China’s population crisis: plunging births in Jilin province prompt roll out of loans and tax breaks for parents

Jilin will provide up to 200,000 yuan (US$31,400) to married couples planning on having children, plus tax breaks and cash

The announcement sparked a flood of negative comments online, with many saying the measures will do little to boost low births

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Jilin province had the second lowest fertility rate in the country in 2020, with its population falling by 3.37 million from a decade earlier. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 5:15pm, 24 Dec 2021Updated: 5:50pm, 24 Dec 2021

The northeastern province of Jilin, which has the second lowest fertility rate in China, will offer loans and tax breaks to parents as it tries to boost its declining population and fast ageing society.

The provincial government announced on Thursday it would provide up to 200,000 yuan (US$31,400) to married couples that planned on having children, with the interest rate deduction depending on the number of children they have.

Couples who have two to three children will also receive money, based on costs for local child care facilities and other unspecified conditions, the government said.

Jilin had 18,000 births but 63,000 deaths last year, official data showed. The province had the second lowest fertility rate in the country in 2020, with its population falling by 3.37 million from a decade earlier, or 12.31 per cent, according to the seventh national census released in May.

The province’s fast-ageing population is also a huge problem. Citizens aged at least 60 accounted for 23.06 per cent of the total population last year, well above the national level of 18.7 per cent.