BEIJING - Chinese authorities Tuesday rolled out a phased supportive policy on deferring housing provident fund contributions to help enterprises and individuals tide over difficulties amid the epidemic.

Enterprises affected by the epidemic can apply for postponing the payment of housing provident fund contributions under the rules and make the payment afterward, said a circular.

The circular, jointly released by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the Ministry of Finance, and the People's Bank of China, also added that the regular withdrawal and loan application of the fund by the depositors would not be affected.

For depositors who fail to pay the contributions within the stipulated time due to the impact of COVID-19, the deferment will not be submitted to the credit administration as loan delinquency on their credit reports, the circular said.

It urged local authorities to raise the withdrawal quota for housing rental payments based on local conditions, and support the depositors to draw from the fund whenever they are in need.

The supportive measures will be tentatively valid until the end of this year, it said.