China Expands Exit-Entry Controls! Export Control Violators Banned from Leaving Country — Scholar: Leave Now Before New Rules Take Effect!

Chinese Premier Li Qiang signed a State Council order at the end of July to expand exit and entry control measures, under which individuals who violate export control regulations may be prohibited from leaving the country. Those deemed to have violated national security while abroad may also face difficulties in traveling overseas again. On Friday (July 31), China's state-run Xinhua News Agency released the 'State Council Regulations on Exit and Entry Management,' citing the need to 'safeguard national sovereignty, security, and development interests' by tightening controls on citizens' international travel, effective September 15 this year. Several provisions in the new rules have drawn attention, including Article 4, which states that Chinese citizens who violate export control regulations and 'may endanger national industrial or technological security' may be barred from exiting the country by the government. The China National Immigration Administration published a 'policy interpretation' on its official website by Professor Cheng Xiezhong of the Law School at China University of Political Science and Law, describing the State Council's new regulations as 'enriching the legal toolkit for exit and entry management' and providing the government with 'clearer and more comprehensive legal means' to combat criminal activities, particularly those involving 'illegal technology transfer, unauthorized export of dual-use items, or transferring key industrial technologies overseas,' all of which are considered 'directly damaging to national industrial and technological security' and subject to exit bans. Previous media reports have indicated that the Chinese government is increasingly emphasizing the strategic value of high-tech industry talent and is using travel restrictions to prevent technology leakage. In May, Bloomberg reported that AI researchers from private companies such as Alibaba and DeepSeek must obtain official approval before traveling abroad. In March, the Financial Times reported that Manus, an AI startup, had its founders, Xiao Hong and Ji Yichao, barred from leaving China during an investigation into Meta's acquisition attempt. Henry Gao, a legal scholar at Singapore Management University, posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the new rules' linkage between export controls and exit restrictions confirms earlier rumors. Gao added, 'Taken together, these regulations mark a significant new step, transforming the right to leave China into a privilege granted at the state's discretion—clearly reversing the trend toward relative liberalization that began in the 1990s.' 'As I've been saying for years, leave while you still can. More precisely, leave before these new rules take effect in 45 days,' he wrote. Expanding the Scope of 'Endangering National Security' and Exit Bans China's current 'Exit and Entry Administration Law' was passed in 2012 and implemented in July 2013. It already includes provisions related to national security: Article 12 states that Chinese citizens identified by the State Council as 'likely to endanger national security and interests' are not permitted to exit. However, the new regulations introduce the previously absent concepts of 'national industrial security' and 'technological security,' directly including export control violators within the scope of exit bans, thereby tightening oversight. Moreover, the jurisdiction of the new rules extends beyond China's borders. According to Article 4, if a Chinese citizen 'engages in illegal or criminal activities abroad that harm national security and interests,' the relevant State Council authority may refer the case to the 'provincial-level government of the individual’s domicile within China' to determine a ban on exiting for 6 months to 3 years starting from the date of return. In other words, those deemed to have engaged in 'acts endangering national security' overseas may find it difficult to leave China again after returning. Article 5 explicitly outlines entry restrictions for foreigners: those who submit 'false materials' in visa applications, receive criminal penalties for 'obstructing border management,' or 'fraudulently obtain' exit-entry documents may be banned from entering China for 1 to 5 years by immigration authorities. Entities listed on the unreliable entities list or subject to countermeasures and restrictions will also be denied exit-entry documents by immigration and visa authorities in accordance with the law. For individuals prohibited from leaving, Article 6 states that the deciding authority must promptly notify immigration authorities to enforce the ban and must inform the individual in writing. However, if the matter involves national security or criminal investigation, the individual may not be notified. Chinese Citizens Traveling to 'High-Risk' Countries May Be 'Advised Against' Departure Online discussions about the State Council's new exit-entry regulations express concern over increasing restrictions on citizens' freedom of movement. Under a post by well-known X platform blogger 'Li Laoshi Is Not Your Teacher,' one netizen commented, 'China's door is slowly closing,' while another said, 'Xi is accelerating a reversal; those trying to jump ship will find it hard.' On July 31, China's Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Public Security, and National Immigration Administration jointly explained the rationale behind the new regulations, stating that recent years have brought 'new challenges and issues' to exit-entry management, such as armed conflicts, public security, disasters, and pandemics in other countries threatening the personal safety of Chinese citizens, necessitating the 'improvement of citizen exit safety risk prevention systems.' As a result, China's exit border inspections are likely to become stricter. According to the new rules, immigration authorities, when reviewing documents and conducting border checks, should 'remind' Chinese citizens traveling to countries 'at the highest risk level or where incidents severely threatening personal safety frequently occur' to proceed with caution and, when necessary, 'advise against' their departure, based on notifications from the State Council. However, some netizens have questioned whether China's government assessment of 'risk' is entirely objective. Last year, after Japanese Prime Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi's 'Taiwan contingency' remarks, the Chinese government successively issued travel and study warnings for Japan, claiming 'deteriorating public security in Japan and frequent criminal incidents targeting Chinese citizens.' This move was widely seen as closely tied to the deterioration of bilateral political and diplomatic relations. According to China's Consular Service website, only one region in Japan—Fukushima Prefecture—is classified as 'medium risk' (yellow), with the rest categorized as 'low risk' (blue). However, over the past year, Chinese authorities have repeatedly issued safety alerts for travel to Japan, with increasing frequency and intensity: the wording in late July last year was 'travel with caution'; from November to March, four alerts all advised 'avoiding travel.' The United States is classified as 'medium risk' (yellow). Countries classified as 'high risk' (orange) or 'extremely high risk' (red) include Afghanistan, Iran, Myanmar, and Ukraine. Immigration Agencies to Be Regulated Another notable aspect of the new regulations is the inclusion of immigration intermediary service agencies under regulatory oversight. In November 2018, China abolished the 'qualification certification for private exit-entry intermediary agencies,' which some Chinese media described as 'fully opening the immigration intermediary market.' However, authorities now believe that with the rapid growth in the number of intermediary agencies, problems such as 'unclear baseline data' and 'some agencies conducting illegal or non-compliant operations' have emerged. Under the new rules, any agency accepting commissions to provide immigration policy consultation, document processing, or procedural assistance must register with the local immigration authority within 15 days of establishment. Agencies already operating before the implementation of the new rules must complete registration within 90 days of its enforcement. Overseas enterprises and institutions are prohibited from providing exit-entry intermediary services within China. These intermediary agencies must not engage in 'acts endangering national security, interests, or disrupting exit-entry management order.' They are also prohibited from 'illegally processing' foreign nationality or overseas residency status for Chinese public officials or military personnel; upon receiving such requests, they must promptly report to supervisory authorities. DW Chinese has an Instagram! Search dw.chinese for more in-depth图文 and video reports. © 2026 Deutsche Welle. All content is protected by copyright. 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