When the People's Republic of China was founded in 1949, no criminal procedure law was formulated. The Constitution and some other laws stipulated the system of judicial departments and some principles and proceedings on criminal procedure. In 1979 China promulgated the Criminal Procedure Law, which took effect on January 1, 1980.

The Fourth Session of the Eighth NPC held on March 5, 1996, made the first amendment to the Criminal Procedure Law. It stated "no person shall be found guilty without being judged as such by a people's court according to law."

The Fifth Session of the 11th NPC held on March 5, 2012, made the second amendment to the Criminal Procedure Law. It included respecting and safeguarding human rights into the law.