China is a "sweet economy" for increasing fertility. Against the background of reports that the number of elderly people (65 years old and older) in China exceeded the number of children (14 years old and younger) for the first time, the Chinese government is starting to implement new methods to improve the demography in the country.
Chinese authorities are responding to the fourth consecutive year of declining overall population trends by introducing new incentives for young people, ranging from special programs to financial bonuses from large corporations involved in fertility policies in the PRC.
State media in China write that the authorities have decided to allow couples to fill out applications for marriage registration at any certified registry of civil files throughout the country, which makes it easier to combine the registration with travel and different places of residence of young people. Local governments are improving government services for newlyweds, including pre-marital health checks, legal marriage counseling and even gift vouchers for wedding ceremonies.
The local authorities are interested in linking the development of the "sweet economy" with efforts to create a more comfortable environment for marriage, childbirth and raising children. In 2025, China introduced 23 measures to support childbirth and child rearing. In many regions, medical costs related to childbirth are largely or completely free for families, and Jiangsu has introduced vouchers for childcare services, Xinhua reported. In addition to vouchers for wedding ceremonies, which are traditionally celebrated in the PRC on a large scale, newlyweds in several provinces are provided with 30-day vacations, coordinated honeymoon trips, which are usually combined with the same marriage. The Chinese pay special attention to weddings, from creating special locations to hold them to special conditions for newlyweds, in an attempt to combine weddings, trips and national traditions.