France hopes to raise birth rates with a letter
The government is planning to send out mail urging 29-year-olds to have children to "avoid future regret"
France is preparing to send a letter to every 29-year-old in the country encouraging them to consider having children before it is “too late”, as part of a broader effort to reverse a steep decline in birth rates.
The initiative, announced by the French health ministry, will see hundreds of thousands of young adults receive what officials describe as “targeted, balanced and scientifically based information on sexual and reproductive health”. The stated aim is to help people avoid future regret – what the ministry called an “‘if only I had known’ mentality” – by ensuring they are better informed about fertility and reproductive timelines.
The letter forms one element of a 16-point national plan aimed at tackling France’s falling birth rate, a trend shared by many developed economies. Critics, however, argue that the measure risks being ineffective or even patronising, failing to address the deeper economic and social pressures shaping young people’s decisions about family life.
According to the government, infertility is a central concern behind the policy. Officials estimate that infertility affects around one in eight couples in France. A government-commissioned report published in 2022 found that 3.3 million people in the country are affected by fertility issues.
The decision to target 29-year-olds is closely tied to medical policy. In France, women can freeze their eggs without a medical certificate from the age of 29, and the country’s social security system covers the cost of egg freezing for women aged between 29 and 37. The letter will remind recipients of this option, while also addressing fertility decline in both women and men. While acknowledging that reproductive timelines differ by sex, the letter will state that “men have a biological clock too”.
Health minister Stéphanie Rist said the government had examined infertility “in all its aspects” in order to enable the “immediate launch of concrete and long-awaited measures”, according to Le Parisien. She stressed that the role of politicians was not to instruct people on whether or not to have children, but to ensure that women in particular are better informed about fertility and available medical options.
Beyond the letter, the plan includes expanding the country’s fertility preservation infrastructure. The number of centres storing frozen eggs is expected to rise from 40 to 70, potentially including facilities run by private enterprises.
Some experts remain unconvinced that information campaigns alone will shift demographic trends, arguing that measures like extending maternity leave would have a far greater impact on birth rates than sending letters about fertility.