On June 17, Radio Free Asia published an article reporting that Beijing has tightened its control over municipal employees traveling overseas. The rule no longer applies only to Party officials and military personnel but has also been expanded to include public servants as well as all management levels in State Owned Enterprises, especially in the banking industry. The purpose of the new rule is to prevent officials from taking their money overseas and fleeing China. The article quoted a comment from a businessman who stated that all of his friends had to turn in their passports. The regulation will not work on certain members of the elite class because they can use their connections to obtain fake IDs. The article stated that the restrictions on Party officials traveling overseas started over 10 years ago. Based on the evidence from criminal cases, it is quite common for the Party officials to own multiple Chinese passports or even foreign passports.
Source: Radio Free Asia, June 17, 2017
http://www.rfa.org/cantonese/news/officer-06172017105356.html