Attention: Multiple regions in China are now cracking down on students bringing phones into schools — this isn't just a school rule, it's the law. Starting September 1, 2026, Chongqing's Regulation on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency will take effect, explicitly allowing schools to prohibit students from bringing smart terminal devices like phones onto campus or using them within school grounds, while tightly controlling students' internet usage on campus.

Chongqing isn't alone in this move. Fujian, for instance, passed legislation back in 2022 banning students from bringing phones (including smartwatches) into classrooms. In 2024, Guangzhou introduced regulations permitting primary and secondary schools to ban students from carrying phones onto campus. That same year, Zhengzhou, Henan, also issued a decision strictly limiting students from bringing smart terminal devices such as phones into schools.

At the national level, the Ministry of Education issued a notice in 2021 stating that primary and secondary school students should, in principle, not bring personal phones onto campus, and schools were barred from using phones to assign homework or requiring students to complete assignments on their devices. In 2025, the Ministry rolled out further measures, including a ban on bringing electronic products like phones into classrooms, while encouraging students and parents to jointly participate in a "screen-off initiative."

Whether legislation is the right approach certainly depends on local conditions and requires careful consideration, but keeping smartphones far away from classrooms should be a widely shared consensus across all regions.

Jiangsu's Revised Draft of the Minor Protection Regulations has already introduced provisions banning smart terminals like phones and smartwatches from classrooms. On March 4, 2021, the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Education issued a notice forwarding the Ministry of Education's directive on strengthening phone management in primary and secondary schools (referred to as the "Notice"). It required schools to formulate phone management plans tailored to students' physical and mental development and their learning routines, based on broad consultation, and to meet six "clear" requirements.

First, clarify the conditions under which phones may be brought into campus in limited cases; second, clarify the designated storage locations, methods, and responsible personnel for unified phone safekeeping; third, clarify the public channels available for students to conveniently contact parents during school hours; fourth, clarify that teachers must not use phones to assign homework or require students to complete assignments on phones; fifth, clarify parents' educational responsibilities in supervising their children's phone use; and sixth, clarify disciplinary measures for students who violate the rules.

On July 29, 2026, the 23rd session of the 14th Standing Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial People's Congress reviewed the Revised Draft of the Jiangsu Minor Protection Regulations (the "Revised Draft"). The draft introduces a dedicated chapter on "Network Protection," addressing public concerns such as preventing cyberbullying and banning smart terminals like phones and smartwatches from entering classrooms.