City plan will grant migrants benefits

By Zhou Wenting (China Daily)

08:54, June 20, 2013

Points awarded for contribution, open doors to public services

A point system is to be introduced in Shanghai for migrant residents from other parts ofthe mainland, with personal circumstances and contributions translated into pointscorresponding to the public services they are eligible for.

Shanghai is the first city on the mainland to adopt such a system, which will take effecton July 1.

"The policy conforms to the country's intention of rationally controlling oversizedpopulations in major cities," said Mao Dali, deputy director of the Shanghai HumanResources and Social Security Bureau.

Shanghai had 23.8 million permanent residents in 2012, while its permanent migrantpopulation reached almost 10 million, according to the Shanghai Health and FamilyPlanning Commission.

Anybody who resides and has legitimate and stable employment in the city can applyfor a residence permit and provide materials to gain corresponding points.

Points will be earned based on the resident's age, years of work and social insurancecontributions in Shanghai, as well as educational and technical qualifications.

More specific details about the point system will be made public through governmentwebsites and the media.

Residents who make a significant investment in Shanghai or otherwise contribute toboosting local employment will earn 100 points, while those providing fake informationwill lose 150 points.

Anybody who violates the family planning policy or has a record of serious criminaloffenses will be disqualified.

The points will be accumulated and a total of 120 will win the residence permit holdersome major social benefits, such as social insurance and getting the same standard ofpension as permanent residents, and their children having the right to sit the nationalcollege entrance exam in Shanghai.

"The number of students taking the national college entrance exam in Shanghai iscertain to increase," said Mao, but he declined to give the estimated figure.

The three benefits that they cannot enjoy, which are exclusively for people who haveregistered permanent residence, are accepting family members as their dependents,health insurance, and applying for affordable housing, Mao said.

Chen Shu, a native of Zhenjiang, Jiangsu province, has worked at a publishingcompany in Shanghai for five years.

She said the system would encourage people to get more favorable social benefits andbe better integrated into the city through their hard work.

"The policy sets out prospects for people moving to Shanghai like me," said Chen, 27.

Drawing from overseas experience, especially the credit system of immigration policies,the system also takes into account the actual conditions of Shanghai, said WengHuajian, chief economist with the Shanghai Development and Reform Commission.

"The policy aims at promoting the equitable and orderly flow of talents, but that needsto correspond with the capabilities of the city, and we need to seek a balance betweenthe needs of the population and economic development," he said.

Population experts said the policy rejects migrant workers.

"I cannot see any other point a migrant worker can get except at most 30 points forage. Migrant workers may not be regarded as talents, but they make contributions tothe city while receiving few decent benefits," said Gu Jun, a sociology professor atShanghai University.

Gu Baochang, a professor with the Population and Development Studies Center ofRenmin University of China, said the policy is a deviation from objective needs.

"High-end talents alone cannot support any big city in the world. Shanghai has anaging population and a large demand for nursing staff, a job that someone with adoctorate probably wouldn't do," he said.

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（Editor：HuangJin、Gao Yinan）