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Fertility responses to the relaxation of migration restrictions: Evidence from the Hukou reform in China

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  • Dong, Xiaoqi
  • Liang, Yinhe
  • Zhang, Jiawei

Abstract

This study examines the impact of a relaxation of internal migration restrictions on internal migrants' fertility in China. Exploiting the variation in the city-by-city rollout of the Hukou reform after 2014, we find that lifting barriers to local citizenship significantly increases fertility among unregistered migrants, and the positive effect mainly appears in second-child births. An investigation of potential mechanisms suggests that the Hukou reform is associated with improved access to public services, better integration into the host society, and a significant increase in intermarriages with locals.

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  • Dong, Xiaoqi & Liang, Yinhe & Zhang, Jiawei, 2023. "Fertility responses to the relaxation of migration restrictions: Evidence from the Hukou reform in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:chieco:v:81:y:2023:i:c:s1043951x23001256
    DOI: 10.1016/j.chieco.2023.102040
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    Cited by:

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    2. Chen, Zhu & Shang, Qianqian & Zhang, Jipeng, 2024. "Recent progress in hukou reform and labor market integration in China: 1996–2022," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    3. Guo, Xing & Xu, Jiajun, 2025. "The impact of China's 2014 Hukou reform on economic growth," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 641-655.
    4. Hu, Shan & Jia, Nan, 2025. "The impact of the “Full Liberalization of Household Registration” policy on the free migration of rural labor," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    5. Lulin Shen & Fang Wang, 2024. "Can Migrant Workers Returning Home for Entrepreneurship Increase Agricultural Labor Productivity: Evidence from a Quasi-Natural Experiment in China," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-17, June.

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