Birth permit process to be simplified

China's top family planning authority on Monday issued a notice simplifying the procedure of granting birth permits to parents-to-be, particularly for the migrate population.

Previous reports have revealed that migrant couples have faced great difficulty in applying for the permit to give birth to a child, with one couple contacting more than 10 different agencies and getting more than 40 stamps and signatures, over spent two months to get a permit.

From now on, the permit-granting authorities, usually community administration offices, will be required to automatically accept applications submitted by migrant couples and simplify relevant procedures, especially applications for the first child, said the notice issued by the National Population and Family Planning Commission, China's top family planning authority.

Currently, migrant couples can face difficulty in getting the permit because they live somewhere other than where their hukou, the residence registration, is.

The notice said administration offices caught rejecting applications by migrant workers will be punished.

Procedures concerning the application have to be made public to assist couples filing their applications, it said.

Also, offices at places where the migrant workers have their hukou should simplify the application process for migrant couples and allow a proxy nominated, by the migrant worker, to help with the application if they can not attend themselves, said the notice.

If there is a difficulty with an application, staff members from the offices should visit the applicants home to help with the application, it said.

The privacy of applications must also be respected.

To enhance communication with the public, a special hotline "12356" has been set up to respond to public inquiries concerning family planning and receive complaints filed by the public.

China now has about 230 million migrant workers with an average age of 28 years old, statistics from the commission said.