3, 7, 30, 37 — and the two sevens that families constantly mix up.
If your family member was detained in China last night, the clock is already running. Four numbers govern what happens next, and they are not four separate deadlines — they are parts of one. Two of them are both "seven days", and confusing them is the most common way families misjudge how much time they really have.
From the moment of detention, everything runs toward a single decision: whether the procuratorate approves the arrest. Day 3, day 7, day 30 and day 37 are the waypoints on that road. Read together, they tell you exactly how much time the defense has.
Within 3 days of detention, if the police believe the person should be arrested, they must file the case with the procuratorate for approval of arrest. That is the baseline — 3 days is where it starts.
In special circumstances, the police can take an extra one to four days to file. That makes 7 days the maximum in an ordinary case. So the first "seven" is a police deadline about filing.
The 30-day figure is not available in every case. Only for a major suspect in roving offenses, repeat offenses, or gang offenses can the police stretch the filing period to 30 days.
This is where families lose track of the real deadline.
3 days as a baseline, plus 1–4 days in special circumstances — 7 days at most.
Once the procuratorate has the paperwork, it has 7 days to approve or deny the arrest. This deadline is independent of the first one.
Put the two longest pieces together: 30 days for the police to file, plus 7 for the prosecutor to decide. That means from detention to the arrest decision — 37 days at most. This is the 37-day golden window.
The prosecutor's 7 days is the last gate before arrest. Everything before it builds the file; everything after it becomes much harder to undo. Once arrest is approved, release on guarantee becomes very difficult. If approval is denied, the police must release the person — or move to release on guarantee or residential surveillance.
A lawyer has to use the 37-day window to do two things, and both have to happen before the prosecutor decides:
For the day-by-day version of this window, including what typically happens at each stage and the mistakes that cost families the most, read Detained in China: The First 37 Days. On what release looks like once approval is at issue, see Bail for Foreigners in China.
"If your family member was detained in China last night, the clock is already running: 3 days, 7, 30, 37. Those four numbers decide whether they walk free.
Start with 3 days. Within 3 days of detention, if the police believe the person should be arrested, they must file the case with the prosecutor for approval. That's the baseline — 3 days is where it starts. In special circumstances, the police can take an extra one to four days to file: seven days at most.
Once the prosecutor has the paperwork, they have seven days to decide — approve the arrest or deny it. Don't confuse the two sevens. One is how long the police have to file; the other is how long the prosecutor has to decide.
Now 30 days. Only for a major suspect in roving, repeat or gang offenses can the police stretch the filing period to 30 days. Put the two longest pieces together: 30 days for the police to file, seven for the prosecutor to decide. That means, from detention to the arrest decision, 37 days at most. This is what we call the 37-day golden window.
Which stage matters most? The prosecutor's seven days is the last gate before arrest. Once the arrest is approved, bail becomes very hard. If it's denied, the person is usually released. So a lawyer has to use this 37-day window to meet the client and file a written objection to the arrest. Thirty-seven days is a window — those seven are where the fight is."