China’s State Council has issued new guidelines calling for sweeping reforms to the country’s household registration system, known as the hukou, with the aim of providing equal public services to all residents regardless of where they are officially registered.
The hukou system, established in the 1950s to control population movement, has long divided Chinese citizens into “urban” and “rural” categories, creating a two-tier system that determined access to healthcare, education, and social welfare based on place of registration. Despite massive migrant populations in most major cities, the majority of citizens have only been able to access key public services in their registered hometown.
Under the new directives — reported by state media including CCTV and Xinhua on Friday, May 22 — cities are urged to eliminate restrictions that have long disadvantaged migrant workers. Specifically, the guidelines call for the full removal of hukou-based barriers to workplace social insurance enrollment, stronger basic medical coverage for long-term residents holding temporary residence permits, and improved access to public schools for children of migrant families during compulsory education.
The measures also include expanding public rental housing protections to non-registered permanent residents with stable employment, and gradually incorporating this population into local social services such as elderly care, social assistance, and disability support.
Experts note that some smaller Chinese cities have already implemented similar policies as part of broader efforts to attract residents. Ying Zhang, a researcher at the Economist Intelligence Unit, described the document as largely reflecting the spirit of China’s recently released 15th Five-Year Plan. She cautioned, however, that the key question remains how far megacities like Beijing and Shanghai will actually adopt these measures.
Source: Deutsche Welle, May 22, 2026
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