Paying for Children’s Marriage: Anticipatory Financial Strain and Parental Labor Supply in Rural China *

Abstract This study examines how parental marriage payments for children are associated with household financial strain and parental labor supply in rural China. Using data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) and subsequent follow-up information, we distinguish between the incidence and intensity of cash marriage transfers and analyze labor-supply responses among rural parents aged 45–75. The results show that the occurrence of a cash marriage transfer is associated mainly with higher labor-force participation, whereas larger transfer amounts are more strongly related to the intensive margin of labor supply. Among households making positive transfers, higher marriage-payment intensity is associated with longer weekly working hours, greater hours among working parents, and a higher probability of working at least 55 hours per week. Larger transfers are also associated with greater non-mortgage debt and other borrowing, consistent with tighter household financial constraints. Further analysis indicates that parental marriage expenditures are substantially larger for sons than for daughters. Before marriage occurs, an unmarried son’s cohabitation status strongly predicts subsequent marriage and is associated with higher household borrowing and a higher probability of excessive work among mothers, suggesting anticipatory adjustment. Follow-up evidence further shows that high-transfer households continue to display relatively high parental labor intensity, although marriage transfers do not predict a significantly larger subsequent increase in labor supply. Overall, the findings highlight how children’s marriage costs are linked to intertemporal household resource allocation and parental labor adjustment in rural China. JEL Classification: J12; J22; D13; D14