Hangzhou offers subsidies to multiple-child families

Hangzhou will provide child-rearing subsidies to families with a second or third child born this year to the same couple and registered in the city, Chinanews.com reported.

The policy is part of a livelihood project on nurturing children passed at the third plenary meeting of the third session of the 14th Hangzhou Municipal People's Congress on Wednesday.

The proposed one-off subsidy for families with a second child is 5,000 yuan ($725.73), and 20,000 for families with a third child.

Calculated on the basis of Hangzhou's birth rate in 2022, the total amount of child-rearing subsidies to be distributed is estimated to be around 140 million yuan, covering 25,000 families.

The subsidies will be distributed digitally, and eligible families can apply through "Zheliban", Zhejiang province's online government service platform. After the application is reviewed and approved, the subsidy will be deposited into the applicant's personal account.

According to population monitoring data and surveys, since 2017 the first-child birth rate in Hangzhou has remained stable overall, but the birth rates for second and third children have declined sharply and citizens' willingness to have a second or third child is significantly lower. Surveys show the main factors affecting the birth rates of second and third children are the pressures of childbirth, child-rearing and education.

Besides the subsidies, the project on nurturing children also proposed to add 5,000 spots in childcare, organize 1,000 classes on parenting skills and complete construction on 72 new kindergartens, primary and middle schools in Hangzhou this year.

The city will also make greater efforts to develop universal childcare services, optimize the maternity leave system, implement housing and car purchase support policies and reduce the pressures of education faced by families.