Rewards for Complying

The Chinese government has created various incentives to encourage its citizens to comply with the one-child policy. Parents who have only one child receive a “one child certificate,” which entitles them to a variety of benefits. Parents are rewarded for having one child with “an extra month's salary every year until the child is 14 . . . , higher wages, interest-free loans, retirement funds, cheap fertilizer, better housing, better health care, and priority in school enrollment” for their child (Hays). Additionally, women who marry late, after age 25, receive an extended maternity leave when they become pregnant (Hays). If the parents have a second child, the benefits they received by having one child are taken away, and they can be punished further for having another child.