Taiwan Affairs Office Rejects Claims of Mainland Travel Risks
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office on Wednesday dismissed warnings from Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) that new mainland exit-entry regulations pose risks for Taiwanese travelers, insisting that Taiwanese people visiting the mainland “completely need not worry about any risks.”
Spokesperson Zhu Fenglian made the remarks at a routine press conference in response to MAC statements suggesting that Taiwanese businesspeople and technology workers could face travel restrictions under the newly promulgated Regulations on Exit-Entry Administration, which takes effect September 15.
The Regulation and Taiwan’s Concerns
The State Council regulation, signed by Premier Li Qiang on July 22 and published July 31, establishes a safety risk prevention system for Chinese citizens traveling abroad. Key provisions allow authorities to restrict exit for six months to three years for those who fraudulently obtain exit-entry documents or commit illegal acts, and permit restrictions on citizens who violate export control or technology import/export regulations that could harm national industrial or technological security.
Taiwan’s MAC has raised concerns since early August. Deputy Minister Liang Wenjie said at an August 6 press conference that the regulation “puts a legal cloak” on what was previously arbitrary control over exit-entry, warning that Taiwanese businesspeople and those working in technology and semiconductor industries face higher risks of unknowingly violating export control regulations. As reported by SETN, Liang specifically urged Taiwanese businesspeople and citizens to conduct risk assessments.
The Sea Exchange Foundation echoed these concerns on August 7. Secretary-General Lo Wen-chia warned that Taiwanese businesspeople engaged in related industries or import/export activities could potentially be barred from leaving China if mainland authorities determine they violated technology security regulations, according to Commercial Times.
MAC Chairman Chiu Chui-cheng escalated the warnings on August 17 at a symposium at Tunghai University, describing the regulation as vague and granting excessive discretionary power. He warned that Taiwanese traveling to the mainland could face situations where they “enter but cannot leave,” as Epoch Times reported.
Beijing’s Response
Zhu Fenglian rejected these characterizations, stating that the regulation mainly aims to improve the exit-entry safety risk prevention system and clarify that application purposes should be truthful and lawful. She emphasized that the regulation is beneficial for safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of cross-strait people’s exchanges and creating a better legal environment for Taiwanese compatriots.
She accused the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities of “alarmism with sinister intentions,” saying they spare no effort to restrict cross-strait exchanges and employ various tactics including suppression, intimidation, and rumor-mongering. She called the MAC “a stumbling block to cross-strait exchanges,” according to Xinhua News.
Zhu also invoked the concept of an “information cocoon,” asserting that what the DPP authorities fear most is that their manufactured media environment isolating Taiwanese people from accurate information about the mainland “continues to be pierced” and their false “Taiwan independence” narrative “continues to be exposed.”
Analysis and Implications
The dispute reflects deeper tensions in cross-strait relations. Taiwan maintains an orange travel advisory for mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau, and has banned travel agencies from organizing group tours to the mainland. The MAC has previously warned about various mainland policies, including the “Punishment of Separatists” and the “Ethnic Unity Progress Promotion Law.”
The regulation itself is part of China’s broader expansion of legal frameworks for national security, including the Anti-Espionage Law and National Security Law. For Taiwanese businesspeople—many of whom operate extensively in mainland manufacturing and technology sectors—the practical implications remain uncertain as the regulation’s enforcement mechanisms take shape.
The regulation’s provisions allowing authorities to decline to notify individuals of exit restrictions in cases involving national security or criminal investigations have drawn particular scrutiny from Taiwan officials, who argue the language is too broad and grants excessive discretion to border enforcement personnel.
What’s Next
The regulation takes effect on September 15, 2026. Taiwan’s MAC has indicated it will continue monitoring developments and may adjust its travel advisories or implement additional registration and reporting mechanisms for technology and semiconductor workers traveling to the mainland. Meanwhile, Beijing has signaled it will continue promoting cross-strait exchanges despite Taipei’s restrictions, with Zhu emphasizing that the “surging trend” of cross-strait exchanges cannot be stopped.
As the September 15 implementation date approaches, the practical application of the regulation’s exit restriction provisions—particularly those related to technology security—will determine whether Taiwan’s warnings prove prescient or overstated. For now, the two sides remain locked in a familiar pattern of mutual recrimination over the rules governing the movement of people across the strait.