Abstract: A new damage model for the high-strength concrete column reinforced with high-strength stirrup is presented. The effects of axial compression ratio and stirrup ratio on hysteretic characteristics of the high strength concrete columns reinforced with high strength reinforcement(HSC) and the seismic performance parameters for the performance based seismic design of HSC columns were investigated. The failure mechanism, ductility, and hysteretic behavior were analyzed based on the experimental data. The damage index of 12 HSC columns under different story drifts was calculated using the modified Park-Ang model. According to the damage characteristics and measurement results, a series of performance parameters and the corresponding limit value that can be used to evaluate the performance level of HSC columns under earthquake was proposed. It is indicated that the crack width and stress level of a longitudinal bar, the residual drift and ultimate drift index can be adopted as the key parameters to appraise the seismic performance of functional, repairable and collapse avoidable capacities, respectively. The comparison between the calculated damage indices using the proposed model and test results shows a good agreement. This can be referenced for the performance based seismic assessment of HSC columns.