Birth permit red tape still lingers after new policy

Family planning services at local subdistrict offices still lag behind the National Population and Family Planning Commission's announcement on December 3 that the procedure for getting a birth permit would be simplified.

Mothers in most places are required to get a permit before giving birth. Pregnant migrant workers have been required to undergo a sometimes onerous and inconsistent process that required them to take a trip back to their hometown.

The new policy by the commission allows couples without a hukou, or household registration permit, to get a permit for their first child in the city where they live. It also asks authorities to slash the list of documents and the processing time.

Without the birth permit, it is difficult for the child to get their hukou registered.

Netizens have been complaining that nothing has changed in their communities after the national notice, and they were told by staffers that there had been no new policy.

A staffer from Huilongguan community's subdistrict office in Beijing's Changping district was quoted by the People's Daily as saying that they have not started to implement the new policy. "What you heard is from the news; if you want to get the permit here, you have to wait."

Beijing's population and family planning commission published measures on Friday to follow up the national policy, saying the new measures will be implemented in a month.

"Punishment will be handed down to officers who are reluctant to follow the new procedure," a press officer surnamed Pan from the commission told the Global Times.

The process and the documents that are required vary across the country. Jiangsu Province scrapped the requirement for a permit in 2002.