Published by ChinaMNC · Ningjiang

Jilin Pilots High-Quality Residential Wellness Tourism: What Foreign Founders Should Know

Jilin Province has issued a pilot work plan to develop residential wellness and long-stay tourism, targeting six county-level pilot areas, six resort pilots, ten scenic-area clusters, twenty villages, thirty residential communities and eighty elderly-care institutions by 2028, with 30,000 new beds added.

Jilin Moves on Residential Wellness Tourism

The General Office of the Jilin Provincial People's Government has issued a notice distributing a pilot work plan for promoting high-quality development of residential wellness tourism (旅居康养). The document, numbered Ji Zheng Ban Han [2026] No. 37, was dated April 29, 2026 and published on May 9, 2026. It is classified under commerce, customs and tourism, and is addressed to municipal and county governments, the Changbai Mountain management committee, provincial departments and centrally stationed units in the province. For foreign founders considering a Jilin-registered entity in tourism, hospitality, wellness or elderly care, the plan sets out where provincial support is likely to concentrate.

Policy Basis and Objectives

The plan cites the spirit of the 20th Party Congress and its plenary sessions, together with the national services industry conference, and the decisions of the provincial party committee and provincial government. It grounds the pilot in Jilin's natural ecology, summer leisure and traditional Chinese medicine wellness resources. The stated aim is to test approaches first, cultivate the residential wellness industry, and foster new momentum for provincial revitalization.

The plan defines the model around counties, tourist resorts, key scenic areas, key tourism villages, clustered residential communities and elderly-care service institutions. Through quality upgrading, new business formats, improved housing and better supporting facilities, the province intends to launch destinations that are both livable and visitable and shared by residents and visitors. The ambition is to position Jilin as a "second residence" combining summer leisure, wellness holidays and cultural experience, and to expand the customer base staying longer than ten days, forming a migratory-bird style of long-stay living.

2028 Targets

The plan sets out quantitative goals for 2028:

• Six county-level residential wellness pilot areas with abundant tourism resources, supporting services and clear wellness advantages.
• Six residential wellness resort pilots.
• Ten scenic-area residential wellness clusters.
• Twenty residential wellness villages.
• Thirty residential wellness clustered communities.
• Eighty residential elderly-care institution pilots.
• 30,000 new residential wellness beds.
• Average annual growth of more than 10 percent in person-visits staying longer than ten days, reaching 3.8 million person-visits in 2028.

The plan envisages initial clusters anchored on the Greater Changbai Mountain region and the Changchun metropolitan area, and cluster corridors along the Songhua River basin and National Highways G331 and G334. It also aims to cultivate and promote a Greater Changbai Mountain summer residential wellness brand and nationally preferred long-stay destinations.

Foundational Tasks

Work Guidelines

The provincial Department of Culture and Tourism is tasked with preparing work guidelines for the pilot. These will address core tourism features, wellness business strengths, and improved supporting facilities and services, providing direction and standards for the sector.

Pilot Selection

The same department will select key tourism counties, resorts, scenic clusters, key villages, residential wellness communities and residential elderly-care institutions across the province. These will be cultivated first to produce experience that can be replicated and promoted.

Resource Inventory

A full review of residential wellness resources will establish both a mature resource pool and a reserve pool. The province will compile and publish a Jilin residential wellness resource directory and draw a resource map showing distribution and spatial layout. Foreign founders researching site selection may find this inventory a useful reference once released.

Six Pilot Categories

County-Level Destinations

Drawing on each county's resource endowment, the plan calls for urban destinations combining ecological sightseeing, cultural experience, health preservation and leisure shopping. Core scenic areas, city parks and leisure districts are to be used, with public service facilities for medical care, elderly care, culture and sports improved, smarter services enhanced, and wellness formats embedded.

Resorts

Resorts should move toward high-end and international residential wellness, improving international service standards and multilingual reception, coordinating facilities with the environment, adding wellness centers, and developing private health concierge and customized healing programs.

Scenic-Area Clusters

Scenic areas with long-stay conditions should highlight resource features, expand wellness functions and integrate with nearby dining, shopping, leisure and medical services. The plan encourages consumption linkage mechanisms, including mutual discounts and coordinated pricing between scenic areas and surrounding businesses.

Villages

Key tourism villages and rural tourism operators should create multi-theme rural stays, including "slow living" villages. Public spaces such as rural cafes, village reading rooms and garden tea rooms should suit the aesthetic and social needs of long-stay visitors. The plan encourages whole-village operation models that benefit enterprises, village collectives and households.

Clustered Communities

Revitalizing existing assets is the main approach for small, well-featured residential wellness communities. The plan supports converting idle state-owned assets, inefficient urban buildings and factories, unsold commercial housing, forest wellness bases, forestry hotels and worker recuperation bases into wellness attractions and improving carrying capacity.

Elderly-Care Institutions

The source text available ends mid-sentence in this section. Foreign founders should consult the full official document for details on residential elderly-care institution pilots.

Practical Implications for Foreign Founders

The plan assigns lead responsibilities to named provincial departments, notably culture and tourism, with supporting roles for development and reform, natural resources, health, civil affairs, sports, commerce and agriculture. Municipal and county governments are responsible for implementation. Foreign investors exploring a wholly foreign-owned or joint venture entity in tourism, hospitality, wellness or elderly care should note that the pilot categories define where provincial attention and standards are being directed. The emphasis on international service standards and multilingual reception in resorts, and on consumption linkage in scenic clusters, may be relevant to service-sector positioning.

Company registration, licensing and sector-specific approvals remain governed by the applicable national and local rules and by the departments named in the plan. Founders should confirm current requirements with the relevant authorities and professional advisers before committing capital.

This summary is based on information published by the relevant Chinese government website and is general information, not legal or tax advice.