Abstract: Tectonically,the area holding geological structures in the China seas under review is divided into three regions: the epicontinental region along the Pacific Coast,the epicontinental region in the north-eastern Indian Ocean and the region in the Philippine Sea.The historical evolution of tectonics in the different periods from early Jurassic to early Cretaceous,from late Cretaceous to early Oligocene,from Middle Oligocene to Miocene and from Plicene to Quaternary is reviewed.Based on the character of development of sedimentary basins in the area,three oil and gas structural provinces have been identified.They are the BohaiYellow Sea structural prcvince,the East China Sea structural province and the South China Sea stuctural province,each of which is again divided into a number of structural units.Laying particular emphasis on these sedimentary basins as the basic structural units of oil and gas occurrence,the authors predict that the area covered by the China seas is among the attractive prospects for oil and gas development in the world.