Who has priority access to exit-entry services? State authorities specify

Residents of China, Chinese nationals and foreigners alike, who need to reunite with their family overseas, can get priority services from the country's exit-entry authorities.

For the first time, the National Immigration Administration has recently specified rules for getting priority exit-entry services in China as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage around the world.

Apart from family reunion, other requests that are entitled to exit-entry services, and under urgent circumstances, also to a "green channel," are as follows:

• taking part in pandemic control, medical relief, transportation of relief supplies and necessities for daily life and production overseas;
• taking part in key engineering projects and organized labor exchanges, and getting employed;
  
• taking part in business, scientific and academic exchanges, and going overseas for studies or exams;
• seeking medical services;
• visiting or taking care of critically ill patients;
• dealing with funeral affairs of relatives;
• taking care of elderly people, children, pregnant and lying-in women;
• taking part in weddings or graduation ceremonies of relatives;
• dealing with personal emergency.

The above-mentioned requests are considered to be necessary for people who want to go abroad, as well as other unspecified personal requests that could be classified as urgent.

For Chinese citizens, the administration reiterated that it is not encouraged to travel abroad for sightseeing or visiting friends, adding that group overseas travel remains suspended.

Overseas travelling is still risky for the traveler's health as the global COVID-19 pandemic is far from over, noted the administration.