Coronavirus: foreigners who flout quarantine rules could face 10-year ban from China
- Immigration authority issues stern warning as Beijing steps up its efforts to prevent a second wave of Covid-19 cases being imported from overseas
- ‘Virus knows no national borders. Everyone around the world must take responsibility in fighting the epidemic,’ it says
The warning, from the National Immigration Administration, came as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases involving overseas travellers, who account for the bulk of the new infections, has surged over the past week.
Just as Chinese citizens face being fined or detained for refusing temperature checks or flouting isolation rules, so quarantine evaders from other countries will be held accountable under Chinese law, the agency said in a statement on its website.
Alongside a list of relevant laws and regulations, it said public securities authorities would decide on how foreign violators should be punished, with the penalties ranging from cancelling a visa, to issuing an order to exit China within a time limit, repatriation or deportation.
People who are effectively expelled from China are not allowed to re-enter the country for between 12 months and 10 years.
“The virus knows no national borders. Everyone around the world must take responsibility in fighting the epidemic,” the notice said.
China reported 46 new cases on Friday, 42 of which were imported from overseas, the National Health Commission said. New infections rose to a two-week high of 63 on Wednesday, of which 61 were imported.