Regulations of Shanghai Municipality on Ensuring the Rights and Interests of Older Persons

(Adopted at the 4th Session of the 14th Shanghai Municipal People's Congress on January 29, 2016; amended in accordance with the Decision on Amending the Regulations of Shanghai Municipality on Ensuring the Rights and Interests of Older Persons adopted at the 24th Session of the Standing Committee of the 16th Shanghai Municipal People's Congress on September 25, 2025)

Table of Contents

Chapter I  General Provisions

Chapter II  Family Support and Care

Chapter III  Social Security

Chapter IV  Social Services

Chapter V  Preferential Treatment

Chapter VI  Fostering Age-Friendly Living Environment

Chapter VII  Participation in Social Development

Chapter VIII  Legal Liability

Chapter IX  Supplementary Provision

Chapter I  General Provisions

Article 1

With a view to ensuring the lawful rights and interests of older persons, promoting the development of social programs for older persons, responding to population ageing, and carrying forward the Chinese nation's virtues of respecting, supporting, and assisting older persons, these Regulations are formulated in accordance with the Law of the People's Republic of China on Ensuring the Rights and Interests of Older Persons and other relevant laws and administrative regulations, and in light of the actual circumstances of this Municipality.

Article 2

These Regulations shall apply to ensuring the rights and interests of older persons and related work within the administrative area of this Municipality.

Article 3

This Municipality shall, in accordance with law, ensure the rights and interests of older persons, including their right to personal and property interests, their right to obtain material assistance from the State and society, their right to enjoy social services and preferential treatment, and their right to participate in social development and share in the gains of development.

Older persons shall abide by law and perform obligations prescribed by law.

Article 4

All in the society shall value and respect the knowledge, skills, experience, and exemplary moral conduct of older persons, give full play to their expertise and roles, and ensure their participation in economic, political, cultural, and social activities.

Article 5

This Municipality shall implement the national strategy for responding to population ageing, apply the vision of active ageing and healthy ageing to the entire process of economic and social development, establish and improve institutional mechanisms for ensuring the rights and interests of older persons, and steadily improve conditions for ensuring the living standards, health, safety, and participation in social development of older persons. Their intellectual and cultural needs shall be met, and they shall be supported, have access to medical care, be able to contribute to society, have access to learning, and enjoy fulfilling lives.

Article 6

People's governments at various levels shall incorporate the development of social programs for older persons into their plans for economic and social development, include funding necessary for such social programs in fiscal budgets, establish stable funding mechanisms commensurate with the level of economic and social development and the degree of population ageing, and encourage input from all actors in the society, so as to ensure the coordinated development of both social programs for older persons and overall economic and social development.

The municipal and district people's governments shall, in accordance with the national guideline for the development of social programs for older persons, formulate guidelines and annual plans for the development of social programs for older persons within their respective administrative areas, and include work relating to older persons into the performance assessment mechanisms of government departments.

Town/township people's governments and sub-district offices shall designate personnel to be responsible for ensuring the rights and interests of older persons within their respective administrative areas and provide funding and working conditions necessary for carrying out this work.

Article 7

The municipal and district working committees on ageing shall be responsible for organizing, coordinating, guiding, and supervising the relevant government departments in carrying out the work of ensuring the rights and interests of older persons within their respective administrative areas.

The offices of the municipal and district working committees on ageing shall be established in the civil affairs government departments at the same levels, and be staffed with necessary personnel and provided with funding necessary for their work; these offices shall conduct related day-to-day work.

Article 8

Government departments including those for civil affairs, development and reform, finance, human resources and social security, health, medical security, planning and natural resources, housing and urban-rural development administration, housing administration, economy and informatization, transport, commerce, landscaping & city appearance, public security, judicial administration, education, culture and tourism, radio and television, film, press and publication, sports, science and technology, agriculture and rural affairs, data administration, financial regulation, and market regulation shall fulfill their respective responsibilities and work jointly to ensure the rights and interests of older persons.

Article 9

Care for older persons shall primarily be home based. Family members shall respect, be caring towards and look after older persons.

The children of older persons and other persons who are legally obligated to provide support (hereinafter referred to as "support obligors") and persons obligated to provide care to older persons shall perform their obligations of support and care in accordance with law.

Article 10

Ensuring the lawful rights and interests of older persons is the responsibility of the whole of society, and everyone in the society is encouraged to give preferential treatment to older persons. Discrimination against, insult of, abuse of, or abandonment of older persons is prohibited.

Trade unions, the Communist Youth League, and women's federations shall assist and support people's governments at various levels in carrying out the work of ensuring the rights and interests of older persons.

Enterprises, public institutions, and social organizations shall, in accordance with law, perform their due obligations in ensuring the rights and interests of older persons.

Neighborhood committees, villagers' committees, and lawfully established organizations of older persons shall convey the needs of older persons, safeguard their lawful rights and interests, and organize activities to provide services for them.

This Municipality encourages the development of charity for older persons and voluntary services for older persons.

Article 11

This Municipality shall heighten public awareness of the national and local conditions of population ageing, carry out extensive public activities on the need to respect, support, and assist older persons, promote exemplary conduct of filial piety and respect for older persons, enhance society-wide awareness of the need to respond to population ageing, and encourage everyone in the society to actively carry out activities of respecting and assisting older persons.

Youth organizations, schools, and kindergartens shall raise moral awareness of young people and children of the need to respect, support, and assist older persons as well as their legal awareness of the need to safeguard the lawful rights and interests of older persons.

Radio, film, television, newspapers and periodicals and online media shall cover activities of safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of older persons and promote the traditional virtues of respecting, supporting, and assisting older persons.

The month in which the Senior Citizens' Day falls each year shall be designated as the Municipality's Month of Respect for Older Persons.

Article 12

This Municipality shall support strategic research on responding to population ageing and research in gerontological sciences and support research in geriatric medicine.

This Municipality shall conduct annual monitoring, statistical reporting, and information release regarding the status of the older population and the development of social programs for older persons.

Chapter II  Family Support and Maintenance

Article 13

Support obligors shall perform their obligations to provide economic support, daily care, and emotional comfort to older persons, meet their basic living needs, and attend to their special needs.

The spouses of support obligors shall assist them in performing their support obligations.

Support obligors shall not refuse to perform their support obligations on grounds such as waiving inheritance rights, or divorce or remarriage of the older person.

Support obligors shall not require older persons to engage in labor beyond their capacity.

Where a support obligor fails to perform the obligation of support, the older person concerned may, in accordance with law, demand that the support obligor make payment for support.

Article 14

With the consent of the older person concerned, the support obligors may enter into an agreement among them regarding the performance of their support obligations. The contents of such a support agreement shall not violate the law or the wish of the older person concerned.

Article 15

Support obligors shall ensure that older persons who are ill receive timely medical treatment and nursing care. Where an older person is in financial difficulty, his/her support obligors shall pay for medical expenses.

For older persons who are unable to care for themselves, their support obligors shall assume responsibility for their care. Where support obligors are unable to provide such care in person, they may, in accordance with the wish of the older person, entrust others or elderly care institutions to provide care.

Article 16

Family members of older persons shall attend to the need for love of older persons, provide loving care, and foster a harmonious and caring family environment. They shall not neglect or alienate older persons.

Family members who do not live together with older persons shall regularly visit and send regards to them.

Family members shall make regular visits to older persons staying in elderly care institutions. Where family members have failed to visit an older person for an extended period, the elderly care institution concerned may remind and urge them to make such visits.

Article 17

The freedom of marriage of older persons is protected by law. Children or other relatives of an older person shall not interfere with his/her divorce, remarriage, or post-marital life.

Support obligors shall not, on the grounds of an older person's divorce or remarriage, demand, conceal, or withhold the older person's lawful property or relevant certificates, nor shall they restrict the older person's lawful right of residence.

Article 18

Older persons shall, in accordance with law, enjoy the right to possess, use, derive proceed from, and dispose of their personal property, inherit property and accept gift. Children or other relatives of older persons shall not interfere with or infringe upon their property rights and interests.

Where adult children or other relatives of an older person who are capable of living independently request financial support from the latter, the older person concerned has the right to refuse such request. Adult children or other relatives shall not, on the grounds of unemployment or for any other reason, forcibly demand or withhold a part of the property or assets of the older person concerned.

Where an older person lawfully makes a will to dispose of his/her personal property or enters into a bequest and support agreement with another person, such acts are protected by law; their children or other relatives shall not interfere in such acts.

Article 19

Support obligors shall make appropriate housing arrangements for older persons and shall not compel older persons to reside in, or relocate to housing units with substandard conditions. Support obligors shall bear maintenance and repair obligation for housing units owned by older persons.

Housing units owned or leased by older persons shall not be encroached upon by their children or other relatives; their children or other relatives shall not alter the ownership or leasehold relationship of such housing units without authorization.

With respect to housing units purchased jointly by older persons and their children or other relatives, such older persons shall, in accordance with law, enjoy the corresponding ownership right to such housing units as well as the right of residence therein. Where children or other relatives of an older person purchase the only housing unit previously leased by an older person or in which the older person concerned lived, they shall ensure the older person's continued right of residence in such a housing unit.

Where children or other relatives of an older person, with his/her consent, borrow the older person's housing unit, they shall return it in a timely manner upon the expiration of the agreed period without undue delay.

Where adult children or other relatives of an older person reside in a housing unit owned by such a person and the older person concerned does not consent to their continued residence there, they shall vacate the premises in a timely manner.

Where a housing unit in which an older person holds an ownership right is expropriated, the rights and interests of the older person concerned shall be safeguarded in accordance with law.

Article 20

An older person with full capacity for civil conduct may, through prior consultation with his/her close relatives or other individuals or organizations that are willing to act as guardians, designate his/her guardian by entering into a voluntary guardianship agreement, under which the designated guardian shall perform guardianship duties when the older person concerned loses or partially loses capacity for civil conduct. It is encouraged to include a supervisor in a voluntary guardianship agreement to oversee the performance of guardianship duties by the guardian. The municipal government civil affairs department, in conjunction with relevant business associations, shall formulate standard texts for voluntary guardianship agreement.

When entering into a voluntary guardianship agreement, an older person may apply for notarization, or may ask a neighborhood committee, a villagers' committee, an organization of older persons, an elderly care service provider, or other similar entities to witness the signing of such agreement. The government civil affairs department shall formulate guidelines for witnessing activities and provide guidance and training to relevant organizations conducting such activities.

Where an older person has not designated a guardian in advance and subsequently loses or partially loses capacity for civil conduct, his/her guardian shall be determined in accordance with the relevant laws.

Article 21

This Municipality supports professional social organizations in serving, in accordance with law, as guardians for older persons in need or in providing related services such as guardianship supervision. Professional social organizations shall submit general service information to the government civil affairs departments, which shall strengthen supervision and regulation. Older persons and their designated guardians are encouraged to provide the government civil affairs departments or neighborhood committees or villagers' committees with information concerning their voluntary guardianship agreements. The government civil affairs departments may explore, in accordance with law, the provision of agreement-based information inquiry services to individuals or organizations concerned.

Where the government civil affairs departments, neighborhood committees, villagers' committees, organizations of older persons, elderly care service providers, or other similar entities find that a guardian designated by an older person fails to perform in accordance with law guardianship duties or infringes upon the lawful rights and interests of the older person concerned, they shall discourage or stop such conduct; in serious cases, they shall promptly report the matter to public security organs or other relevant government departments.

Where statutory provisions for revoking a guardian's qualification are met, the relevant individual or organization shall, in accordance with law, apply to the people's court for revoking the guardian's qualification.

Article 22

Older persons and their spouses bear obligations of mutual maintenance.

When younger siblings who have been supported by their elder brothers or sisters reach adulthood and have the capacity to do so, they shall bear the obligation of care for their elder brothers or sisters who are advanced in age and lack the capacity to work and income.

Article 23

This Municipality promotes the traditional virtues of filial piety and respect for older persons. It shall formulate and improve policies supporting family-based care for older persons, provide assistance to family members in caring for older persons, and encourage family members to live together with older persons of their families or to live in close proximity to them.

Article 24

Employers shall, in accordance with relevant State provisions, ensure the right of support obligors to home-leave or family-visit leave.

Where an older person who is ill needs care or nursing by a support obligor, the employer of the relevant support obligor is encouraged to provide support by adjusting the concerned obligor's work arrangements or through other appropriate measures.

During the period in which an older person is hospitalized for medical treatment due to illness, his/her support obligor is entitled to caregiver leave of no more than five working days in total per year. Where the support obligor is the only child born during the period in which the State advocated one child for a married couple, the support obligor concerned is entitled to caregiver leave of no more than seven working days in total per year. During the caregiver leave, salary for normal work attendance shall be paid to the support obligor concerned.

Article 25

Where support obligors or care obligors fail to perform their obligations of support or care, community-level people's self-governing organizations, organizations of older persons, or the employers of such support obligors or care obligors shall urge them to fulfill their obligations.

Chapter III  Social Security

Article 26

This Municipality shall, through systems including the basic pension insurance for employees and the basic pension insurance for urban and rural residents, meet the basic living needs of older persons in accordance with law.

This Municipality shall establish a regular adjustment mechanism for basic pensions. Benefits provided by basic pension insurance shall be increased as called for in accordance with relevant State provisions and in light of factors such as this Municipality's economic development, growth in average employee wages, and price increases.

Article 27

This Municipality shall, through systems such as the basic medical insurance for employees and the basic medical insurance for urban and rural residents, meet the basic medical needs of older persons in accordance with law.

The government medical security and health departments shall, in accordance with the relevant State and municipal provisions, progressively expand the scope of commonly used medicines for older persons and medical rehabilitation items covered by basic medical insurance, so as to reduce the burden of medical treatment and rehabilitation on older persons. Community-based medication policies shall be improved, and mechanisms such as writing long-term prescriptions for patients with chronic diseases shall be established, in order to meet the basic medication needs of older persons with common and chronic illnesses.

Article 28

The government departments including those for development and reform, medical security, health, civil affairs, human resources and social security, finance, and financial regulation shall improve practices for the financing, assessment, payment, service provision, supervision and other related practices of long-term care, adopt a long-term care insurance system, and meet the long-term care and nursing needs of older persons.

Article 29

This Municipality shall establish a unified comprehensive allowance system for older persons commensurate with the level of its economic and social development. Allowances shall be provided to eligible older persons, differentiated by age group, to meet needs such as advanced-age nutrition and transportation; the standard of social welfare for older persons shall be progressively improved.

Article 30

The government civil affairs departments shall provide living assistance to older persons who are members of families receiving minimum living allowances.

The government civil affairs departments shall provide subsistence support for persons in extreme difficulty to older persons who lack the capacity to work, have no income, and have no statutory support obligors or care obligors, or whose statutory support obligors or or obligors lack the capacity to provide support or care to them.

This Municipality shall continuously improve social assistance systems such as those for temporary assistance and comprehensive support, and shall provide living assistance to families of older persons who have encountered disasters, contracted illness, or met other special difficulties.

Article 31

Medical assistance shall be provided to older persons in the following categories in accordance with relevant State and municipal provisions, so as to ensure that they have access to basic medical and health services:

1. persons in extreme difficulty;

2. members of households receiving minimum living allowances;

3. members of households on the margin of eligibility for minimum living allowances;

4. members of households facing difficulties due to obligatory expenditures; and

5. other persons in special difficulty such as recipients of regular and fixed-sum subsidies provided by the government civil affairs departments as specified by the State and this Municipality.

Article 32

The government housing administration departments shall, in a timely manner, allocate or sell low-rent housing units or shared-ownership subsidized housing units to eligible families consisting of older persons and provide assistance to them such as housing unit selection and allocation. Priority shall be given to eligible families of older persons without children in the allocation of low-rent housing units.

District and town/township people's governments shall give priority to assisting eligible households consisting of older persons in the course of renovating old and dilapidated rural houses.

Article 33

The government departments including those for health, medical security, civil affairs, finance, human resources and social security, and housing administration shall, in accordance with relevant State and municipal provisions, provide special assistance such as basic living support, elderly care services, medical services, housing security, caring support and similar support to eligible older persons whose only child has been disabled or has deceased and who have not given birth to or adopted another child.

Chapter IV  Social Services

Article 34

This Municipality shall improve a tiered and categorized elderly care service system that is universally accessible, covers both urban and rural areas, and is sustainable in development. It shall strengthen the promotion of health among older persons, enhance the quality of elderly care services, and promote coordinated development of social programs for older persons and the elderly care sector.

Article 35

This Municipality shall strengthen the provision of basic elderly care services. The Municipal People's Government shall adopt a list of basic elderly care services and adjust it as called for.

The municipal government departments including those for development and reform, civil affairs, finance, planning and natural resources, and housing and urban-rural development shall establish mechanisms to promote the development of universally accessible elderly care services, foster and develop institutions which provide universally accessible elderly care service, support coordinated utilization of unused and existing assets, improve pricing mechanisms for universally accessible elderly care services, and improve comprehensive regulation and services.

This Municipality shall support market entities of various types in providing market-oriented elderly care services and promote scaled and clustered development of brand elderly care services to meet the diverse needs of older persons.

Article 36

To meet the needs of older persons, this Municipality shall improve the system of providing elderly care services that is primarily home-based, supported by community-based services, underpinned by professional institutional care, and consisting of both medical and nursing care, and promote integrated and coordinated development of elderly care services.

The government civil affairs departments shall encourage elderly care providers to improve services, with a focus on providing nursing-care beds, improving the layout of living spaces, enhancing support services for older persons with cognitive impairments and providing standardized elderly care services.

Town/township people's governments and sub-district offices shall, using facilities such as comprehensive service centers for older persons and neighborhood-based elderly care service stations, develop embedded community-based elderly care services, including meal assistance for older persons, daytime care, professional care, and rehabilitation and nursing services.

The government civil affairs departments shall support elderly care service providers and other entities in providing door-to-door services to older persons living at home, including in-home bed care as well as services including bathing assistance, accompaniment to medical appointments, mobility assistance, emergency rescue, and visit and caring.

The government civil affairs, health, and medical security departments shall promote the improvement of collaborative mechanisms between elderly care service providers and medical and health institutions, including two-way referral and coordinated allocation and transfer of beds, and shall strengthen service models of integrated care.

Article 37

The Municipal People's Government, relevant district people's governments, and town/township people's governments shall promote the development of elderly care social programs in rural areas, ensure balanced layout of rural elderly care service facilities, develop new elderly care service models suited to rural conditions, boost elderly mutual assistance-based care services, and make rural elderly care services more accessible.

Article 38

Town/township people's governments, sub-district offices, and government civil affairs departments shall take appropriate incentive measures to support young-old community volunteers in carrying out paired caring activities with older persons advanced in age.

Volunteer services such as regular check-in visit and home safety inspection for older persons advanced in age and older persons without children are encouraged.

Social work organizations and social workers are encouraged to provide specialized social services to older persons with their professional social work expertise, methods, and skills to meet the needs of older persons.

Article 39

The municipal and district people's governments as well as the relevant government departments shall take steps to develop businesses related to the silver economy, including elderly care and nursing, rehabilitation assistive devices, age-friendly living environments, cultural and recreational activities for older persons, barrier-free mobility, smart elderly care, elderly care finance, and health services for older persons, and they shall actively cultivate the silver consumption market. Business entities are encouraged to provide products and services suitable to the health conditions of older persons; they shall not impose unreasonable age restrictions.

The government departments including those for market regulation, civil affairs, commerce, culture and tourism, and health shall, in accordance with law, strengthen supervision and regulation, foster a safe, convenient, and credible consumption environment for older persons, promptly handle reports and complaints concerning infringement of older persons' consumer rights and interests, and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of older persons.

Article 40

This Municipality encourages the development of innovation in elderly care technologies. The municipal government departments including those for science and technology and civil affairs shall promote research and development of elderly care technology products and services, and promote integrated application of intelligent devices, such as mobile terminals, wearable devices, and service robots, in elderly care scenarios.

Article 41

This Municipality shall develop elderly care finance, support financial institutions in developing financial products that meet the diverse elderly care needs of older persons, and enhance older persons' convenient, appropriate and safe access to financial services.

The government departments including those for finance, public security, civil affairs, and education, together with the people's courts and people's procuratorates, shall, in accordance with their respective responsibilities, take multiple measures to enable older persons to acquire basic financial knowledge and raise their anti-fraud awareness, enhance monitoring and early warning of illegal fund-raising, fraud, and other illegal activities; they shall take law-based action against illegal financial activities that infringe upon the lawful rights and interests of older persons.

Chapter V  Preferential Treatment

Article 42

The municipal and district people's governments shall, in light of economic and social development conditions in their areas and in response to the special needs of older persons, continuously improve preferential treatment policies and progressively raise the standard of such preferential treatment.

Article 43

People's governments at various levels and relevant government departments shall improve service procedures, both online and offline, and provide services such as consultation and guidance, operational assistance, and priority handling for older persons when processing related matters for such persons. They shall promote convenient service practices such as granting benefits without application and agency or assisted handling services.

When handling major matters involving the rights and interests of older persons, such as the transfer, mortgage, or alteration of ownership of housing units owned or leased by older persons, or changes of household head or household registration relocation, real property registration offices or public security organs shall verify the true expression of intent of older persons concerned. Where housing ownership or lease relationships are altered, or changes to household headship or household registration are made without verification, and the complaint filed by the older person concerned is found to be true upon investigation, the real property registration office or public security organ shall promptly correct the matter in accordance with law.

When issuing resident identity cards for older persons, public security organs shall provide convenient services such as on-site fingerprint collection, photography, and delivery of identity cards, for older persons with limited mobility.

Article 44

Medical institutions shall take steps to provide convenient and priority services to older persons seeking medical treatment such as improving appointment making and treatment practices, opening special service windows or fast-track channels and providing patient guidance service.

Medical institutions are encouraged to reduce or waive general outpatient appointment fees for older persons and treatment fees for older persons in financial difficulty.

Medical institutions and medical workers are encouraged to provide free medical consultation services for older persons.

Article 45

Public transport operators shall provide convenient services for older persons using public transportation, set up priority signs for older persons at public transport venues and stations, designate waiting areas for older persons where conditions permit, and provide assistance to older persons who are unaccompanied or have limited mobility. Barrier-free public transport vehicles that are convenient to older persons should be put into service to meet their needs.

Article 46

Operators providing services that include water supply, electricity, gas, telecommunications and postal services shall offer priority and convenient services to older persons and display clear preferential treatment signs or markings at service outlets or premises.

Financial institutions shall provide convenience to older clients by setting up priority service counters for older persons and providing guidance service. When older persons conduct transactions such as fund transfers or remittance, or purchase financial products, financial institutions shall give them advice about risks.

Commercial banks shall, in accordance with relevant State provisions, reduce or waive fees for non-local cash withdrawal of pension.

Article 47

Ticket prices for parks, tourist attractions, and other sightseeing spots with government set prices or government guided prices shall offer preferential treatment to older persons; sightseeing spots with market-based prices are encouraged to adopt the same practice.

Public cultural and sports facilities such as museums, art galleries, science and technology museums, memorial halls, libraries, cultural centers, public art centers, cinemas and theaters, and sports venues shall be open to older persons free of charge or with preferential fees and provide convenient services to them.

Public sports venues shall be equipped with facilities suitable for physical fitness activities by older persons, strengthen guidance for fitness exercises, set up safety signs, and adopt corresponding safety protection measures. Where fees are charged for fitness activities, preferential fees shall apply to older persons.

Article 48

Where an older person who files legal proceedings due to infringement of his/her lawful rights and interests does have difficulty paying litigation fees, such fees may be deferred, reduced, or waived in accordance with law.

People's courts shall provide facilitation and priority services to older persons at stages including case filing, trial, and enforcement. For older persons with limited mobility such as those advanced in age or with disabilities, case filing at their homes may be conducted.

Older persons may, in accordance with law, obtain legal aid. Judicial administrative departments shall improve the legal aid service network for older persons, simplify application procedures, and provide closer access to application for and receipt of legal aid.

Legal service offices including law firms, notarial offices, forensic appraisal centers, and community legal service offices are encouraged to provide free services or services with discounted fees to older persons in financial difficulty.

Chapter VI  Fostering Age-Friendly Living Environment

Article 49

In urban planning, construction, and management, this Municipality shall meet the needs of an ageing society and provide a safe, convenient, and comfortable environment for older persons. It shall formulate standards on age-friendly communities to promote the development of livable communities.

Article 50

Engineering standards for barrier-free facilities shall be complied with for the construction, upgrading and expansion of roads, public buildings, public transportation facilities, residential buildings, and residential areas.

People's governments and government departments responsible for housing and urban-rural development administration at various levels shall, in accordance with national engineering standards for barrier-free facilities, give priority to upgrading public service facilities used by older persons in their daily lives.

The owners or managers of barrier-free facilities are responsible for their maintenance and shall ensure they are operational.

Article 51

Residential buildings designed for older persons such as apartments for seniors shall comply with design standards for residential buildings for older persons and meet the basic requirements of safety, hygiene, convenience, and comfort for older persons in living.

This Municipality supports its residents in carrying out age-friendly retrofitting of existing residential buildings to facilitate the life and mobility of older persons.

This Municipality shall promote age-friendly modifications to the homes of older persons and support the setting up of standards for such modifications. When eligible older persons undertake age-friendly modifications to their homes, the municipal and district people's governments shall provide appropriate subsidies to them.

Article 52

This Municipality shall promote barrier-free access to digital services and support age-friendly adaptations of internet websites and mobile internet applications commonly used by older persons.

Support shall be given to various educational institutions and other social actors in providing training and courses through multiple forms to help older persons improve their ability to use smart technologies.

Chapter VII  Participation in Social Development

Article 53

This Municipality shall strengthen the development of human resources in older persons, and create conditions for older persons to give full play to their professional knowledge and skills.

Article 54

Town/township people's governments and sub-district offices shall foster and support community organizations of older persons, such as older persons' associations, promote well-regulated development of organizations of older persons, encourage self-management by, self-education of, and self-service by older persons, and facilitate their participation in social development.

Article 55

This Municipality shall create conditions and provide facilitation for older persons to participate, on a voluntary basis and within their capacity, in various social activities in accordance with law.

Government human resources and social security departments shall provide employment services for older persons who are willing to work, and their lawful work income shall be protected by law. Support and guidance shall be given to older persons to participate, in the form of voluntary service, in activities such as community governance, technical assistance, talent cultivation, and culture inheritance.

When this Municipality formulates laws, regulations, or public policies involving major issues concerning the rights and interests of older persons, it shall solicit the opinions of older persons and their organizations.

Article 56

People's governments at various levels shall increase input in education for older persons and promote the development of such education.

Government education departments shall incorporate education for older persons into outlined programs for education development and the lifelong education system, strengthen the development of facilities, teaching staff, and curriculum for older persons. They shall set up schools and classrooms of various types for older persons in a balanced way, and ensure equitable access to educational resources for older persons in both urban and rural areas. Social groups shall be encouraged to conduct or participate in education for older persons, so as to increase the supply of educational opportunities therefor through diverse forms. Government education departments, together with relevant institutions and schools, shall use modern information technologies to develop distance education for older persons, set up online learning platforms, develop online learning resources, offer courses suitable for older persons, and create conditions for them to participate in lifelong learning.

Article 57

District and town/township people's governments as well as sub-district offices shall establish cultural, sports, and recreational venues such as activity rooms for older persons as called for in light of the distribution of the older population within their respective administrative areas and in accordance with the principle of providing convenience for older persons.

Government departments including those responsible for landscaping & city appearance shall strengthen the construction and management of parks and green spaces and provide venues for outdoor, fitness, and recreational activities for older persons.

People's governments at various levels, together with government departments including those for culture and tourism, radio and television, film, and sports as well as neighborhood committees, villagers' committees, and organizations of older persons, shall organize public cultural, sports, tourist, and recreational activities suitable for older persons, so as to enrich their cultural life.

Government departments including those for sports, landscaping and city appearance, and planning and natural resources shall take into account the fitness needs of older persons in planning and constructing public facilities. Government departments including those for sports and civil affairs shall promote the development of multifunctional community sports facilities for older persons. Community cultural centers, public sports venues and similar facilities shall provide targeted public cultural and sports services to meet the special needs of older persons.

Chapter VIII  Legal Liability

Article 58

Where violations of these Regulations are covered by provisions of the Law of the People's Republic of China on Ensuring the Rights and Interests of Older Persons or other relevant laws or administrative regulations, such provisions shall be followed.

Article 59

Where a person refuses to perform obligations of support or care for an older person, insults, abuses, or abandons an older person, or interferes with an older person's freedom of marriage, the employer of the person concerned, the community self-governing organization concerned, or the organization of older persons concerned shall subject such person to criticism and admonishment. Where such act constitutes a violation of public security administration, a public security administrative penalty shall be meted out in accordance with law; where such act constitutes a crime, criminal accountability shall be pursued in accordance with law.

Article 60

Where a relevant government department or an organization fails to perform its responsibility of ensuring the rights and interests of older persons in accordance with law, the competent authorities at the next higher level to which it is responsible shall issue criticism and admonishment and order the government department or organization concerned to address the issue.

Where state employees fail to perform their responsibilities in accordance with law and thus infringe upon the lawful rights and interests of an older person, the government department to which they belong or the competent authorities at the next higher level to which they are responsible shall, in accordance with law, impose disciplinary sanction on the person in charge who is directly responsible and others directly responsible. Where such act constitutes a crime, criminal accountability shall be pursued in accordance with law.

Chapter IX  Supplementary Provision

Article 61

These Regulations shall be effective as of May 1, 2016. The Regulations of Shanghai Municipality on Ensuring the Rights and Interests of Older Persons adopted at the 4th Session of the Standing Committee of the 11th Shanghai Municipal People's Congress on August 18, 1998, and amended at the 21st Session of the Standing Committee of the 13th Shanghai Municipal People's Congress on September 17, 2010, shall be repealed concurrently.