New development drivers
Reuse underused factories, offices, housing and infrastructure; support innovation, consumption and modern construction.
National · China · 2026–2030
China’s 15th Five-Year Plan for Urban Renewal
城市更新“十五五”规划
A national framework for shifting urban development toward the renewal of existing places, with linked programmes for housing, communities, infrastructure, heritage, governance, land and finance.
- Issuing body
- State Council
- Document number
- 国发〔2026〕12号
- Issued
- 22 May 2026
- Horizon
- 2030 · outlook to 2035
Editorial overview
A national operating system for urban renewal
The plan treats urban renewal as a change in the way cities are developed and governed. Physical projects remain central, but they sit inside a broader system of city health checks, area planning, project pipelines, lifecycle safety, land-use flexibility, sustainable finance, heritage protection and community participation.
Plan architecture
Seven substantive programmes beneath the overall goals
High-quality urban life
Improve housing, old residential compounds, complete communities, old districts and factories, public services and transport.
Green transition
Restore urban ecosystems, improve building performance and embed water, waste and low-carbon mobility systems.
Safety and resilience
Renew unsafe housing, urban villages, underground networks and lifeline systems; expand emergency capacity.
Culture and urban character
Survey, protect and reuse historic areas, buildings and industrial heritage while controlling design quality.
Urban governance
Move resources toward communities and build digital platforms, CIM databases and integrated city-operation systems.
Policy system
Create delivery, finance, land, building-safety, participation, legal, standards, technology and talent mechanisms.
Everyday urban space
What renewal means on the ground
| Housing | “Good houses”, upgrades to existing homes, lifts, accessible design, digital homes, unsafe housing renewal and autonomous rebuilding. |
|---|---|
| Communities | Complete communities, embedded services, 15-minute living circles, public space, childcare, eldercare, health and sport. |
| Districts and factories | Integrated renewal of old commercial and residential streets, transport hubs and industrial sites, with new uses and industrial heritage protection. |
| Infrastructure | Road micro-circulation, parking, charging, underground pipes, utility corridors, drainage, heating and real-time lifeline monitoring. |
| Urban villages | Demolition and rebuilding, improvement, or mixed approaches, with compensation and financing plans required for each project. |
| Heritage | Survey before construction, pre-protection, repair, resident-led implementation and adaptive reuse without excessive commercialization. |
Policy machinery
Seven mechanisms intended to make renewal repeatable
Implementation chain
City health checks → special plan → area strategy → project implementation plan → project library.
Public finance
Central budget investment, central fiscal support, local spending and eligible local government special bonds.
Market finance
Bank finance without new hidden local debt, REITs, asset-backed products, corporate bonds and medium-term notes.
Land and use conversion
Positive lists for mixed use, flexible planning adjustment and transitional policies generally limited to five years.
Building lifecycle
Regular building safety checks, dedicated funding mechanisms and building quality and safety insurance.
Legal framework
Proposed revisions and new rules covering real estate, buildings, housing security, safety, heritage, pipelines and fire review.
Delivery responsibility
Central coordination, provincial responsibility and city-level implementation, monitored by the housing ministry.
Planning significance
The project is no longer the only unit of action
The plan establishes a sequence from citywide diagnosis to special planning, area strategy and project implementation. This makes renewal an ongoing urban-management process rather than a series of isolated construction projects. It also places explicit limits on finance: market instruments are encouraged, while new hidden local-government debt is prohibited.
- Regular city health checks feed the renewal pipeline
- Area-level planning connects projects to infrastructure and public services
- Dynamic project libraries support continuing implementation and evaluation
Primary sources
Official publication and supplied document
The official page records the issuing body, document number, date and full Chinese plan.
Read on gov.cn ↗The supplied document contains the notice and complete plan text. English summaries on this page are for reference; the Chinese original remains authoritative.
Download the Chinese document ↓