（１９８７年９月５日第六届全国人民代表大会常务委员会第二十二次会议通过 根据１９９６年７月５日第八届全国人民代表大会常务委员会第二十次会议《关于修改〈中华人民共和国档案法〉的决定》修正）
(Adopted at the 22nd Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Sixth National People's Congress on September 5, 1987, and revised in accordance with the Decision of the Standing Committee of the Eighth National People's Congress on the Revision of the Archives Law of the People's Republic of China adopted at its 20th Meeting on July 5, 1996)
第一条 为了加强对档案的管理和收集、整理工作，有效地保护和利用档案，为社会主义现代化建设服务，制定本法。
Article 1 This Law is enacted with a view to strengthening the management, collection and arrangement of archives and effectively protecting and using archives in the service of socialist modernization.
第二条 本法所称的档案，是指过去和现在的国家机构、社会组织以及个人从事政治、军事、经济、科学、技术、文化、宗教等活动直接形成的对国家和社会有保存价值的各种文字、图表、声像等不同形式的历史记录。
Article 2 For the purpose of this Law, "archives" mean historical records in various forms, including writings in different languages, pictures, diagrams, audio-visual, etc., whose preservation is of value to the State and society and which have been or are being directly formed by State organs, public organizations and individuals in their political, military, economic, scientific, technological, cultural, religious and other activities.
第三条 一切国家机关、武装力量、政党、社会团体、企业事业单位和公民都有保护档案的义务。
Article 3 Every State organ, unit of the armed forces, political party, public organization, enterprise, institution and every citizen shall have the obligation to protect archives.
第四条 各级人民政府应当加强对档案工作的领导，把档案事业的建设列入国民经济和社会发展计划。
Article 4 The people's governments at various levels shall strengthen their leadership in archival work and incorporate the development of undertakings of archives into the program of the national economic and social development.
第五条 档案工作实行统一领导、分级管理的原则，维护档案完整与安全，便于社会各方面的利用。
Article 5 In archival work, the principle of unified leadership and administration at different levels shall be practiced in order to ensure the integrity and safety of archives and facilitate their use by people of various quarters of society.
第二章 档案机构及其职责
CHAPTER II ARCHIVES INSTITUTIONS AND THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES
第六条 国家档案行政管理部门主管全国档案事业，对全国的档案事业实行统筹规划，组织协调，统一制度，监督和指导。
Article 6 The national archives administration department shall be responsible for archival work throughout the country.
It shall make an overall plan, coordinate the organizations, unify the systems, and exercise supervision and provide guidance with regard to the undertakings of archives in the whole country.
县级以上地方各级人民政府的档案行政管理部门主管本行政区域内的档案事业，并对本行政区域内机关、团体、企业事业单位和其他组织的档案工作实行监督和指导。
The archives administration departments of the people's governments at or above the county level shall be responsible for the undertakings of archives within their respective administrative areas.
They shall supervise and direct the archival work of the State organs, public organizations, enterprises, institutions and other organizations under their jurisdiction.
乡、民族乡、镇人民政府应当指定人员负责保管本机关的档案，并对所属单位的档案工作实行监督和指导。
The people's governments of townships, nationality townships and towns shall designate personnel to take charge of preserving the archives of their own offices and to supervise and direct the archival work of their subordinate units.
第七条 机关、团体、企业事业单位和其他组织的档案机构或者档案工作人员，负责保管本单位的档案，并对所属机构的档案工作实行监督和指导。
Article 7 The archives institutions or archivists of State organs, public organizations, enterprises, institutions and other organizations shall be responsible for preserving the archives of their own units and supervise and direct the archival work of their subordinate units.
第八条 中央和县级以上地方各级各类档案馆，是集中管理档案的文化事业机构，负责接收、收集、整理、保管和提供利用各分管范围内的档案。
Article 8 The national archives repositories and local archives repositories of various types at or above the county level shall be cultural institutions for the centralized administration of archives.
They shall be responsible for receiving, collecting, arranging and keeping archives within their respective jurisdiction and making them available to users.
第九条 档案工作人员应当忠于职守，遵守纪律，具备专业知识。
Article 9 Archivists shall be devoted to their duty, observe discipline and possess professional knowledge.
在档案的收集、整理、保护和提供利用等方面成绩显著的单位或者个人，由各级人民政府给予奖励。
Units and individuals that have made outstanding achievements in the collection, arrangement and protection of archives and in making them available to users shall be rewarded by the people's governments at the relevant levels.
第十条 对国家规定的应当立卷归档的材料，必须按照规定，定期向本单位档案机构或者档案工作人员移交，集中管理，任何个人不得据为己有。
Article 10 Materials of a unit that should be filed and kept as archives pursuant to State regulations must, in accordance with the relevant reulations, be regularly handed over to the archives division or archivists of the unit for centralized administration.
Nobody may keep such materials as his personal property.
第十一条 机关、团体、企业事业单位和其他组织必须按照国家规定，定期向档案馆移交档案。
Article 11 State organs, public organizations, enterprises, institutions and other organizations must, in accordance with State regulations, regularly hand over archives to the archives repositories concerned.
第十二条 博物馆、图书馆、纪念馆等单位保存的文物、图书资料同时是档案的，可以按照法律和行政法规的规定，由上述单位自行管理。
Article 12 The cultural relics, books and reference materials which are kept in museums, libraries and memorial halls and are concurrently archives may be administered by the above-mentioned units in accordance with the provisions of laws and administrative rules and regulations.
档案馆与上述单位应当在档案的利用方面互相协作。
Archives repositories shall cooperate with the above-mentioned units in the use of archives.
第十三条 各级各类档案馆，机关、团体、企业事业单位和其他组织的档案机构，应当建立科学的管理制度，便于对档案的利用；配置必要的设施，确保档案的安全；采用先进技术，实现档案管理的现代化。
Article 13 Archives repositories of all types and at all levels and archives divisions of State organs, public organizations, enterprises, institutions and other organizations shall establish a system of scientific administration to facilitate the use of archives.
They shall be equipped with necessary facilities to ensure the safety of the archives.
They shall adopt advanced technology to modernize the administration of archives.
第十四条 保密档案的管理和利用，密级的变更和解密，必须按照国家有关保密的法律和行政法规的规定办理。
Article 14 The administration and use of confidential archives, changes in their security classification, and the declassification of such archives must be effected according to the provisions of the laws and administrative rules and regulations of the State regarding secrecy.
第十五条 鉴定档案保存价值的原则、保管期限的标准以及销毁档案的程序和办法，由国家档案行政管理部门制定。
Article 15 The principles by which the value of archives for preservation is appraised, the standards for determining the periods of preservation, and the procedures and methods for destroying archives shall be formulated by the national archives administration department.
Unauthorized destruction of archives shall be prohibited.
禁止擅自销毁档案。
Article 15 The principles by which the value of archives for preservation is appraised, the standards for determining the periods of preservation, and the procedures and methods for destroying archives shall be formulated by the national archives administration department.
Unauthorized destruction of archives shall be prohibited.
第十六条 集体所有的和个人所有的对国家和社会具有保存价值的或者应当保密的档案，档案所有者应当妥善保管。
Article 16 Collectively-owned or individually-owned archives whose preservation is of value to the State and society or which should be kept confidential shall be properly taken care of by the owners.
对于保管条件恶劣或者其他原因被认为可能导致档案严重损毁和不安全的，国家档案行政管理部门有权采取代为保管等确保档案完整和安全的措施；必要时，可以收购或者征购。
If the archives are considered liable to serious damage or unsafe because of the adverse conditions under which they are kept or because of any other reason, the national archives administration department shall have the authority to take such measures as may ensure the integrity and safety of the archives, such as by keeping the archives on the owner's behalf or, when necessary, by purchasing such archives or requisitioning them by purchase.