclaiming significant audit items or statutory items both domestically and overseas.   "Announcement" is applicable to announcing within certain scope what should be complied with or well-known issues.

e. Circular
This category is applicable to approving and returning official documents of audit institutions at lower levels, transmitting official documents of audit institutions at higher levels or unaffiliated organizations, promulgating  regulations, communicating items to be handed by audit institutions at lower levels, to be known to or jointly implemented by relevant units as well as appointment, removal and recruitment of officials.

f: Circulation of notices  
This category is applicable to commending meritorious deeds, criticizing mistakes as well as communicating important instructions or situations.

g. Report  
This category is applicable to reporting work, communicating information and putting forward opinions or suggestions to audit institutions at higher levels or responding to inquiries by audit institutions at higher levels.

h. Request for instruction  
This category is applicable to requesting instructions and approvals from audit institutions at higher levels.

i. Written reply  
This category is applicable to replies made to issues about which audit institutions at lower levels ask for instructions.

j. Correspondence
This category is applicable to working consultations, inquiries and replies to questions between unaffiliated institutions or asking for approval from competent authorities.

k. Minutes  
This category is applicable to recording and communicating information of meetings and issues determined at the meetings.

(2) Audit documents

a. Audit notification  
This category is applicable to notifications sent by audit institutions prior to their conduct of audit to the audited bodies of issues related to the audit assignment.

b. Notification of audit authorization  
This category is applicable to authorization by audit institutions at higher levels of certain assignments within their jurisdiction to audit institutions at lower levels.

c. Notification on suspending appropriation and payment of funds  
This category is applicable to notifications sent by audit institutions to financial departments, competent authorities, banks where the audited bodies open their accounts and the audited bodies of suspending the appropriation, payment and utilization of funds which are related to ongoing acts of revenues and expenditures in violation of state stipulations.

d. Notification on releasing the suspension of appropriation and payment of funds  
This category is applicable to notifications sent by audit institutions to relevant departments, banks and audited bodies of releasing the above mentioned suspensions after such mandatory administrative measures have achieved their pre-determined aims.

e. Audit opinion  
This category is applicable to opinions put forward by audit institutions, after the review and finalization of audit reports, about the evaluation of audit items and for the audited bodies to improve their management of revenues and expenditures.

f. Audit decision  
This category is applicable where audit institutions meter out measures of sanction and penalty within their statutory mandates against acts of revenues and expenditures committed by the audited bodies which are in violation of state stipulations.

g. Audit recommendation    
This category is applicable where audit institutions suggest that competent authorities correct the provisions on revenues and expenditures of their own making which are in conflict with state laws and relevant administrative regulations, that competent authorities impose sanctions or penalties on the audited bodies against the latter's acts of revenues and expenditures in violation of state stipulations, that administrative sanctions be imposed on authorities and other individuals directly responsible for violations of the Audit Law and financial and economic regulations.

h. Correspondence concerning transfer of cases on which sanctions are to be imposed    
This category is applicable where audit institutions refer to the judicial bodies for affixing criminal responsibilities against acts committed by the audited bodies, relevant units and individuals which have violated laws and regulations to the extent of constituting crimes.

i. Application for enforcement    
This category is applicable where audit institutions apply to the people's courts with relevant jurisdiction for enforcement of audit decisions when the audited bodies refuse to implement the audit decisions three months after such decisions take effect despite the adoption of relevant measures.

j. Report on audit results    
This category is applicable where audit institutions report to the people's governments at the corresponding levels and audit institutions at higher levels on results of auditing budgetary implementation at the corresponding levels.

k. Notification for acceptance of review applications    
This category is applicable where audit institutions notify the applicants that their applications are in accordance with relevant stipulations and are thereby accepted.

l. Order for rejection of review application    
This category is applicable where audit institutions issue orders to the applicants informing the latter that their applications are not in accordance with relevant stipulations and are thereby rejected.

m. Notification for making additions and corrections to review applications    This category is applicable where audit institutions notify the applicants to make additions and corrections to those parts of their applications that fail to include or clarify requisite aspects.

n. Decision of review    
This category is applicable where audit institutions accepting the review applications announce results of review to the applicants.

Article 7    In general an official document shall include the following items: title of the issuing organization, grade of confidentiality, number and sequence of copies, degree of emergency, name and sequence of issuance, individual(s) signing and issuing the document, title of the document, major receiving organization, main body, appendices, stamp of the issuing organization, time of completion, notes, thematic words and expressions, organizations and internal departments to receive copies of the document, printing departments, printing time and total copies printed.

Article 8    Official documents shall be written in horizontal lines from left to right.  For the title of official documents No.2 Song Typeface shall be used while No.3 Song Typeface shall be used in general for the main body.  On every page 19 lines shall be printed with each line containing 25 characters.  Written languages of the national minorities shall be written and composed in accordance with their respective habits.  In autonomous localities of national minorities, both the Chinese characters and the generally used written languages of the national minorities may be used.  

Article 9    Official documents generally use 16-mo paper (260 mm long and 184 mm wide) but may also use paper of international A4 standard.  The documents shall be bound on the left side.  The size for put-up official documents shall be determined according to actual requirements.

Article 10    The formats of titled paper used for official document of audit institutions shall be uniformly laid down by the CNAO.

The types of paper used for audit reports and letters for soliciting the audited bodies' opinions about the audit reports, letters confirming the arrival of dispatched audit documents and audit working papers shall be managed  according to provisions on utilization of paper for audit.

Article 11    Communication by means of official documents among audit institutions shall be determined according to their jurisdiction and their respective administrative affiliations with other organizations.  Such communication may be made in the name of the audit institutions or general offices of the audit institutions where the concerned matter is within the jurisdiction of such audit institutions.  Internal departments of audit institutions shall not directly assign jobs through the issuance of official documents or request the submission of such documents.

Article 12    Audit institutions at lower levels shall submit official documents to audit institutions at higher levels according to relevant stipulations.  They shall not directly submit official documents to internal departments of audit institutions at higher levels.

Names of the individuals signing and  issuing official documents shall be written down on the first page of the submitted documents.

Article 13     Unless due agreement is obtained through negotiation, audit institutions shall not communicate to their subordinates by means of official documents issues involving jurisdiction of other departments of the people's government at the corresponding levels.  Where such communications are made at their own accord, audit institutions at higher levels have the power to order the concerned audit institutions to correct or cancel such doings.

Article 14    Where the subject matter of communication by means of official documents requires submission for instruction and involves jurisdiction of other departments, relevant departments shall be consulted for agreement; where such agreement cannot be reached through consultation, the actual conditions shall be reported upward.

Article 15    "To request instructions",  one document shall concentrate on one subject matter.  Bypassing relevant administrative levels, submitting original version of the document to several authorities and sending copies to subordinates are forbidden.  Where special circumstances require bypassing of certain levels, copies of the concerned documents shall be sent to those superior organizations that have been bypassed.  Unless directly assigned by relevant leaders, documents "requesting instructions" shall not be submitted directly to the leaders themselves.

Article 16    "Reports" shall not include issues about which instructions are to be requested.

Article 17    Handling of official documents include receipt and issuance of  documents.  Receipt of documents shall generally include the procedures of transmission, signed receipt, registration, distribution, preparation for and approval of handling the subject matter, actual handling, speeding up such handling, investigation into the handling, filing and ultimate destruction.  Issuance of documents shall generally include the procedures of document drafting, review and verification, signing and issuance, printing, proofreading, stamping, registration, distribution, filing and ultimate destruction.

Article 18    The carrier of electronic official documents transmitted through remote computer stations shall be handled as if they were paper documents.  Ciphering installments must be used to transmit secret official documents through remote computer stations while top-secret official documents shall not be transmitted through computers.  Transmission of state secrets, work secrets and trade secrets with the use of non-ciphered fax machines is strictly forbidden.

Article 19    Where official documents are handed over to relevant departments for handling, the secretarial departments shall produce reasonable time limits and be responsible for speeding up and investigating into such handling.  The departments in charge of such handling shall make the best use of their time and shall not delay their work or shift responsibilities to others.

For issues involving other departments, the departments in charge shall seek active consultation with relevant departments.

Article 20    Prior to their submission for signing by relevant leaders of the audit institutions, official documents shall be reviewed by general offices of the audit institutions.   Priorities of review shall include the following: necessity of communication by means of official documents, compliance with state laws, regulations as well as general guidelines, policies and relevant stipulations, consultation with and joint signing by relevant departments, compliance with relevant stipulations in the choice of words and expressions, use of document categories and formats.  Documents without undergoing the process of review by the general offices shall not be submitted to relevant leaders for signing and issuance.

Article 21    An official document shall be signed and issued by leaders of its concerned audit institution.  Documents dealing with important issues or issues of extensive influence shall be signed and issued by the head of the concerned audit institution or his entrusted deputy.  With due authorization, some official documents may be signed and issued by the director general of the general office.  While signing for the issuance of official documents, the major approving individual shall clarify his opinions in the column designed for signing and issuance together with his signature and the date of signing.  Where other leaders circle their names in the documents submitted for approval, such circling shall be regarded as affirmative opinions.

Article 22    Official documents already signed for issuance shall not be altered without due authorization.  Where there are serious doubts over the signed documents making it imperative to carry out appropriate alterations, opinions and explanations for such alterations shall be produced and submitted for approval by the original signing leader with the seal of "Altered after Signing for Issuance" stamped at the place of alteration in the original documents.

Article 23    Seals shall be managed by designated individuals and shall be used strictly in accordance with the procedures of signing and approval.

Article 24    Registration, enveloping and rigorous check-ups
shall be carried out for issuance of official documents.  Official documents related to professional audit shall be issued to relevant units and individuals within the statutory time limit and according to statutory procedures with the receiving parties being required to sign their names on "letters confirming the arrival of issued audit documents".

Article 25    Unless indicated as top secret or documents forbidden to be copied, secret official documents of audit institutions at higher levels may be copied with due approval by leaders of audit institutions at lower levels or director generals of the general offices of such audit institutions.  When the documents are copied, names of the copying institutions, time of coping, number of copies made and the scope of distribution thereof shall be clearly indicated.  Cipher telegrams shall not be copied, reproduced, replied to with plain code telegrams or mixed with plain code telegrams.

Article 26    At the completion of the handling process, official documents shall be finalized with their main bodies and relevant materials sorted out and filed in time according to the Archives Law of the People's Republic of China and other relevant stipulations.

Article 27    Official documents not worth filing and storing shall be destroyed under supervision at designated spots under uniform organization by secretarial departments after expert appraisal and approval by competent leaders.  

Article 28    Formats for audit documents and paper used for professional audit shall be laid down separately.

Article 29    The authority to interpret these Provisions rests with the CNAO.

Article 30    These Provisions shall come into effect as of January 1, 1997.