Overview
- Effective Jan. 1, condoms, birth‑control pills and devices lost a three‑decade exemption and now carry the standard 13% value‑added tax.
- Childcare, marriage‑related services and elderly care received new VAT exemptions, and authorities have expanded childcare subsidies and tax relief for families with young children.
- China recorded about 9.54 million births in 2024 and a third straight annual population decline, underscoring Beijing’s demographic urgency.
- Online reaction inside China included ridicule and concern over reduced access to contraception, with public‑health experts warning of potential increases in unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections and disproportionate impacts on women and low‑income groups.
- Demographers say pricier contraception is unlikely to lift fertility and some analysts view the measure as largely symbolic, noting limited revenue effects and strained provincial finances that complicate broader family‑support pledges.