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China Bans Storing Cremated Remains in Empty 'Bone Ash Apartments'
The ban targets 'bone-ash apartments' to address scarce cemetery space and high funeral costs, with funerals costing nearly half the average annual salary, officials said.
- On Monday, China's State Council banned "the use of residential dwellings specifically for the interment of ashes," restricting human remains to designated areas such as public cemeteries.
- Families previously used "bone-ash apartments" to dodge funeral costs that reached nearly half of the average annual salary in 2020, according to British insurance firm SunLife's survey.
- These units are often identifiable by sealed-off windows or closed curtains, with residents reporting candlesticks arranged around a black box and portrait inside, typical arrangements for commemorating the dead.
- China's market watchdog announced new rules on Tuesday to tackle fraud and transparency issues in funeral pricing, aiming to "reduce the burden of funerals on the masses."
- The ban arrives days before the Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb Sweeping Day, when families traditionally visit gravesites to tidy them and make ritual offerings.
Insights by Ground AI
33 Articles
33 Articles
In China, new funeral rules came into force on 30 March 2026, which prohibit the use of accommodation only to store the ashes of the dead.
·Riga, Latvia
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(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Kwon Soo-hyun = China is... so-called 'columbariums' (骨灰房), where cremated remains are interred in inexpensive suburban apartments instead of bearing the cost of expensive cemeteries...
·Korea (the Republic of)
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources33
Leaning Left6Leaning Right4Center11Last UpdatedBias Distribution52% Center
Bias Distribution
- 52% of the sources are Center
52% Center
L 29%
C 52%
R 19%
Factuality
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