China imposes travel curbs to protect ‘national security’

The Hindu – International

You are logged in

Loading…

You don’t have any Active Subscription.

Subscribed with another email? Logout and Login with that one.

Your active subscription(s)

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials,
Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

Products you’ve access to

Additional Subscription Benefits

Account Settings

Need help with your subscription?

September 15, 2026 e-Paper

The View From India
Looking at World Affairs from the Indian perspective.

First Day First Show
News and reviews from the world of cinema and streaming.

Today's Cache
Your download of the top 5 technology stories of the day.

Science For All
The weekly newsletter from science writers takes the jargon out of science and puts the fun in!

Data Point
Decoding the headlines with facts, figures, and numbers

THEdge
At the cutting edge of education and careers

Health Matters
Ramya Kannan writes to you on getting to good health, and staying there

Gender Agenda
Stories from beyond the binary.

The Hindu On Books
Books of the week, reviews, excerpts, new titles and features.

September 15, 2026 e-Paper

Published – September 15, 2026 10:14 pm IST – Beijing, China

Image used for representational purposes only.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

China imposed sweeping travel restrictions on its citizens on Tuesday (September 15, 2026), including exit bans on those deemed to endanger the country's "industrial or technological security".

Citizens who violate technology import and export regulations could be banned from leaving China, the State Council said.

Those who engage in illegal activities abroad could be "prohibited from leaving the country for a period of six months to three years from the date of their return to China".

China and the United States have been locked in a tech race, with both sides accusing the other in recent months of stealing the capabilities of locally developed artificial intelligence models.

The new rules, first released in July but in effect from Tuesday (September 15), were formulated to "safeguard national sovereignty, security, and development interests", the State Council said.

However, analysts warn that the travel rules give China a "wide remit".

Security and criminal activities "can be vaguely defined and easily adjusted", Chong Ja Ian from the National University of Singapore told AFP.

"The outside world will only know how it applies that remit after there are cases of implementation," he said.

Mr. Chong pointed to reports of exit bans on foreign nationals, including the recent case of US citizen Min Zin.

The U.S. government has said the political analyst was taken into Chinese custody in Yunnan province on June 3 and was held improperly.

China refuted the accusations in August, saying Min Zin was suspected of violating Chinese law.

"The case of Min Zin is a reminder that the range of people [that China] could restrict from exiting could be quite wide — and potentially arbitrary," Mr. Chong said.

Dylan Loh, an associate professor at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University, told AFP the travel restrictions "send a message" that China will take action to prevent "leaks in security or national interest-sensitive areas".

Published – September 15, 2026 10:14 pm IST

China

/

USA

Terms & conditions | Institutional Subscriber

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Fonte: The Hindu – International