An actinomycete strain (YIM 90004T) was isolated from a saline soil sample from the Xinjiang Province, People's Republic of China. The strain displayed abundant aerial and substrate mycelia, and short spore chains were borne on the aerial mycelium. The spore chains were composed of non-motile, smooth-surfaced, rod-shaped spores. The cell wall of strain YIM 90004T contained mainly meso-diaminopimelic acid, alanine and glutamic acid (cell wall type III). Glucose, ribose, galactose, xylose and arabinose were the whole-cell sugars of the strain. The predominant phospholipids were phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylglycerol; MK-10(H2) and MK-10(H4) were the predominant menaquinones. The DNA G + C content of strain YIM 90004T was 74.3 mol%. Chemotaxonomic properties and 16S rDNA analysis placed strain YIM 90004T in the genus Nocardiopsis. On the basis of phenotypic and phylogenetic analyses and DNA-DNA hybridization results, strain YIM 90004T (= CCRC 16285T = CCTCC AA99004T = DSM 44589T) is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Nocardiopsis, for which the name Nocardiopsis xinjiangensis is proposed.