The Chinese government has announced that it will pay an annual subsidy of $ 500 (equivalent to about $ 2,700) for each child under three years. The measure aims to encourage couples to have children, given the continuous fall in the birth rate and the aging of the population. The initiative was released on Monday (28) by state communication vehicles and will be retroactively from January 1, 2026.
China, the second most populous country in the world, faces a demographic crisis. In 2024, the number of births fell for the third consecutive year, reaching 9.54 million, half recorded in 2016, when the government ended the policy of the only child. In addition, the country currently accounts for about 310 million people aged 60 and over, which pressures pension and public health systems.
Among the main reasons pointed out for the fall in birth are the high costs of raising children, the economic difficulties faced by young families and career concerns. In 2023, the fertility rate in China fell to 0.999 children per woman, according to World Bank data, a number considered below the rate required to maintain the size of the population over time.
In addition to the new national program, several Chinese provinces were already adopting local initiatives to face the same problem. Some offer crown assistance, increase in maternity and paternity licenses and monthly payments for families with two or more children. In the city of Hohhot, for example, couples with three children can receive up to 100,000 yuans ($ 78,000) per baby.
Despite the advance represented by the national allowance, analysts evaluate that the measure alone will not be enough to reverse the trend of population fall. Experts state that the values offered are modest in the face of living costs in urban areas and that there will be broader changes to create a more favorable environment for family formation.
