Shanghai releases formal qualifications for earning a hukou

You know that whole initiative to get more "qualified experts" to actually receive a coveted Shanghai hukou? Well, now the city government has finally released details of its three-year trial plan, according to Shanghai Daily:

The first batch of applicants who meet the requirements only amount to about 3,000 as they must have held a Shanghai Residence Card for at least seven years, said Ye Minzhong, deputy director of the Shanghai Development and Reform Commission. The Shanghai Residence Card is a temporary permit that was launched in 2002.

Officials said there will be no quota on the number of permanent residence permits granted during the three-year test run although that could change once the trial ends.

"We will grant it (the permanent residence) to whoever meets the requirements in the trial period," said an official in the Shanghai Human Resources and Social Security Bureau who asked not to be named.

The other qualifications are pretty much the same as the ones we reported earlier. Besides being a part of the social security system for seven years, applicants must also have paid taxes, obtained a vocational qualification of medium or high, be clear of violations of family planning policies, and have clean credit and no criminal record.

Since the release of the formal qualifications late Wednesday, there have already been voices of dissent. Migrant workers have argued that they are being discriminated against by the new regulations, China Daily said.

A netizen from Guangdong province said the drafters of rules were narrow-minded.

"It discriminates against poor people from other provinces," the netizen wrote. "What about the six million migrant workers in Shanghai, who have contributed to the city's fast development?"

A good chunk of Shanghainese people were similarly displeased, if for different reasons:

In an online poll garnering opinions from among more than 1.6 million netizens on web portal eastday.com, more than 88 percent disagreed with the rules, saying Shanghai could not afford a bigger population...

A Shanghai netizen complained that "eight out of 10 Shanghai residents around me are out of a job and others earn 1,000 yuan ($146) a month".

"Why are only people from other provinces considered talents?"