Abstract: Nearly 40% of the predicted coal reserves in China are located in Xinjiang. Shaerhu coal, which has a reserve of nearly 100 billion tons is one of the typical Xinjiang coals. It has low ash, low sulfur and excellent ignition characteristics; however, the chlorine content in Shaerhu coal can exceed 1%. Such rare high chlorine characteristic leads to extremely serious coking, contamination and corrosion problems in high-efficiency coal-fired power generation and modern coal chemical industry, which restricts the safe, efficient and clean utilization of Shaerhu coal. Under this circumstance, the research progress and applied technical status of high chlorine coal utilization technology in China and abroad were reviewed as follows: 1) fuel characteristics, distribution status and utilization technology of high chlorine coal in the world and in China; 2) chlorine occurrence in coal include inorganic forms (discrete chloride combining with mineral elements, complex minerals containing chlorine, ionic forms existing in water from pore of particles) and organic forms (weak binding adsorption forms, strong binding covalent forms); 3) during combustion and pyrolysis the influencing factors of chlorine release and the transformation and migration characteristics; 4) the mechanism of chlorine induced fouling and corrosion of heating surface in the process of high chlorine coal combustion; 5) the coupling mechanism of mercury and other heavy metals with chlorine and role of Cl in the formation of dioxin; 6) chlorine control technology, including flue gas dechlorination technology in front of furnace, in the furnace and after furnace. Based on the literature research and analysis, this paper put forward some suggestions for the basic research focus and the direction of technology development in the field of high chlorine coal in the future.