Abstract-China's coastal zone is experiencing rapid population growth, increased economic development and continuing urbanization which exacerbates coastal ecosystem degradation and environmental deterioration. Integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) is adopted by the Chinese government as a promising management mechanism to alleviate the conflicts in economic growth, social stability and environmental protection, so as to achieve more sustainable coastal development. This paper, based on a PhD program on the legal and regulatory framework for ICZM, demonstrates the current legislation and institutions for coastal zone management in China and discussed their constraints in achieving ICZM. The research findings indicated that the Chinese government should manage the coastal zone as one unit with both land and waters being considered. Therefore, a national coastal law is necessary for such a vast country as China and the integration among agencies is essential for the legislation. In addition, it is not reasonable to have the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) as the leading agency for coastal zone management in China, since its jurisdiction does not involve any terrestrial land on the coastal zone.