Difficulties in claiming wages, domestic violence, and divorce? The Supreme People's Court has taken action! Clarifies which groups of people can apply to file civil support lawsuits.

Faced with issues such as wage arrears and domestic violence, many victims find themselves in a predicament regarding their rights because they “dare not complain or do not know how to complain.” Now, this problem is expected to ease.

The Supreme People’s Court and the Supreme People’s Procuratorate recently jointly issued the “Guiding Opinions on Several Issues Concerning the Handling of Civil Support for Prosecution Cases” (hereinafter referred to as the “Guiding Opinions”), which were publicly released on March 24. The “Guiding Opinions” will take effect on March 2, 2026.

The “Guiding Opinions” state that parties whose civil rights have been violated and who wish to file a lawsuit for protection of their rights, but are unable to independently initiate civil proceedings due to weak litigation capacity or fear, can be supported by the People’s Procuratorate to file a civil lawsuit with the People’s Court in accordance with Article 15 of the Civil Procedure Law and other regulations. The People’s Court supports the People’s Procuratorate in fulfilling its function of supporting prosecution in accordance with the law, jointly ensuring the smooth conduct of litigation activities and the equal exercise of litigation rights by the parties.

The “Guiding Opinions” specify several situations in which parties experiencing difficulties in filing lawsuits can apply to the People’s Procuratorate for civil support for prosecution: migrant workers seeking to recover labor compensation; individuals unable to live independently or facing difficulties due to old age, illness, or lack of labor capacity seeking support or maintenance fees; victims of domestic violence requesting divorce, damages, or applying to the People’s Court for personal safety protection orders; the personal rights, property rights, or other lawful rights and interests of persons with disabilities being infringed; the personal rights, property rights, or other lawful rights and interests of minors being infringed; and the personal rights, property rights, and other lawful rights and interests of military personnel, their families, martyrs, and the relatives of military personnel who died in service or due to illness being infringed.

When parties apply to the People’s Procuratorate for civil support for prosecution, they should submit an application, identification materials, and evidence materials. If a party has difficulty writing the application, they can make an oral request, which will be recorded by the People’s Procuratorate.

The “Guiding Opinions” indicate that the evidence materials required for statutory prosecution and acceptance conditions are generally to be collected by the parties themselves. The People’s Procuratorate, when handling civil support for prosecution cases, can provide assistance to the parties in areas such as legal consultation, coordinating applications for legal aid, proposing support for prosecution opinions, and lawfully obtaining relevant materials.

In addition, the “Guiding Opinions” also stipulate the participation of the People’s Court and the People’s Procuratorate in social comprehensive governance. The People’s Court and the People’s Procuratorate handling civil support for prosecution cases can urge and coordinate relevant departments and units to perform their duties through judicial recommendations and prosecutorial suggestions.