Abstract: Yonghesuchus sangbiensis, a new genus and species of the Archosauriformes, is erected on the basis of its peculiar cranial features. This taxon represents the first record of tetrapods from the Late Triassic terrestrial deposits of China. Its discovery is significant not only to our study on the phylogeny of the Archosauriformes but also to our understanding of the evolution of the Triassic terrestrial vertebrate faunae in China. The presence of pterygoid teeth may exclude the new form from the Archosauria, and the apomorphic position of the foramen for the internal carotid artery indicates that the new form appears to be phylogenetically closer to the Archosauria than are Turfanosuchus and the Proterochampsidae. Comparisons with these taxa suggest that the Y. sangbiensis-bearing Tongchuan Formation is probably of early Late Triassic age.