Draft amendment on Chinese land law released

China's top legislature began deliberating a draft amendment on improving compensation for requisitioned farmland on Monday, Dec 24, 2012. The draft amendment to the Land Administration Law removes a previous compensation ceiling, judged to be too low.

The draft also proposes that compensation for land expropriation should cover more areas, including rural residences, a relocation allowances, and social security fees.

Analysts say the draft amendment addresses the outstanding problem of excessive land expropriation. The Land Administration Law, passed by the top legislature in 1986, has been revised twice, in 1988 and 2004, respectively.