Because buying a house requires household registration information, I had some free time today to go to the government service center to get my collective household registration page. The entire process of obtaining the household registration can be said to be very smooth, with the number being taken, registration being done, and waiting all done in one go. This process reminded me of my experiences in Japan when I went to the municipal office to handle things.
In Japan, the municipal office is equivalent to our current government service center, where household registration, pension insurance, personal income tax, and so on can all be handled. When handling relevant business, you need to fill out the corresponding application form at the service counter, then go to the number machine to get a number, and wait for your number to be called before you can go to the corresponding window to handle the business. This process is currently the same in China, and it is very convenient.
Since when I was in Japan, I mainly handled household registration, I am not very familiar with other related businesses. Every time I went to the foreigner window, there were always many people waiting in line, but the overall wait time was not long. Basically, if all the registration information is complete, the results will be available quickly.
Today, when I went to get my household registration, it was the same. From the moment I registered the information to the moment I received the household registration, it only took about 1 minute in total. I thought I would have to wait for a long time, so I found a seat and sat down. Unexpectedly, before my seat even warmed up, they called my name.
The only thing I think needs improvement in China is that the collective household registration is also just one page. I thought they would provide free envelopes or something for me to put the household registration in, but it turned out they didn't. Instead, they told me I could fold it, so I folded it and put it in my pocket...
There are still some details that need improvement, but overall, the experience was already very good.