Members of the Communist Party of China are vanguard fighters of the Chinese working class imbued with communist consciousness. Any Chinese worker, farmer, member of the armed forces, intellectual or any advanced element of other social strata who has reached the age of eighteen and who accepts the Party's Program and Constitution and is willing to join and work actively in one of the Party organizations, carry out the Party's decisions and pay membership dues regularly may apply for membership in the Communist Party of China.

New Party members must be admitted through a Party branch, and the principle of individual admission must be adhered to.

An applicant for Party membership must fill in an application form and be introduced by two full Party members. The application must be accepted at a general membership meeting of the Party branch concerned and approved by the next higher Party organization, and the applicant must undergo observation for a year-long probationary period before being granted full membership.

Every Party member, irrespective of position, must be organized into a branch, cell or other specific unit of the Party to participate in the regular activities of the Party organization.

Party members are free to withdraw from the Party. When a Party member asks to withdraw, the Party branch concerned shall, after discussion by its general membership meeting, remove his name from the Party rolls, make the removal public and report it to the next higher Party organization for the record.