Shenzhen Adopts New Population and Family Planning Regulation

Jan. 11 – The Standing Committee of the Fifth People’s Congress of Shenzhen Municipality passed the “Shenzhen Special Economic Zone Population and Family Planning Regulations (hereinafter referred to as ‘Regulation’)” on October 30, 2012, which came into effect on January 1, 2013. The Regulation is the first local law in China that clarifies the issue of violating the State one-child policy by giving birth outside of Mainland China.

Specifically, the Regulation for the first time explicitly states that couples giving birth outside Mainland China in violation of the one-child policy will be fined. It stipulates that for every child born against the one-child policy, the couple together needs to pay a “social maintenance fee” six times the city’s disposable income per capita in the year before the birth.

In 2011, the disposable income per capita in Shenzhen was RMB36,505, meaning that for each child born in violation of China’s one-child policy, the fine will be up to RMB219,030.

Furthermore, for couples giving birth for the first time, but who have not yet been officially registered as married within 60 days of the birth of their child, together they will be fined twice the disposable income per capita of Shenzhen in the year before the birth.

The Regulation also forbids parents from having triplets or more births with assisted reproductive technology.

A complete chart outlining Shenzhen’s maternity leave arrangements have been provided as follows:

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