China will implement new exit-management regulations at all border checkpoints starting September 15, imposing stricter controls on residents leaving the country. According to sources cited by Radio Free Asia, the rules introduce a “whoever approves bears responsibility” system: civil servants, state enterprise and public institution staff—including university faculty, doctors, listed company executives—and university students must obtain approval before traveling abroad. If an approved traveler overstays or fails to return, the official who signed off faces accountability.
A source in China’s financial sector described a hierarchical approval chain, with department heads needing approval from bureau chiefs, and so on up the chain. Financial institution and public hospital department heads are reportedly limited to one overseas trip per year.
An insider said the new rules formalize restrictions that had already existed internally, adding fresh limits on financial, research, and student travel—responding to concerns about tech talent and data outflows affecting China’s AI development.
Reports describe university students being blocked from planned trips: one video showed a student stopped at Nanning airport after a scanner flagged her; she said her visa was cancelled and her phone, chat records, and bank statements were searched, and that her entire university of roughly 60,000 students had been restricted from leaving China due to another student’s overstay in Spain.
Separately, Chinese nationals working or living abroad—including in Singapore and the U.S.—reported being contacted by local police demanding passports, employment proof, photos, and real-time location sharing. A Hubei lawyer suggested the crackdown may relate to declining birth rates and concerns over talent and asset flight.
Source: Radio Free Asia, September 3, 2026
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/shehui/2026/09/03/china-entry-and-exit-management-regulations-capital-fleeing-technology-and-talent-outflow-strict-approval-processing/