Daily US Times: China has formally revised three-child policy, allowing couples to have up to three children in an attempt to boost the birth rate.
The regulation was one of several passed on Friday at a meeting of the National People’s Congress (NPC), the country’s top lawmakers.
Details on a controversial anti-sanctions law for Hong Kong were also expected. Many businesses feared the law would put them in a difficult position,
But on Friday, Hong Kong media reported that the decision had been delayed.
What is the three-child policy?
Back in May, in a major policy shift, China had announced that it would allow couples to have up to three children.
That decision has now been formally passed into law, including several other resolutions aimed at boosting the birth rate in the country and “reducing the burden” of raising a child, said Xinhua news agency.
These include cancelling the “social maintenance fee” – a financial penalty couples had to pay for having children beyond the limit, increasing women’s employment rights, encouraging local governments to offer parental leave and improving childcare infrastructure.
Recent census data had shown a steep decline in the birth rate in China. The three-child policy is aiming to change the situation.
In 2016,China had scrapped its decades-old one-child policy to replace it with a two-child limit, but the attempt failed to lead to a sustained upsurge in births.
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