Does Governmental Policy Shape Migration Decisions? The Case of China’s Hukou System

Does governmental policy shape potential migrants’ destination choices? Chinese cities use the household registration (hukou) system to adjust the barriers to gaining local status and access to public services and social welfare benefits. We draw on a nationally representative survey of migrants and an original survey experiment to test the effect of hukou-related barriers and benefits on the relative appeal of different destination cities. We find that strict limits on acquiring local hukou status do not deter migrants. However, local hukou status is important because it confers access to public services and social welfare benefits. Cities where migrants can gain access to such services and benefits without changing their hukou status are more appealing. These findings demonstrate that hukou policy has real impacts on migration patterns and on access to public services and social welfare benefits for millions of Chinese.