According to SCMP , Chongyi district in Jiangxi province (southern China) has introduced a policy to limit the amount of dowry each family must pay to 39,000 yuan (more than 133 million VND).
The policy also includes a program to support newlywed couples to get priority registration in local kindergartens and schools for their future children.
In addition, families will be entitled to a free one-time health check-up at a local hospital, free bus tickets for a year, and incentives when visiting local tourist attractions.
In addition, a series of discount programs for couples holding wedding parties, taking wedding photos, buying beds, etc. are also applied.
Certificates of merit will be awarded to the parents of the bride and groom to show that they have contributed to reforming bad marriage customs.
China has been trying to eliminate the custom of high dowry and lavish and expensive weddings for many years, especially in rural areas. (Photo: SCMP)
Men in China often have to pay the bride's family a dowry of 10,000 to 1 million yuan (about 3.5 billion VND).
Despite reform efforts by the Chinese central government in recent years, rising bride prices remain a concern, especially in rural areas where there are more single men than women.
In 2022, the government of Zhengning city in Gansu province (northwest China) also set the maximum limit for joke money at 80,000 yuan (about 274 million VND) for rural families and 60,000 yuan (more than 205 million VND) for civil servants.
The policy of controlling dowry money has caused heated debate on Chinese social media.
A news story on the issue attracted more than 134,000 comments on the social media platform.
“It's a very humane policy,” one netizen commented.
“I hope this policy will be applied nationwide,” another commented.
However, one father objected: “I cannot accept that. The living expenses I spend on my daughter in a year are more than 39,000 yuan.”
A mother agreed: “How can my daughter live well if her man cannot afford to pay the 100,000 yuan dowry?”
Stories about dowry are very common in China.
In June 2023, mainland social media was abuzz with a video of a man in eastern China proposing marriage in an armored vehicle carrying 9.98 million yuan (more than 34 billion VND) in cash and many gold bars as engagement gifts.
That same month, a man broke up with his girlfriend after her parents demanded a dowry of 380,000 yuan (VND1.3 billion).
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