The Changing Face of China’s Family

From first-tier cities to rural areas, China’s wedding bells aren’t ringing like they used to. The nation’s average age for first-marriage registration has gone up, the number of singles continues to expand and the number of births is dropping, their combination quickly becoming a matter of public concern.

According to the latest figures from the Ministry of Civil Affairs, a total of 7.64 million couples registered to tie the knot in 2021, marking a record-low in three decades, and only 56.6 percent of the 2013 peak. A report on China’s marriages and families issued by Beijing-based Yuwa Population Research Institute read the mean age of first marriage among females and first-time mothers in China increased respectively from 21.6 and 23.8 in 1990, to 26.3 and 27.5 in 2018.

China’s economic and social development have overhauled the traditional concepts of early marriage and childbearing. As many young people move to the urban areas, they’re faced with ever-mounting pressures of living costs, employment and work, leaving them less inclined to get married. Raising kids isn’t cheap either, so many couples choose to have only one child or simply opt for the double income, no kids lifestyle.

China has been adjusting its family planning policy to cope with the country’s aging population trend. A two-child policy was partially introduced in 2013 and fully implemented in 2015. In July 2021, the country announced its decision to allow all couples to have three children.

To create a fertility-friendly society, China has formulated a package of policies, such as guaranteeing longer maternity leave and adding children’s education to the list of personal income tax deductibles. On March 28, the State Council also announced a tax deduction policy for parents rearing children under the age of 3.

A slowdown in population growth is inevitable as a country’s industrialization and urbanization reach a certain stage. Both developed countries and some emerging economies are facing problems like population aging and falling birth rates. What type of support system should be put in place and how limited financial resources should be invested are issues for today’s policymakers and researchers to consider. BR