Do not withdraw from a found bank card; for a found phone or wallet, contact the owner or hand it to police — do not pocket it

Keeping found property for yourself, when the amount reaches “relatively large” and you refuse to hand it over, brings up to 2 years; when the amount is huge, 2 to 5 years. Taking a found bank card to an ATM is heavier: it counts as fraudulently using another’s credit card; a relatively large amount brings up to 5 years plus a fine of 20000 to 200000 yuan (2万 to 20万). For withdrawals, police file the case directly; the owner need not sue first.

Cost

No money; a few minutes. Call to find the owner, or take the item to a police station.

Benefit

Found property should be returned to the owner: notify them promptly to collect it, or deliver it to public security or another department. Keeping someone else’s left property for yourself, when the amount reaches “relatively large” and you refuse to hand it over, is the crime of embezzlement, punishable by up to 2 years. When the amount is huge, 2 to 5 years. Taking someone else’s found credit card to an ATM counts as “fraudulently using another’s credit card.” “Credit card” in the Criminal Law, per the NPC Standing Committee’s 2004 interpretation, means electronic payment cards issued by banks and other financial institutions. Having all or some of the functions of consumer payment, credit lending, transfer and settlement, and depositing and withdrawing cash is enough. So ordinary bank cards that can deposit and withdraw cash are included. When it reaches a crime, it is handled as credit-card fraud: a relatively large amount brings up to 5 years plus a fine of 20000 to 200000 yuan (2万 to 20万). A huge amount or other serious circumstances bring 5 to 10 years plus a fine of 50000 to 500000 yuan (5万 to 50万) (nationwide)

Notes

Embezzlement is handled only upon complaint — the owner must sue in court; police do not take it up on their own. Withdrawing with a found card is different: the owner need not sue; police file directly. The concrete figure for “relatively large” is set by judicial interpretation; this section has not verified it. After an item is delivered to the relevant department, the owner pays storage costs when collecting it (Civil Code Article 317).

Sources · 4

1. 全国人大 (2020). 民法典（第三百一十四条）. spp.gov.cn/spp/fl/202006/t20200602_463888.shtml
2. 全国人大 (2020). 刑法（根据刑法修正案（十一）修正，第一百九十六、二百七十条）. jtgl.beijing.gov.cn/jgj/jgxx/flfg/fl/11033925…
3. 最高人民检察院 (2008). 关于拾得他人信用卡并在自动柜员机（ATM 机）上使用的行为如何定性问题的批复. spp.gov.cn/spp/flfg/sfjs/201208/t20120830_478…
4. 全国人大常委会 (2004). 关于《中华人民共和国刑法》有关信用卡规定的解释. npc.gov.cn/zgrdw/npc/xinwen/lfgz/zxfl/2004-12…