A Chinese provincial government body proposes to ban female civil servants from wearing 'sexy clothes' such as tank tops, backless costumes and tight jeans to office, the state media reported on Thursday.

The ban is part of new regulations focussing on female officials' etiquette, a bid to standardise the appearance and manners of female civil servants, the China Daily reported.

The move by the archives division in east China's Zhejiang province will be the first of its kind in the country, the paper said adding that it will set standards for the clothing, language and overall behaviour of female civil servants during working hours.

"We drafted the regulations because a large number of female civil servants work in our archives system," said Wu Ling, a senior official with the provincial archives administration.

Statistics show that about 70 per cent of the staff in the archives system in Zhejiang province, one of China's richest and most developed, is female.

The first article of the regulations says that female officials' clothes should be tasteful and simple in style and colour, while avant-garde and ostentatious dress is forbidden in offices.

"Tight-fitting clothes are also inappropriate for formal occasions and underwear should not be exposed," the article says.

Further, women civil servants should also cut down on the amount of jewellery they wear, the regulations said.

Wu said the regulations stress the importance of appearance as this plays a major role in determining people's first impressions. Apart from regulations on clothes, a number of others in areas of language required in daily conversations have also been set out.

The new regulation is now being drafted and circulated among officials for comments and is expected to come into effect soon, a senior official said.