Imposing fine on two-child couples is outdated law

SOME MEDIA OUTLETS reported that the local family planning department in Wuyuan, East China's Jiangxi province, tried to collect "social compensation fee" from a couple that had a second child after the central leadership made the decision to introduce the two-child policy. Beijing News comments:

The Wuyuan couple had their second child in December 2015, two months after the central government made the decision to introduce the two-child policy nationwide but one month before the Jiangxi legislature amended its provincial regulation. Citing this fact, the Wuyuan family planning department claimed they were legally bound to collect the fee.

It seems the local officials are rather alien to the spirit of rule of law. According to the Law on Legislation, although laws and regulations do not have retrospective effect, a new law or regulation can be applied to better protect citizens' legal rights and interests. The family planning policy regulation is such a regulation.

Before the provincial-level regulation was amended in 2016, quite a number of families had to pay high "social compensation fees" for having a second child. According to the new Jiangxi provincial regulation, these families should be exempted from paying the fees.

In January 2017, the then National Health and Family Planning Commission announced that family planning departments nationwide should better protect people's interests by following the regulation.

Besides, exempting the families in Wuyuan from paying the "social compensation fees" for having the second children before the new regulation came into force will be in accordance with the central leadership's intention of encouraging more couples to have two children.