China Insurance Regulatory Commission, a ministerial institution directly under the State Council, supervises and manages the insurance market and maintains the legal and stable operation of insurance operations in the country, in accordance with the functions of administrative management authorized by the State Council and relevant laws, rules and regulations.
1. Main functions and responsibilities:
(1) To formulate guidelines and policies for developing insurance business, to draw up development strategies and plans for the industry; to formulate laws, rules and regulations for insurance supervision; and to introduce rules and regulations for the insurance industry;
(2) To examine and approve the establishment of insurance companies and their subsidiaries, insurance group companies, and insurance holding companies; together with other departments concerned, to examine and approve the establishment of insurance assets management companies; to examine and approve the setup of representative offices of overseas insurance institutions in China, insurance intermediary institutions such as insurance agencies, broker companies, appraisal companies and their subsidiaries; to examine and approve insurance agencies to be established overseas by Chinese insurance and non-insurance institutions; to examine and approve the merge, split, change and dissolving of insurance institutions, to decide whether to take over or reallocate assets; to be involved and organize the bankruptcy and clearance of insurance companies;
(3) To examine and approve the qualifications of senior managers of various types of insurance institutions; to formulate basic standards for the qualifications of staff engaged in insurance;
(4) To examine and approve the categories of insurance schemes related to public interests, to impose insurance articles and rates of premium for compulsory insurance schemes and newly developed life insurance schemes, and to accept filing for the record of articles and premium rates of other insurance schemes according to law;
(5) To supervise the payment ability and market conduct of insurance companies; to be in charge of the management of insurance guarantee fund, supervise insurance deposit; to formulate regulations according to law and state policies in regard to the operation of insurance funds and to supervise the operation of funds of insurance companies according to law;
(6) To supervise policy-oriented insurance and compulsory insurance operations; to supervise such organizational forms and business operations as special self-insurance and mutual insurance. To oversee such organizations as insurance trade associations and societies;
(7) To investigate and mete out punishment against unfair competition and illegal conduct of insurance institutions and individuals as well as the operations of non-insurance institutions and disguised insurance operations;
(8) To supervise and oversee organizations stationed overseas by domestic insurance and non-insurance institutions according to law;
(9) To draw up information standard for the insurance industry; to establish insurance risk appraisal, forecast and supervision systems, to trace, monitor and forecast operations in the insurance market, to take charge of compiling data and statements of the national insurance industry, copy them to the People's Bank of China and promulgate according to relevant regulations of the state; and
(10) To undertake other jobs delegated by the State Council.
2. Subsidiary departments:
(1) General Affairs Office
To formulate regulations for the office work; organize and coordinate routine office work; to draft documents and handle the organization of important meetings, secretarial matters, letters and visits, maintaining of secrets, compiling of information, news release and security; and to take charge of reports and appeals and the daily routine work of the supervisors' commission of state-owned insurance companies.
(2) Development and Reform Department (Policy Research Office)
To formulate development strategies, industrial rules and policies of the insurance industry, to draw up the policies, and guidelines for insurance supervision and measures against risks; to study major issues of reform and development of the insurance industry and put forward policy proposals and organize the implementation of the policies; to be in charge of setting up standards for the structure of shares and management structure of the legal person in insurance companies, to provide guidance and exercise supervision over the activities of insurance companies such as the setup, regrouping and listing in the stock market; and to be in charge of the drafting of documents of important meetings.
(3) Finance and Accounting Department
To formulate implementation rules and procedures of finance and accounting of insurance enterprises and for the supervision in the insurance industry; to establish a system of standards of supervision over insurance companies' payment ability; to compile final annual fiscal accounting of the China Insurance Regulatory Commission; to examine, approve and supervise the financial budgets, revenues and expenses of the offices of the Commission and organizations it dispatches out; and to examine and approve relevant rules in the business regulations of various departments of the headquarters of the Commission.
(4) Property Insurance Supervision Department
To carry out supervision over property insurance companies. To formulate rules and regulations of supervision and actuarial systems for property insurance; to supervise the asset quality of insurance companies and their payment ability; to examine and standardize market conduct, and mete out punishment of any violations of laws, rules and regulations; to examine and file for the record insurance terms and conditions for management and premium rates; to examine the establishment, change, termination and business scope of insurance enterprises; and to examine the qualifications of senior managers.
(5) Life Insurance Supervision Department
To carry out supervision over life insurance companies. To formulate rules and regulations of supervision and actuarial systems of life insurance; to supervise the asset quality of insurance enterprises and their payment ability; to examine and standardize market conduct and mete out punishment of any violations of laws, rules and regulations; to examine and keep for the record terms and conditions for insurance management and premium rates; to examine the establishment, change, termination and business scope of insurance enterprises; and to examine the qualifications of senior managers.
(6) Reinsurance Supervision Department
To carry out supervision over reinsurance companies. To formulate rules and regulations of supervision; to supervise the asset quality of reinsurance enterprises and their payment ability; to examine and standardize market conduct and mete out punishment of any violations of laws, rules and regulations; to examine the establishment, change, termination and business scope of insurance enterprises; and to examine the qualifications of senior managers.
(7) Insurance Intermediaries Supervision Department
To carry out supervision over insurance intermediary institutions. To formulate rules and regulations; to examine and standardize market conduct for insurance intermediary institutions and mete out punishment of any violations of laws, rules and regulations; to examine the establishment, change, termination and business scope of insurance intermediary institutions; to examine the qualification of senior managers; and to formulate the basic qualification standards for businessmen who engage in insurance intermediary work.
(8) Department of Supervision of Insurance Fund Operations
To carry out supervision over insurance fund operations. To formulate rules and regulations; to build up systems for risk appraisal, pre-warning and supervision of the operation of insurance funds; to mete out punishment of any violations of laws, rules and regulations; to examine the establishment, change, termination and business scope of institutions operating insurance funds; to examine the qualifications of senior managers; to formulate the management and application measures for insurance guarantee funds and to be in charge of collection and management of insurance guarantee funds.
(9) International Affairs Department
To be in charge of contacts and co-operation between China Insurance Regulatory Commission and relevant international organizations, regulatory institutions and insurance institutions in foreign countries and regions. To be in charge of foreign affairs of the China Insurance Regulatory Commission; to handle the examination and approval of the establishment and change of overseas insurance institutions in China and the establishment of Chinese insurance institutions and non-insurance institutions overseas; to handle the examination, approval and related administrative procedures of the establishment of representative offices of overseas insurance institutions in China; to supervise insurance institutions established overseas by Chinese insurance and non-insurance institutions.
(10) Laws and Regulations Department
To formulate rules and regulations over insurance supervision; to draft laws, rules and regulations and put forward proposals for introducing and amending them; to examine the rules and regulations of supervision drafted by other departments of the Commission; to supervise and co-ordinate the implementation of relative laws, rules and regulations; to offer consultative services in insurance laws and to organize education in law and publicity; and to undertake administrative re-examination and respond to administrative charges.
(11) Statistical Information Department
To formulate the statistical system for the insurance industry, to set up and maintain data base for the industry; to take charge of compiling data and statements for the national insurance industry and copy them to the People's Bank of China and promulgate them in accordance with relevant government stipulations; to analyze the statistics from insurance institutions; to draw up information standard for the insurance industry and build up a complete information security system; to take charge of the planning and implementation of information build-up in the insurance industry; to build up and maintain the information system for the supervision of payment ability and other businesses; to take care of and maintain information equipment.
(12) Agencies Management Department
To formulate rules and regulations for the management and co-ordination of agencies dispatched out by the headquarters of the Commission. To examine the work of these agent offices and urge the implementation of instructions by officials of the Commission on major issues; together with other departments concerned, to make appraisals on the annual performance of the agent offices; to study and analyze important issues in the management and co-ordination of the agent offices and to put forward proposals on how to solve the problems; to regularly collect and compile information sent by agent offices on the operation of insurance market and their opinions and proposals about supervision.
(13) Personnel and Education Department
To formulate rules and regulations for the management of human resources in the Commission and its expatriate offices; to manage the personnel work of the Commission, expatriate offices and relative departments; to take charge of the daily managerial work of the management and officials of insurance institutions; to take charge of the training and education of the staff in the Commission and the insurance industry.
(14) Supervision Bureau
To supervise and examine the implementation of governmental laws, rules, regulations and policies in the insurance industry; to mete out punishment of any conduct in violation of governmental laws, rules, regulations and disciplines; to respond to reports, charges and appeals against targets of supervision and to guide disciplinary work in the insurance industry.
(15) Publicity Department
To be in charge of publicity, and the building up of socialist culture and ethics in the insurance industry.
3. Other matters
(1) China Insurance Regulatory Commission, People's Bank of China, banking and securities regulatory institutions exercise a working system of division of labor based on co-operation, exchange of information and co-ordination of relevant policies.
(2) China Insurance Regulatory Commission sets up regulatory bureaus in the provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities and cities whose economic plans are listed directly under the Central Government and separately from the provinces where they are located. China Insurance Regulatory Commission exercises vertically management of all the agent offices stationed in various localities.
(China.org.cn July 28, 2003)
