Mother fights for son's right to sign up for city residence

A Beijing single mother cannot register for permanent residence, called hukou, for her son because she can't afford the approximately 330,000 yuan ($53,255) social maintenance fee imposed on her for breaching the one-child policy.

The situation throws a spotlight on the plight of single mothers whose children were born out of wedlock.

The mother, Liu Fei (a pseudonym), took Beijing public security bureau's Fangshan branch to court on Oct 9, 2013, saying the branch's refusal to provide a hukou for her 8-year-old son Xiao Jie (again a pseudonym), is illegal.