Starting in September, Wang Ming’s 12-year-old son will need to go to school in a city 120km (75 miles) from his home in Beijing.
Originally from northeastern China, Wang and his wife have lived in Beijing for more than 20 years.
But even though they work for a bank and an insurance company, they have never been able to obtain a hukou – the household registration document that serves as proof of residency and grants access to public services such as healthcare and education.
The hukou system has been in place for almost 70 years, allowing the authorities to effectively control the population and allocate resources.
For most people, their hukou is tied to their birthplace and to change it to where they live or work, they must meet a strict set of criteria.
The Wangs’ case is typical of hundreds of thousands living and working in the capital without a hukou. Although their son was allowed to attend elementary and middle school in the capital, he will have to take the college entrance exam in Liaoning province, where they are registered.
