Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, March 16 — Recently, the General Office of the CPC Central Committee and the General Office of the State Council issued the "Special Action Plan for Boosting Consumption" and sent out a notice requiring all regions and departments to conscientiously implement the plan in light of their actual conditions.

The full text of the “Special Action Plan to Boost Consumption” is as follows.

To vigorously boost consumption, comprehensively expand domestic demand, enhance consumers’ purchasing power by increasing incomes and reducing burdens, create effective demand through high-quality supply, and strengthen consumers’ willingness to spend by optimizing the consumption environment, while addressing in a targeted manner the most prominent issues that currently constrain consumption, we hereby formulate this special action plan for boosting consumption.

I. Action to Promote Income Growth for Urban and Rural Residents

(1) Promote the rational growth of wage income. Implement employment support programs targeting key sectors, key industries, grassroots communities in urban and rural areas, and small, medium, and micro-sized enterprises. Continue to implement the unemployment insurance policy for stabilizing employment and returning funds to employers. In light of changing circumstances, step up employment support efforts and promote employment among key groups. Focus on specific sectors and key groups to launch specialized skills-training initiatives, improve diversified funding mechanisms, and enhance the evaluation of vocational skill levels. Establish and refine a mechanism for adjusting the minimum wage standard, and raise the minimum wage level in a scientific and reasonable manner. Intensify the implementation of work-relief programs in key infrastructure projects and in the construction of small- and medium-sized agricultural and rural infrastructure, and expand the scale of labor remuneration payments.

(2) Broaden channels for property-based income. Adopt multiple measures to stabilize the stock market, strengthen strategic reserve capabilities and build mechanisms for stabilizing the market, accelerate the removal of bottlenecks that hinder the entry of medium- and long-term funds—including commercial insurance funds, the National Council for Social Security Fund, basic pension insurance funds, and enterprise (occupational) annuity funds—into the market, enhance market capitalization management of listed companies controlled by central and state-owned enterprises, and strictly crack down on financial fraud in the capital market and illegal share reductions by shareholders of listed companies in accordance with the law. Further enrich the variety of bond-related products suitable for individual investors.

(3) Adopt multiple measures to boost farmers’ incomes. Improve the mechanisms for safeguarding grain-growing farmers’ income and for distributing land value-added benefits. Explore ways to activate and make better use of households’ legally owned housing through methods such as leasing, equity participation, and cooperation. Implement initiatives aimed at enhancing the capabilities and increasing the incomes of rural low-income populations; continue carrying out the agricultural brand excellence cultivation program; launch the “Three Products and One Standard” initiative for agricultural products; and promote consumption of green, organic, specialty, high-quality, and geographically indicated agricultural products. Cultivate new types of agricultural business entities, develop courtyard economies, forest-understory economies, and homestay economies tailored to local conditions, implement subsidy policies for scrapping and upgrading agricultural machinery, and strengthen industry-driven approaches that link and benefit farmers.

(4) Solidly address the issue of overdue payments. Accelerate efforts to implement measures for repaying outstanding payments owed to enterprises, firmly enforce local governments’ responsibilities at the place of jurisdiction, and ensure that payments owed to enterprises—especially small, medium, and micro-sized enterprises—are paid promptly and in full. Strengthen audit oversight, tighten constraints on those who失信 (lose trust), and establish a long-term mechanism for clearing arrears.

II. Action to Support and Ensure Consumer Purchasing Power

(5) Strengthen support for childbirth and child-rearing. Study the establishment of a childcare subsidy system. Guide localities with appropriate conditions to include flexibly employed workers, migrant workers, and those in new forms of employment who participate in the basic medical insurance for employees into the scope of maternity insurance. Launch an annual campaign to enhance pediatric services and increase the supply of pediatric care. During peak seasons for children’s seasonal illnesses, further expand the availability of nighttime pediatric outpatient and emergency services at general hospitals.

(6) Strengthen educational support. Expand the supply of educational resources in urban areas that are experiencing net inflows of school-age population. In 2025, raise the subsidy standards for certain student financial aid programs, broaden the coverage of these policies, and continue implementing the policy of interest-free national student loans and deferred repayment of principal. Promote closer alignment between university discipline and specialty offerings and the innovation and industrial chains, thereby enhancing the degree to which talent cultivation meets the needs of economic and social development.

(7) Enhance the capacity for medical and elderly care security. Improve the mechanism for the rational adjustment of basic old-age insurance benefits, and by 2025, raise the standard of basic pensions for urban and rural residents as well as the fiscal subsidy standards for basic medical insurance for urban and rural residents; appropriately increase the basic pensions for retirees. Fully implement the individual pension system. Promote the removal of household registration restrictions that currently prevent flexibly employed individuals from participating in basic old-age and medical insurance in their place of employment, and expand pilot programs for occupational injury protection.

(8) Ensure the basic livelihoods of key groups. Strengthen dynamic monitoring and tiered, categorized assistance and support for low-income populations; promote the establishment and improvement of a basic living assistance system; raise the level of special assistance; and reinforce development-oriented assistance measures such as industry-based employment support. Enhance support for care services for elderly individuals who are completely unable to care for themselves. Encourage localities with suitable conditions to provide relief funds or issue additional one-time living allowances to people in need, based on their specific circumstances. Timely and fully disburse unemployment insurance benefits and other related payments to eligible unemployed individuals.

III. Initiative to Enhance the Quality of Service Consumption and Benefit the People

(9) Optimize service provision for the “elderly and young.” Promote age-friendly renovations across society, support local pilot programs and comprehensive initiatives to retrofit elevators in multi-story buildings, and develop elderly meal assistance services. Actively foster industries such as anti-aging products and silver-age tourism, unlocking the potential of the silver consumer market. Encourage the development of community-based childcare services, employer-sponsored childcare facilities, and integrated childcare-and-kindergarten services. Support and regulate social forces in developing elderly care and childcare services, and improve the mechanism for setting prices for elderly care services. Encourage regions with suitable conditions to provide site support and operational subsidies to inclusive childcare institutions based on their specific circumstances.

(10) Promote consumption of lifestyle services. Strengthen capacity building for service supply, and support innovation in service consumption scenarios, integration of business models, and industrial clustering. Enhance the quality of catering services and support local development of specialty cuisines. Intensify training in domestic services, encourage more universities and vocational schools to offer majors related to domestic services, and organize and implement a special training program aimed at improving and expanding the quality and capacity of women-led domestic services. Further refine the standardization and credit system for the domestic services industry. In conjunction with the construction of 15-minute convenient living circles in cities and embedded service facilities in urban communities, accelerate the establishment of community service outlets offering shopping, dining, domestic services, and repair services.

(11) Expand consumption in culture, sports, and tourism. Deepen the integration of online and offline consumption across multiple sectors—including commerce, travel, culture, sports, and health—and innovate diversified consumption scenarios. Support tourist attractions, cultural and museum institutions in expanding their service offerings, reasonably extending operating hours, and increasing their capacity to accommodate visitors. Encourage localities to increase the supply of high-quality sports programs and distinctive sporting events. Optimize the approval procedures for commercial performances, sports events, and various large-scale mass activities, safely and controllably increasing the number of tickets available for sale (or issuance). Strictly implement the responsibility system for content review at the premiere location of touring performances, and promote the “single approval, nationwide tour” model.

(12) Promote ice and snow consumption. Launch and implement an ice and snow tourism enhancement plan, organize consumer-promoting activities such as ice and snow consumption seasons, develop a number of high-quality tourism attractions and resort areas with an ice and snow theme, and support regions rich in ice and snow resources to become globally renowned, high-quality ice and snow tourism destinations. Encourage localities to enrich the supply of ice and snow venues and consumer products according to local conditions and seasonal variations.

(13) Develop inbound consumption. Gradually expand the scope of countries eligible for unilateral visa-free entry and optimize and refine regional visa-free entry policies. Launch more high-quality inbound tourism routes and services, enhance the convenience of travel for foreign visitors in China, and cultivate markets—such as medical and convention & exhibition services—that are geared toward international tourists. Deepen the development and construction of international consumption center cities. Support the opening of duty-free shops at port-of-entry locations in cities that meet the necessary conditions. Encourage more high-quality merchants to become departure tax refund stores and promote the “buy now, get refunded immediately” service for shopping tax refunds upon departure.

(14) Steadily advance the opening-up of the service sector. Expand pilot programs for opening up in sectors such as telecommunications, healthcare, and education. Focusing on the upgrading consumption needs of residents, promote the import of high-quality lifestyle services including medical care, health, culture, and entertainment. Encourage the inclusion of service consumption items such as camping, homestays, property management services, and “Internet + Healthcare” into the Catalog of Industries Encouraging Foreign Investment.

IV. Action Plan for Upgrading and Modernizing Large-Scale Consumption

(15) Increase support for the “trade-in” program for consumer goods. Make good use of funds from the ultra-long-term special government bonds to help localities further expand and enhance the implementation of consumer goods trade-in programs, promoting the green and smart upgrades of major durable consumer goods such as automobiles, home appliances, and home furnishings. Support the replacement of old vehicles with qualified and safe electric bicycles, and implement purchase subsidies for three categories of digital products: mobile phones, tablets, and smartwatches (and wristbands). Promote pilot projects for the circulation of secondhand goods, foster diversified players in the secondhand goods market, and innovate approaches to secondhand goods circulation.

(16) Better meet housing consumption needs. Continue to exert sustained efforts to stabilize and reverse the downward trend in the real estate market, step up efforts to renovate urban villages and dilapidated housing units, and fully unleash the potential of both rigid and improvement-based housing demand. Allow special-purpose bonds to support city governments in acquiring existing commercial housing for use as affordable housing. Implement tax policies aimed at promoting the stable and healthy development of the real estate market. Timely reduce interest rates on housing provident fund loans. Expand the scope of housing provident fund usage, enabling contributors to apply for individual housing loans from the housing provident fund while withdrawing their funds to pay the down payment for a home. Increase support for rent withdrawals and advance pilot programs for flexible employment workers to contribute to the housing provident fund.

(17) Extend the automotive consumption chain. Launch pilot programs for reforming automobile circulation and consumption, and expand the aftermarket for automobiles—including car modification, leasing, motorsports, and RV camping. Foster and strengthen the entities engaged in the used-car business, and continue implementing facilitation measures such as “reverse invoicing” for used-car sales and off-site transaction registration. Enhance information sharing in the automotive sector, support the development of third-party platforms for used-car information inquiries, and promote secure and convenient transactions of used cars.

V. Action to Enhance Consumption Quality

(18) Strengthen the leading role of consumer brands. Focus on service sectors such as commerce, logistics, and cultural tourism, formulate policies tailored to different categories to enhance service quality, and build more Chinese service brands. Integrate China’s outstanding traditional culture into product design, support the development of original intellectual property (IP) brands, promote consumption of anime, games, esports, and their related merchandise, and tap into new domestic and international markets for “trendy” Chinese products. Promote first-launch economies tailored to local conditions, encouraging high-quality domestic and international brands to open their first stores and host inaugural events, shows, and exhibitions. Support the promotion of new consumption models and formats. Organize and carry out a series of “Shop in China” events to create a distinguished lineup of Chinese consumer brands.

(19) Support the accelerated development of new forms of consumption. Deeply implement initiatives to boost digital consumption and vigorously cultivate high-quality e-commerce. Launch the “Artificial Intelligence Plus” initiative to promote “AI + Consumption,” and accelerate the development and widespread adoption of new technologies and products such as autonomous driving, smart wearables, ultra-high-definition video, brain-computer interfaces, robotics, and additive manufacturing, thereby opening up new growth-oriented consumer markets. Carry out special campaigns focused on health-related consumption. Speed up the improvement of the regulatory framework for the low-altitude economy and promote the orderly development of low-altitude consumption sectors including low-altitude tourism, aviation sports, and consumer-grade drones. Continuously enrich cruise ship routes and tourism products, and further streamline the registration and reporting procedures for yachts.

(20) Enhance the integration of domestic and foreign trade. Promote the alignment and integration of systems such as domestic and foreign trade standards and certification. Support foreign trade products in expanding their domestic sales, launch the “High-Quality Foreign Trade Products—China Tour” campaign, and guide foreign trade OEM enterprises to accelerate the development of their own brands. Implement policies that provide credit insurance support for domestic trade to foster the integration of domestic and foreign trade.

VI. Action to Improve and Enhance the Consumption Environment

(21) Safeguard workers’ rights to rest and vacation. Strictly implement the paid annual leave system, and regard the implementation of paid annual leave as an important aspect of trade unions’ efforts to protect workers’ rights and interests. The organizational departments of local Party committees and the departments of human resources and social security should strengthen regular supervision over the implementation of rest and vacation systems in various units, with particular emphasis on ensuring that paid annual leave is properly enforced. Encourage linking paid annual leave with short holiday periods to facilitate flexible, staggered vacation arrangements. In accordance with the law, safeguard workers’ rights to rest and vacation, and strictly prohibit any unlawful extension of working hours. Where conditions permit, encourage localities to explore, based on their specific circumstances, the establishment of spring and autumn vacations for primary and secondary schools.

(22) Foster a consumer environment that inspires confidence. Implement a three-year initiative to optimize the consumer environment, further refining systems related to quality standards, credit-based constraints, comprehensive governance, and consumer rights protection. Improve the system of standards for consumer goods and services, strengthen the development of a credit system in the consumption sector, enhance diversified mechanisms for resolving consumer disputes, and promote more efficient approaches to consumer rights protection. Regulate unreasonable business practices such as “the lowest price across the entire network” in online sales and livestreaming e-commerce, advocate for genuine prices and high-quality products, severely crack down on the sale of counterfeit and substandard goods in accordance with the law, and strengthen oversight of defective product recalls. Deepen efforts to address layered pricing and complex operations in television broadcasting.

(23) Improve urban and rural consumption infrastructure. Deeply implement the county-level commercial development initiative and the “Thousand Markets and Ten Thousand Stores” renovation and upgrade program, and strengthen the construction of county-level logistics distribution centers and rural last-mile delivery facilities. Actively develop smart commercial districts and immersive experience spaces, and promote the transformation of traditional department stores and other brick-and-mortar retail outlets into new types of commercial venues. Increase support for supporting facilities in nighttime consumption clusters, including business operation spaces, public transportation capacity, and temporary parking spaces.

VII. Action to Clean Up and Optimize Restrictive Measures

(24) Orderly reduce restrictions on consumption. All regions and relevant departments should, based on actual conditions, promptly remove unreasonable restrictions on consumption and must avoid “one-size-fits-all” approaches and escalating restrictions at each level. Promote a shift in the management of consumption—such as for automobiles—from purchase-based to usage-based management, and provide phased guarantees to address the vehicle-purchasing needs of households that have long been unsuccessful in lottery draws. Guide localities to carry out traditional folk-custom consumption activities in an orderly manner. Ensure that all types of business entities can participate equally in government procurement by social groups, and prohibit the disguised imposition of procurement barriers such as requirements related to ownership structure or merchant ratings.

(25) Continuously optimize the business environment. Improve the negative list management model for market access, focusing particularly on sectors such as environmental protection, public health, security, quality inspection, and fire safety. Thoroughly identify and remove various barriers to market entry, thereby fostering a stable, fair, transparent, and predictable market environment. Encourage regions to streamline approval procedures for promotional activities, community markets, outdoor exhibitions, and signage installations, and implement an online “report-and-process-immediately” system. Enhance the efficiency of regulatory spot checks through inter-departmental collaboration, and refrain from unnecessary interference in places frequented by the general public.

8. Improve supporting policies

(26) Strengthen the coordinated and synergistic implementation of policies to boost consumption. Reform and improve the institutional mechanisms for promoting consumption, refine and effectively utilize the mechanism for assessing the consistency of macro-policy orientations, enhance coordination among fiscal and tax, financial, industrial, investment, and other policies with consumption policies, promote concerted efforts in the same direction, and build a policy system that is more conducive to boosting consumption.

(27) Strengthen the role of investment in supporting consumption. Better coordinate investment and consumption, expand effective investments in consumer infrastructure, consumer service enhancement projects, and new consumer business models and formats, and promote a virtuous cycle of improved investment efficiency and expanded, upgraded consumption. Central budgetary investments and other resources will be further leveraged to support project construction in areas such as education, healthcare, skills training, elderly care and childcare, culture, tourism, and sports, thereby addressing shortcomings in public services. Support will also be provided for eligible projects in consumption, cultural tourism, and other related sectors to issue real estate investment trusts (REITs) in the infrastructure sector.

(28) Leverage the guiding and driving role of fiscal policy. Employ policy instruments such as fiscal subsidies and interest rate subsidies on loans, focusing on key areas and adopting targeted measures. Integrate boosting consumption with improving people’s livelihoods and addressing development shortcomings, thereby expanding consumer demand, enhancing consumers’ purchasing power, and better harnessing consumption’s positive role in ensuring smooth circulation of the national economy and stimulating economic growth.

(29) Strengthen credit support. Financial institutions are encouraged to increase the issuance of personal consumer loans under the premise of controllable risks, and to set reasonable limits on loan amounts, terms, and interest rates. Financial institutions are also supported in optimizing repayment methods for personal consumer loans in accordance with market-oriented and rule-of-law principles, and in carrying out loan renewal procedures in an orderly manner. In 2025, eligible personal consumer loans and loans to service-sector businesses operating in the consumption sector will receive fiscal interest subsidies.

(30) Improve supporting measures for consumption. Encourage trade unions at all levels to allocate funds to areas such as holiday gifts, employee fitness, and cultural and sports activities. Intensify efforts to provide consumption assistance and strengthen precise matching between production and sales. Explore launching prize-winning invoice initiatives. Enhance statistical monitoring of service consumption and new consumption models and formats; strengthen the collection of online retail sales of physical goods by region based on buyer data; and refine the comprehensive consumption statistics system.

All regions and departments should place greater emphasis on boosting consumption, earnestly fulfill their respective responsibilities according to their division of duties, strengthen coordination and synergy, improve working mechanisms, explore practical measures tailored to local conditions, accelerate the formation of collaborative efforts, stabilize market expectations, and ensure that all policies and measures aimed at boosting consumption are implemented more quickly and effectively.