Behind the Appeal of 20 Representatives and Committee Members: The Practical Path to Raising Farmers' Pensions

Reporter Tian Jin

During the 2026 Two Sessions, the increase in farmers’ pensions once again became a hot topic of public concern. According to incomplete statistics from the Economic Observer, at this year’s Two Sessions, a total of 16 National People’s Congress (NPC) deputies and 4 Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) members submitted suggestions or proposals calling for further increases in farmers’ pensions (see the lists at the end of Table 1 and Table 2).

Farmers’ pensions, namely the Basic Pension Insurance for Urban and Rural Residents (referred to as “farmers’ pensions”), primarily cover low-income elderly rural populations, which is why they are often called “farmers’ pensions.” Data from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security show that as of 2024, 540 million people participate in the farmers’ pension system, with 180 million actually receiving benefits.

Farmers’ pensions mainly consist of a basic pension and a personal account pension. The central government sets the minimum standard for the national basic pension, while local governments can adjust upward based on local fiscal capacity. The personal account pension mainly depends on individual contributions.

In recent years, the minimum standard for the national basic pension has continuously increased, from 55 yuan per month at the system’s inception to 143 yuan in 2025, with consecutive increases of 20 yuan/month in 2024 and 2025. According to the government work report, the increase for the basic pension in 2026 will remain at 20 yuan/month.

While the minimum standard for the national basic pension has risen, there are significant disparities in the additional basic pension provided by local governments, leading to an average farmers’ pension level of less than 300 yuan/month nationwide, with obvious inter-provincial gaps, reflecting “regional wealth disparities.”

For example, in 2025, the average basic pension in Beijing and Shanghai was 998 yuan/month and 1,555 yuan/month, respectively, while in many provinces like Yunnan, Liaoning, and Anhui, the basic pension remained below 200 yuan/month.

According to data from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the per capita pension for enterprise retirees nationwide in 2023 was 3,162 yuan/month, while the per capita farmers’ pension was only 214 yuan/month, a gap of 14.8 times.

Since 2022, more scholars have been calling for an increase in farmers’ pensions, especially with several economists joining the discussion. During recent Two Sessions, many NPC deputies and CPPCC members also made related appeals. By 2026, some researchers believe that society has reached a consensus on “making farmers’ pensions grow faster.”

The question is, how should this increase be achieved?

20 Deputies and Members Call for Action

Among the 16 NPC deputies advocating for higher farmers’ pensions, most are from central and western regions—excluding three from Jiangsu, the rest are from provinces like Henan, Shanxi, Liaoning, Hunan, and other major agricultural provinces.

In the review session of the Hubei delegation, NPC deputy and president of Jinghua Rice Planting Cooperative in Jianli City, Hubei Province, Bi Lixia, choked with emotion, said: “The older generation of farmers dedicated their lives to rural reform and development. Now they are old, unable to carry loads or lift things, and their monthly pension is only a little over 100 yuan, making life very difficult.”

Guo Qingli, a villager from Guodao Lingzhen, Yixian County, Liaoning, and NPC deputy, also told media that “some farmers over 70 really can’t do farm work anymore and need more support.”

Summarizing the suggestions from deputies and members, the core demands fall into two categories: one is to raise farmers’ pensions to about 500 yuan/month in the short term, focusing on the elderly; the other is to plan over the next five years to increase farmers’ pensions to 1,000 yuan/month, or to further increase the current 20 yuan/month growth rate (specific targets are not clearly defined).

To achieve these goals, farmers’ pensions would need to grow by an average of about 150 yuan/month annually over the next five years, up from the current 20 yuan/month in 2026.

This is not the first time representatives and members have called for a pension increase. In 2025, several deputies and members already proposed related suggestions. Over the past five years, consensus on raising farmers’ pensions has gradually formed through discussions, driven by considerations of fairness and the need to expand domestic demand and stimulate consumption.

In 2022, affected by the pandemic and other factors, China’s economy faced short-term demand contraction, supply shocks, and weakening expectations. Boosting consumption was seen as a key measure to stabilize growth.

How to stimulate domestic demand has become a core topic in macroeconomic discussions. Drawing on direct fiscal subsidies to residents in some countries, and considering China’s national conditions, some economists have begun to see increasing farmers’ pensions as an important lever—since farmers’ pension base is low, increasing it can significantly change marginal consumption propensity and better boost domestic demand.

Therefore, compared to social security researchers and “agriculture, rural areas, and farmers” (the “San Nong”) scholars, economists have been more proactive and earlier involved in promoting this round of consensus on increasing farmers’ pensions.

In 2024, driven by market demand, the minimum monthly standard for the national basic pension reached a new high since the system’s establishment. From 2009 to 2023, this standard increased from 55 yuan/month to 103 yuan/month, a total increase of only 48 yuan, with annual increases of just 5 yuan in 2022 and 2023. In contrast, the 2024 increase surged to 20 yuan, and in 2025 and 2026, the increase will remain at 20 yuan/month for two consecutive years.

However, this record-high increase still seems insufficient to “quench the thirst.”

On September 21, 2024, three days before the release of the “924” policy package, Liu Shijin, former deputy director of the Development Research Center of the State Council, suggested at the China Macroeconomic Forum (CMF) quarterly forum (Q3 2024) at Renmin University of China that funds could be raised mainly through issuing ultra-long-term government bonds, forming an economic stimulus scale of no less than 10 trillion yuan within one to two years. Regarding expenditure focus, he proposed differentiating from the previous “4 trillion” stimulus, emphasizing addressing shortcomings in basic public services, shifting investment from material capital to human capital, with development-oriented consumption being a key part of human capital investment.

At the 2025 China Development Forum, Liu Shijin again recommended increasing farmers’ pensions. He pointed out that currently, urban civil service retirees receive about 6,000 yuan/month, urban retirees about 3,000 yuan/month, while 95% of urban and rural residents participating in the rural residents’ pension insurance are rural residents, with pensions only around 220 yuan/month—10 to 15 times lower than the former two. This indicates that despite recent efforts in basic public services, issues remain in pension security: low levels and significant urban-rural gaps.

From the China Development Forum 2025 to the Boao Asia Forum 2025, experts including Guo Shuqing, former chairman of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, and Li Shi, director of the Sharing and Development Research Institute at Zhejiang University, have publicly called for faster increases in farmers’ pensions, with expected levels ranging from 400 to 1,000 yuan/month.

In 2025, a broad discussion on the low historical origins, adjustment pathways, and impacts of farmers’ pensions took place, clarifying some contentious issues. For example, some researchers believe that the higher pensions for urban employees are because they previously paid personal contributions or enjoyed “deemed contribution years,” while high-age farmers did not have personal contributions, leading to their lower pensions. Multiple scholars have argued from different perspectives that, although many farmers did not directly contribute to personal accounts, this is due to historical reasons, and their significant roles in agriculture and urbanization should not be ignored.

Taking agricultural tax as an example, the 1958 “Regulations on Agricultural Tax” stipulated a differentiated regional tax rate, with an average national rate of 15.5% of annual output, not exceeding 25%. Subsequently, rural households entered the “grain quota” era. The Agricultural Tax was officially abolished on January 1, 2006. According to data released by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission in 2019, from 1949 to 2005, the total agricultural tax collected nationwide was about 420 billion yuan; from 1990 to 2000, the burden increased from 46.9 billion to 135.9 billion yuan, tripling per capita.

Nomura’s chief economist in China, Lu Ting, stated that Chinese migrant workers historically contributed significantly to industrialization through the “scissors difference” (the gap between urban and rural incomes). During reform and opening-up, several generations of migrant workers dedicated their youth to urban construction. Increasing their basic pensions to allow them to enjoy the fruits of national development in old age is a natural and fair step.

Whose pensions should be increased?

“Significantly increasing farmers’ pensions” is a broad vision, but different perspectives point to different specific goals. Based on calls from multiple researchers and this year’s Two Sessions representatives and members, the core focus of a larger increase is on elderly rural residents. This goal has clear institutional roots.

Since 2009, the farmers’ pension system for rural residents has been piloted (in 2011, a pilot for urban residents’ farmers’ pensions; in 2014, the two systems merged into the current “Urban and Rural Residents’ Pension”). The “top-up” rules at that time laid the groundwork for the current low pensions for high-age rural seniors.

According to the rules, farmers’ pensions consist of “basic pension + personal account pension,” with the basic pension funded by government subsidies, and regional fiscal differences directly affecting pension levels; the personal account depends on prior individual contributions, following the “more paid, more received” principle.

Under the 2009 system design, rural residents aged 60 and above before 2009 could receive the basic pension without paying or making up contributions. For example, current rural seniors aged 76 and above, who have no personal contribution record, rely solely on government subsidies and can only receive the basic pension.

This design has created significant group disparities. The vast majority of rural residents aged 76 and above in central and western regions, such as Yunnan, Liaoning, and Anhui, have basic pensions below 200 yuan/month.

Therefore, this group has become a key target for calls to “larger increases” in farmers’ pensions. Several researchers have proposed age-based “gradient increases.”

During this year’s Two Sessions, Zheng Gongcheng, member of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress and president of the China Social Security Association, mentioned in media interviews that research shows the older the farmer, the lower their pension, because they lack personal contribution-based pensions and only receive government-funded basic pensions. He suggested using 70 years old as a benchmark, and on top of general increases in basic pensions, providing additional “historical contribution pensions,” with larger increases for those over 80.

Throughout this year’s Two Sessions, raising farmers’ pensions to compensate for “old debts” owed to high-age farmers was widely discussed. NPC deputy and chairman of Yanjin Puzhi Food Co., Ltd., Zhang Xuewu, stated that since the founding of New China, farmers have made indelible contributions through grain quotas and labor, laying the foundation for national industrialization.

NPC deputy and secretary of the Goudong Party Branch in Sanluli Village, Yanhukou Town, Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province, Lei Maoduan, said that farmers back then would rather go hungry themselves than give away their best grain to the state, volunteering to build railways and reservoirs, and have made great contributions to national development. They should be guaranteed in old age.

For this group, since they did not make personal contributions, increasing their pensions can only rely entirely on fiscal support. Considering local fiscal pressure, the funds for this increase will likely need more support from the central government.

Zhang Lin, deputy director of Far East Credit Research Institute, stated that according to international experience, social security expenditures for basic pensions and healthcare are generally borne by the central government, while education costs are mainly covered by local governments. Given China’s fiscal relations and the trend of increased central government expenditure, it is more reasonable for the central government to bear the costs of substantial increases in farmers’ pensions.

In terms of fiscal subsidies, in 2024, farmers’ pensions received 424.951 billion yuan in government support, significantly less than the 643.919 billion yuan for civil servant and public institution pensions and 806.67 billion yuan for enterprise employee pensions. Considering that the number of participants in the farmers’ pension system exceeds that of the other two, the per capita monthly subsidy gap is even more pronounced (see Table 3).

Zheng Gongcheng further estimated that, based on the Seventh Census data, by 2025, there will be about 20 million rural seniors aged 80 and above. If a special subsidy of 500 yuan/month is provided to each of this group, the annual total would be about 600 billion yuan, only 0.086% of China’s GDP in 2025.

Returning to Systemic Construction

As of 2024, 540 million people participate in the urban and rural residents’ pension scheme, with 180 million actually receiving benefits. With population aging accelerating, this large group will continue to expand.

This means that relying solely on fiscal subsidies for continuous large increases in pensions is not sustainable in the long run. The key to the system’s sustainable development still lies in improving and perfecting the social security system itself.

Zheng Gongcheng stated in an interview that “it is not advisable to universally increase farmers’ pensions by 500 or 1,000 yuan at once. The pension system has significant rigidity; it needs rational establishment and development. While raising residents’ pensions broadly is necessary, large-scale increases across the board are unrealistic, inconsistent with system laws, and not conducive to long-term stability.”

According to the system design, rural residents who only turn 60 after 2009 need to pay into the farmers’ pension annually before retirement and are allowed to make up contributions. To increase pensions for those not yet retired, besides increasing fiscal subsidies, the key is to activate the “more paid, more received” mechanism.

From late 2025 to early 2026, several regions including Yunnan, Anhui, Guizhou, and Liaoning announced plans to raise the maximum contribution levels for farmers’ pensions, signaling a coordinated adjustment after years. Based on estimates from the Economic Observer, if individuals contribute at the maximum for 15 years (or make a lump-sum contribution for 15 years), farmers in Beijing and Shanghai could receive monthly pensions of about 1,985 yuan and 2,422 yuan, respectively, while in Yunnan and Anhui, pensions could also surpass 1,000 yuan/month.

Associate Professor Qiao Qingmei of the School of Labor and Human Resources at Renmin University of China said that increasing the contribution cap is closely related to policy goals of raising average farmers’ pensions. To narrow the gap between farmers’ pensions and urban enterprise retirees, efforts should focus on improving the personal account contribution mechanism.

When many regions raised the contribution cap, they explicitly stated that the goal was to improve the average level of farmers’ pensions. For example, on December 31, 2025, the Anhui Provincial Human Resources and Social Security Department issued a notice on increasing the maximum contribution level for urban and rural residents’ basic pension insurance, citing the need to adapt to the continuous growth of income in Anhui, expand participants’ choice, and encourage voluntary and long-term contributions to increase future pensions.

Wuhan University professor of social security, Xiang Yunhua, said that through the “more paid, more received” mechanism, higher contribution levels can improve future pension benefits, enhance elderly economic security, reduce the gap between farmers’ pensions and employee pensions, and promote fairness.

However, despite the continuous increase in contribution caps, most participants still prefer lower contribution levels in practice.

In November 2024, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress issued a report on the implementation of the Social Insurance Law, revealing that in rural areas, about 80% of villagers choose the lowest contribution tier, mainly because paying at the maximum level requires sacrificing current income. For example, in Yunnan, paying at the latest cap would cost about 833 yuan/month per person.

Xiang Yunhua emphasized that to encourage more residents to choose higher contribution levels, the key is to improve their economic capacity and increase government subsidies for high-tier contributions. Currently, most choose low tiers mainly due to affordability and meeting minimum participation requirements to enjoy basic pensions.

Zheng Binwen, director of the World Social Security Research Center at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, previously stated that from a sustainable development perspective, a country’s social security system must have stable funding sources. Since farmers’ pensions rely heavily on transfers from various levels of government, the increase in benefits should follow the principle of “doing our best and acting within our means.” Raising benefits beyond fiscal capacity is unsustainable, as the “fixed” nature of state pensions cannot be maintained without other funding sources.