One-child families in Beijing will get more support and
subsidies from the municipal government, according to a revised
local population and family planning regulation which comes into
effect on September 1.
Like the previous regulation, which was issued in 1991, the new
one maintains the country's one-child-per-family policy.
The new regulation gives great emphasis to a variety of care and
support measures for one-child families, said Deng Xingzhou,
director of the Beijing Municipal Family Planning Committee, in a
press release yesterday.
All one-child families in Beijing will be given at least 1,000
yuan (US$120) when the mother reaches 55 years of age or the father
reaches 60.
This grant alone will cost municipal finances more than 100
million yuan (US$120,000), said Deng.
Parents at the above-mentioned ages will also be eligible for a
grant of at least 5,000 yuan (US$600) if their only child loses the
ability to work or dies due to unexpected causes and they do not
adopt another child.
The current award standard for one-child families will also be
adjusted. The old incentive for one-child families is a monthly
grant of from 5 to 10 yuan (60 US cents to US$1.20) every month.
The new rate will be fixed at US$1.20.
There are still nine classifications of couples, such as those
families in which both spouses are only children, and can have a
second child, according to the former policy.
The limit on when these couples can have a second child has been
relaxed under the new regulation, which says that such couples can
have a second child if they can satisfy just one of the following
criteria: the age gap between the two children should be at least
four years, and the mother must be at least 28 years old.
(China Daily August 8, 2003)