To investigate the prevalence of depressive syndrome and their association with demographic and clinical characteristics in Chinese patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). A total of 416 patients with HIV infection were consecutively screened and enrolled in the study. Depressive syndrome was assessed with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D). The proportion of depressive syndrome was 36.3%. Patients with depressive syndrome were younger, and were more likely to have severe anxiety symptoms, religious beliefs and psychological treatment. Multiple logistic regression analyses revealed that religious beliefs (p=0.001, OR=3.9, 95% CI=1.7-8.6) and more severe anxiety symptoms (p=0.001, OR=1.6, 95% CI=1.4-1.7) were independently associated with depressive syndrome. Regular screening for depressive syndrome and appropriate biopsychosocial interventions are urgently needed for this population.