In order to adapt to the increasing international students studying in China and optimize their studying environment, Higher Education Institutions’ Provisional Rules of Requiring Overseas Students to Purchase Insurance is formulated. It is an international common practice to require the overseas students to purchase health insurance.

　　No. 1078 document of International Cooperation and Exchange Division of Education Ministry (2007)

　　To Education Department (Education Committee) of provinces, autonomous regions, direct-controlled municipalities:

　　Hereby the document is printed and distributed to you, please forward it to relevant schools in your provinces, autonomous regions, direct-controlled municipalities, and strictly comply with the rules.

It is an international common practice to require international students to purchase health insurance. The reason is that complex procedures to claim compensation or unclaimable insurance for the different compensation scope and no representative office in the destination country of health insurances overseas students purchased in their country. Therefore, for most of developed countries, it is a basic requirement for overseas students to purchase health insurance in the destination country.

Since September in 1999, Education Ministry has purchased student group safety insurance, health insurance of student group additional accidental injuries, and health insurance of student group hospitalization (collectively refer to the comprehensive insurance of overseas students studying in China) for students with Chinese Government Scholarship. The facts show that it is a necessary means of guaranteeing overseas students’ interests and an important content of optimizing overseas students’ studying environment to require overseas students to purchase insurance in China mainland before handling the registration procedures.

　　Every Education Department (Education Committee), every school shall carefully study and understand the significance of Insurance Provisions, and realize that international students’ insurance is an important part of maintaining the stability of China higher education institutions, emergency mechanism of dealing with unexpected incidents, guaranteeing the overseas students’ legitimate rights and interests, and optimizing the studying environment of China government and higher education institutions, from the perspective of stabilizing the campus and the society.

Schools are required to establish a close cooperation relationship with the selected insurance company. From this term, schools are required to formulate feasible regulations (contracts) for overseas students from this September to the release of 2008/2009 School Year Enrollment Guide, and these regulations shall be included in 2008/2009 School Year Enrollment Guide.

If there are any problems in the implementation, please immediately report to our division.

Contact people: Zhang Meng, Zheng Han

Telephone: omitted

Fax: omitted

Attachment: Higher Education Institutions’ Provisional Rules of Requiring Overseas Students to Purchase Insurance

International Cooperation and Exchange Division of Education Ministry

Sep. 14^th, 2007

1. The purpose of the provisional rules is to adapt to the increasing international students studying in China, optimize their studying environment, maintain the stability of higher education institutions, improve the emergency mechanism of dealing with unexpected incidents of higher education institutions, and guarantee overseas students’ legitimate rights and interests.

2. Since 2008/2009 School Year, higher education institutions require overseas students studying in China for over six months (overseas students studying in China for over six months in the original study plan) to purchase the group comprehensive insurance in China mainland, which is the required materials of school enrollment.

Higher education institutions decide whether overseas students studying in China for less than six months are required to purchase the group comprehensive insurance.

3. In order to ensure the same insurance standards for overseas students in the same college or university, higher education institutions shall select one life insurance company approved by China Insurance Regulatory Commission, and the group comprehensive insurance is supposed to include the following contents:

i. Free from particular average (death or disability quota compensation). The coverage of death is no less than 100,000 yuan;

ii. Life accident insurance. The coverage of life accident insurance is no less than 10,000 yuan;

iii. Hospitalization medical insurance. The coverage of hospitalization medical insurance is no less than 400,000 yuan.

4. The insurance policy of personal insurance cannot be taken as the document of school enrollment and China residence permit.

5. Higher education institutions shall put overseas students’ insurance under the overseas student management system. Overseas student management department and its staff shall accurately record the relevant business personnel’s names, phone numbers, fax numbers of the selected insurance company in order to help international students claim compensation.

6. The insurance of overseas students in primary and secondary schools shall be in accordance with the core requirements of this notice.