Chinese authorities have made it clear that people who lied in marriage registration would have a slim chance of working in government, according to a government memo.

The National Development and Reform Commission published a notice on its website on March 28 with a memo on jointly punishing those who lied in their marriage registration.

“It (The memo) aims to promote the building of a credit system in marriage registration, and enhance punishment for dishonest behaviors in marriage registration,” the notice said.

The 14-item list of punishments includes restricting chances of working as a civil servant, registering as a legal person in state owned enterprises and applying for financial subsidies, the memo said.

It said dishonest behaviors in marriage registration include forgery or illegal use of other people’s documents, including ID cards, household registration books and no-spouse certifications.

It will also be considered dishonest if a person provides falsified certificates for declarations of having no spouse and no lineal or collateral relation within three generations, a requirement for marriage.

Dishonest actions also include a person intentionally concealing their lack of civil capacity or a restricted capacity for civil conduct, which seriously damages the other’s legitimate rights and interests.

All these will be kept on record under a national information sharing platform, so data can be shared and exchanged with the marriage credit system.

The memo was dated Feb 26 and would be carried out by the NDRC in partnership with 30 ministries and commissions, such as the People’s Bank of China, Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee.