Earning 5,000 yuan a month should qualify a household for middle-income status, state statistical researchers say.
That is the figure needed to achieve the target set by Communist Party leaders that 'a considerable portion' of the mainland population be categorised as 'middle-income' earners by 2020, says the National Bureau of Statistics' urban survey team.
The team based the figure on results of a four-month survey of more than 260,000 households in mainland cities.
One of the researchers, Cheng Xuebin, said the government should define those earning between 60,000 yuan and 500,000 yuan a year as middle-income households.
'If we set the lowest threshold at 80,000 yuan, then we won't be able to meet the target even after two decades of development,' Mr Cheng was quoted as saying by Xinhua.
'But if we lower it to 60,000 yuan, then a lot of people will see the hope [of reaching the target] if they work hard.'