China has introduced new exit-entry administration regulations that strengthen oversight of cross-border travel, visa documentation and intermediary services, with implications for Chinese outbound travellers, foreign visitors and agencies handling visa-related services.

The 19-article regulation, issued under State Council Decree No. 841 and signed by Premier Li Qiang on 22 July, came into force on 15 September. It is described as a significant update to China’s border-management framework since the Exit-Entry Administration Law took effect in 2013.

More checks on documents

For Chinese citizens applying for exit documents, the rules require applicants to give truthful, lawful reasons for travel and cooperate with checks on identity and purpose. Organisations that provide invitation letters are responsible for ensuring those letters are authentic.

Authorities may refuse travel documents or permission to depart where false information or statements are supplied. The measures also expand circumstances in which Chinese citizens may be prevented from leaving the country, including cases involving fraudulent travel documentation, unlawful border crossings, certain overseas offences affecting national security or interests, and violations of export-control or technology-trade rules that could affect industrial or technological security.

For people found to have committed relevant crimes overseas that harm national security or national interests, exit restrictions may last from six months to three years, according to the published details.

Travel risk alerts formalised

The regulation also formalises a system for public travel-risk alerts. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and overseas diplomatic missions are expected to issue safety warnings in response to events including armed conflict, crime, natural disasters, accidents and infectious-disease outbreaks.

Immigration authorities may advise travellers seeking documents or undergoing border checks to exercise caution before travelling to higher-risk destinations. In areas subject to the most serious warnings, travellers may be advised not to travel.

The move comes as cross-border movement rebounds. China recorded more than 697 million exit-entry trips in 2025, according to the report, a record total that authorities say has brought changing traveller profiles and more complex border-management demands.

Foreign visitors face tougher consequences for false claims

Foreign nationals applying to enter China will face stricter consequences for submitting false visa materials or making false statements, whether applications are made overseas or at the border.

The regulations allow entry bans of one to five years for people who submit fraudulent materials, receive criminal punishment for obstructing border administration, or incur administrative penalties for fraudulently obtaining documents or illegally entering or leaving China. Entry restrictions may also apply to individuals placed on countermeasure, unreliable-entity or malicious-entity lists under Chinese law.

The rules introduce a filing system for exit-entry intermediary services, affecting travel agencies and other businesses that assist with visas, passports and cross-border documentation.

New providers must file within 15 days of being established, while existing agencies have 90 days from the regulation’s commencement to complete registration. Operators must meet standards relating to qualified personnel, appropriate premises and sufficient funding. Overseas companies and organisations are prohibited from directly providing such services within China.

Intermediaries are also barred from publishing false information, using exaggerated or misleading promotion, submitting false materials, or helping clients obtain travel documents improperly.

For the travel trade, the framework raises the compliance bar at a time when demand for cross-border travel is accelerating. Agencies serving the China market should review their registration status, client-screening procedures, marketing claims and documentation workflows, while travellers should allow more time for visa and travel-document checks.