China Offers Parents $1,500 To Make More Babies

Parents in China are being offered 3,600 yuan (£375; $500) per year for each of their children under the age of three in the government's first nationwide subsidy aimed at boosting birth rates, Osmond Chia reported for BBC News.

The scheme will offer parents a total of up to 10,800 yuan per child.

The country’s birth rate has been falling, even after the ruling Communist Party abolished its controversial one-child policy nearly a decade ago.

The handouts will help around 20 million families with the cost of raising children, according to state media. Several provinces across China have piloted similar payouts to encourage larger families as the world’s second-largest economy faces a looming demographic crisis.

The scheme will offer parents a total of up to 10,800 yuan per child. The policy will be applied retroactively from the start of this year, Beijing’s state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Families with children born between 2022 and 2024 can also apply for partial subsidies.

The move follows efforts by local governments to increase birth rates. In March, Hohhot—a city in northern China—began offering residents up to 100,000 yuan per baby for couples with at least three children. Shenyang, a city northeast of Beijing, offers 500 yuan per month to families with a third child under age three.

Last week, Beijing also urged local governments to draft plans for implementing free preschool education.

According to a study by the China-based YuWa Population Research Institute, China is among the world’s most expensive countries in which to raise children. The study found that raising a child to age 17 in China costs an average of $75,700.