Quantum Computing Laws and Regulations 2026 – China

China places strong strategic emphasis on quantum information technology, with a particular focus on quantum computing.  Since 2016, quantum communication and quantum computers have been included in the “Outline of the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development of the People’s Republic of China” (the “13th Five-Year Plan”) as part of China’s science and technology innovation 2030 major projects.

Since then, China has introduced a series of national-level policies aimed at advancing quantum technologies.  In January 2024, seven ministries and agencies, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (“MIIT”), issued the Implementation Opinions on Promoting the Innovative Development of Future Industries (the “Implementation Opinions”),[i] calling for increased R&D in fault-tolerant quantum computing, improved hardware performance and error correction, and coordinated development of quantum software and cloud platforms for industry applications.  To operationalise the Implementation Opinions, in January 2025, the General Office of MIIT issued the Notice on Organizing the 2025 “Unveiling-the-List” (Open Competition) Innovation Tasks for Future Industries, which sets out multiple detailed tasks for open competition in the quantum field and targets to accomplish.  For example, by 2026, China targets to build a quantum computing measurement-and-control (“M&C”) system capable of supporting at least 1,000 qubits, with measurement-based feedback latency of under 1 microsecond.[ii]  In October 2025, China published the 15th Five-Year Plan, in which quantum technology was positioned first among six priority future industries, underscoring the country’s sustained commitment to the development of the quantum industry.

China sits in the top tier worldwide in both quantum computing research output and patenting.  Data compiled by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (“CAICT”) through August 2025,[iii] which tracked publication counts and average citations per paper across major countries, showed that the United States (more than 8,500 papers) ranked first and China (more than 7,000) ranked second, well ahead of other countries.  However, despite the high publication volume, China’s average citations per paper was lower than those of Canada, the United States, Germany, and France, suggesting that there is still headroom for China to strengthen the impact of its rapidly expanding publication base.

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