China started to carry out its one-child policy in the 1980s. Only several years ago it began to loosen the strict one-child policy. From 2016, Chinese couples were allowed to have up to two children, while parents from only-child families have been able to have two children since 2013.
On July 20, 2021, to promote the long-term and balanced development of the population, the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council announced the Decision on using best of the family planning policy. According to the document, China will revise the law on population and family planning to make the country's three-child policy legal, which was introduced on May 31, 2021 to allow all Chinese couples to have a third child.
The Decision contains supporting measures covering the aspects of giving birth, parenting, education, taxation, housing, and women's rights in employment — to encourage births. While specific measures have yet to be worked out, potential future measures could affect human resources and wage policies of companies in China. They are also likely to unlock market opportunities in areas of day care services, elder care, healthcare, and related issues.
Currently, China does not have a national rule on childcare leave. However, female employees are entitled for 98 days of basic maternity leave (产假) by law as well as extra days granted by the local region. Meanwhile, male employees may enjoy paternity leave (陪产假) at the same time, ranging from seven days to one month, depending on the local rules. Thus, maternity leave and paternity leave policies vary from region to region. The Decision mentions that China will also explore an elderly care leave rule, allowing only-child employees to spend more time to take care of their parents.
The latest relaxing measures can still impact the personal lives of millions of families in China and will have long-term implication on the country's demographics (人口结构).
