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China Elevator Stories
“How Much Does It Cost To Have A Second Child In Shenzhen?”
I share a cab with two co-workers.
07/11/2013
Ruth Silbermayr
Author
One of my co-workers in Shenzhen recently had a second child. This was before China changed the one-child policy to a two-child policy.
The driver asks him: “How much does it cost to have a second child in Shenzhen?”
My co-worker answers: “220,000 Chinese Yuan (around 27,000 EUR or 40,000 USD).”
The driver responds: “Wow, that’s a considerable sum for a hukou (household register). We registered our second child back at home. 220,000 Yuan just for a hukou—that’s not worth it for a Shenzhen hukou!”
The co-worker asks him: “Where are you from?”
“I’m from the countryside of Hunan. When we had our second child, we just needed to treat the people responsible to a nice dinner with enough drinks and give them presents. That was it. That’s how it works where I’m from. 220,000 RMB is such an unbelievable sum.”
My co-worker replies: “I’m from Hunan as well. We also went back and gave birth to our second child there. But it’s still governed quite strictly—we had to pay 50,000 Yuan. Nevertheless, it was much cheaper than it would have been in Shenzhen. I’m from the Xiangtan area, really close to where Mao Zedong was born. They are quite strict about these things there. Anyways, nowadays a Shenzhen hukou isn’t as valuable as it used to be. Today, a rural hukou can even be better than an urban one. In rural areas, you might get subsidies that you wouldn’t receive in Shenzhen.”
What do you think about the one-child policy and the hukou system?
Explanation:
Hukou (户口) is the Chinese word for a record in the Chinese household registration system. In China, where your hukou is registered determines where you can go to school, access healthcare, and much more. A hukou is usually registered in the city where you were born and cannot be changed easily.