New Rules Limit Foreign Travel For Chinese Government Employees: Report

China is making it harder for public sector employees to travel abroad as part of a wider effort to increase control and monitoring of government workers. A recent report by The New York Times revealed that staff across a range of public roles, including teachers, healthcare workers, local officials, government contractors and even retirees, are being asked to surrender their passports or clear several layers of approval before leaving the country, even for personal reasons like vacations or family visits. Some cities in China are making retirees wait two years to get their passports back.

An elementary school teacher in southern China revealed to The Times that her employment contract includes a clause allowing for her termination if she travels internationally without authorisation. Even people who have studied overseas can no longer hold specific government positions in most provinces.

As per the report, two individuals said their employers required them to share details of their personal social media accounts. Another person mentioned that she had to inform her employer whenever she travelled outside the city for any reason. Travel restrictions for some government workers have been in place for a long time. Since 2003, top officials and those handling sensitive information have had to tell the government before going abroad, and their names have been shared with border officers to stop any unauthorised departures. Now, under Xi Jinping, these rules apply to many more government workers, even those in lower positions.

Individuals who get approval to travel internationally are sometimes made to sign a pledge, promising they won't threaten national security or speak negatively about China during their trip. Besides these restrictions, workers in certain regions have been told not to talk to foreign media when they are abroad. They must also report any interactions with foreign groups, especially those called “anti-China forces”, to the Chinese embassies. Workers in certain institutions have also been instructed to provide a complete history of their international travel, with some of the required information going back to 2018. Earlier this year, the chairwoman of a leading Chinese appliance company mentioned that she prefers not to hire individuals who have recently come back from abroad, as she suspects they could be spies.

China’s state security agency has often cautioned regular citizens about the risks of travelling abroad and has urged them to be careful around foreigners. Officials state that these restrictions are being implemented for several reasons, such as safeguarding national security, combating corruption, and reducing costs.