Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Reuters
Reuters
Politics

China's Sichuan frees unmarried people to legally have children

FILE PHOTO: Newborn babies sleep in a ward at a hospital in Hefei, Anhui province April 21, 2011. REUTERS/Stringer

Health authorities in China's southwestern province of Sichuan will allow unmarried individuals to raise a family and enjoy benefits reserved for married couples, in the latest effort to bolster a falling birth rate.

The government dictates that only married women are legally allowed to give birth, but with marriage and birth rates having fallen to record lows in recent years, provincial authorities revamped a 2019 rule to cover singles who want to have children.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.