BEIJING, Aug. 8 -- China's sweeping hukou reform will grant 100 million migrant workers equal access to urban social welfare by 2020, but many have started to wonder where the 100 million strong rural population will settle down.

Will they flock to already over-crowded mega cities like Beijing and Shanghai, where increasing population will further strain urban resources? Or will they become residents of China's smaller cities, which would be better able to accommodate them but provide fewer job opportunities?

The State Council, the Cabinet, issued the most comprehensive guideline for the newest hukou reforms, China's household registration system, on July 30.

To ensure orderly migration of the 100 million migrant workers, the guideline asks local governments to set differentiated household registration policies based on their ability to absorb migrants and provide public services.

Under the guideline, migrants can settle in towns and small cites with populations under 500,000 freely, with previous hukou restrictions abolished. For medium-sized cities with populations between 500,000 and 1 millon, however, controls have been set in hopes of establishing an orderly resettlement of rural population.