An Air China Boeing 777-300 at Beijing Capital International Airport, April 10, 2025.
(New York) – A new Chinese government decree expands the discretion of administrative authorities to arbitrarily bar people from leaving China, violating the internationally protected right to leave a country, Human Rights Watch said today. The State Council’s 19-article Regulations on Exit-Entry Administration, known as Decree No. 841, took effect on September 15, 2026.
The new decree restricts nationals and non-nationals from leaving China for a range of ill-defined reasons of national security and risk. However, under international human rights law, any legal restrictions on leaving a country must be necessary and proportionate for legitimate aims.
“The Chinese government is tightening its rules to decide arbitrarily who can and cannot leave China, violating the internationally protected right to leave one’s country,” said Maya Wang, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The authorities have increasingly subjected human rights defenders and ethnic minorities to restrictions and scrutiny of their international travel, but everyone including foreigners should worry about their ability to leave China.”
Many provisions of Decree No. 841 consolidate exit restrictions in China’s Exit and Entry Administration Law, the Passport Law, and other regulations. Article 12(5) of the Exit and Entry Administration Law, for instance, broadly allows the authorities to prohibit citizens who “may endanger national security or interests” from leaving the country.
However, the new decree appears to further integrate immigration decisions with a tightening national security regulatory framework.
Article 2 of the decree authorizes immigration authorities, “when necessary,” to “dissuade” citizens from traveling to “high-risk” countries or regions when processing travel document applica
