A critical review of Chinese law on (mass) expulsion of aliens through a lens of international law

There are two categories of expulsion of aliens in China: criminal expulsion and administrative expulsion. Criminal expulsion is also called criminal deportation (驱逐出境). Administrative expulsion can be further subdivided into three types: administrative deportation (驱逐出境), administrative removal (遣送出境), and ‘ordered to exit China within a time limit’ (限期出境). The UN International Law Commission’s Draft Articles on Expulsion of Aliens (2014) and international human rights law represented by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights provide the international legal framework on expulsion of aliens, including procedural requirements for individual expulsion of aliens and the prohibition of mass deportation. Through legal doctrinal research and case studies, this paper critically reviews China’s practice on expulsion of aliens against international law and argues that: (1) China’s criminal deportation is a form of criminal punishment and therefore criminal legal procedures apply, which should meet procedural requirements under international law on expulsion of aliens; (2) China’s administrative deportation and ‘ordered to exit China within a time limit’ are administrative penalties and administrative removal is administrative coercion, and relevant procedures under administrative expulsion should be reformed and strengthened to meet the international standards on procedural requirements on expulsion of aliens.