More Taiwanese Return to Mainland China Despite Travel Warning

More Taiwanese residents are heading back to mainland China this year, with official statistics and recent reports pointing to a clear rise in cross-strait travel even as Taipei continues to classify such trips as high risk.

Visits Climb Back Toward Pre-Pandemic Levels

Publicly available figures show that travel from Taiwan to mainland China has been rising steadily over the past two years. Data cited by Taiwan’s Ministry of Transportation and Communications indicated that trips by Taiwanese to China grew by around 16 to 17 percent in 2025, yet still remained nearly one fifth below pre-Covid numbers. At the same time, the National Immigration Agency listed mainland China as the second most popular destination for Taiwanese that year, with more than 3.23 million visits, behind only Japan.

Additional information released by the Mainland Affairs Council and summarized in local coverage suggests that the upward trend has continued into 2026. Reports indicate that Taiwanese visits to China increased from about 2.77 million in 2024 to more than 3.2 million in 2025, and that year-on-year growth this year is close to 20 percent based on the most recent counts available. While the total volume has not fully returned to the peak levels seen before 2020, the pace of recovery underscores how quickly travel demand has revived once borders and flight links reopened.

On the mainland side, officials from China’s Taiwan Affairs Office have also highlighted the rebound, pointing to statistics from the National Immigration Administration that counted roughly 2.85 million trips by Taiwanese to mainland China in the first half of 2026 alone, representing a year-on-year increase of nearly 25 percent. Taken together, the two sides’ numbers show a consistent direction: more Taiwanese are choosing to cross the Taiwan Strait again for work, family visits, study, business and tourism.

Orange Travel Alert Fails to Deter Individual Travelers

The expansion in cross-strait travel is occurring against a backdrop of continued caution from Taiwan’s government. Since 2020, mainland China has been under an orange travel alert issued by Taipei, meaning authorities advise the public to avoid non-essential trips. The warning has not been downgraded, even as other regional destinations have seen their alerts eased or removed following the pandemic recovery.

In an April 2026 clarification, the Mainland Affairs Council reiterated that it considers travel to mainland China to carry elevated risks, citing hundreds of cases since early 2024 in which Taiwanese have been reported missing, questioned or detained after entering the mainland. According to the figures released in that statement, more than 300 such cases were recorded between January 2024 and the end of March 2026, many of them tied to fraud-related investigations and disputes.

Despite these concerns, the sustained growth in trips suggests that many Taiwanese are weighing the warning against personal or economic needs. For business travelers with supply chains and clients on the mainland, as well as families split between the two sides, the necessity of travel often outweighs the perceived risk. The absence of large organized tour groups has not stopped individuals from booking flights, buying packages marketed as “independent travel,” or arranging visits through relatives and community networks.

Group Tour Ban Shapes Who Is Traveling

One key factor shaping the rebound is Taiwan’s continued prohibition on standard travel-agency group tours to mainland China. The measure, introduced amid political tensions and security concerns, remained in place through 2025 and into 2026. Official notices stress that licensed tour operators in Taiwan are not permitted to organize regular package tours to Chinese destinations, even though demand exists in the industry.

Industry-focused reporting in Taipei points out that this has led to a more fragmented pattern of travel. Without traditional groups, the majority of Taiwanese visitors heading to China are individuals, small family parties, business delegations or travelers joining activities under other categories such as religious exchanges or visits to relatives. Some agencies have marketed “alternative tours” that bundle flights and hotels while formally classifying trips under non-tourism labels, a workaround that has drawn scrutiny from regulators.

The structure of outbound travel helps explain why overall numbers are rising while tour-bus sightseeing remains far less visible than before. Travelers who are more experienced, have strong ties across the strait or are driven by professional obligations are returning first, while more casual holidaymakers, who previously relied on low-cost group packages, appear to be slower to come back in large numbers.

Policy Moves and New Routes Encourage Mobility

Policy steps on both sides of the strait have also nudged travel upwards. On the Chinese side, the Taiwan Affairs Office has promoted a series of measures since 2024 to facilitate visits by Taiwan residents, including simplifying applications for mainland travel permits and expanding the number of coastal and inland cities handling documents for Taiwanese travelers. Statements from Beijing in April 2026, following a high-profile opposition party visit, also mentioned plans to resume or add direct flights linking Taiwanese airports with mainland cities such as Xi’an and Urumqi, although implementation details remain limited on the Taiwan side.

Simplified border procedures in Taiwan have contributed as well. The National Immigration Agency has continued upgrading its e-Gate system at airports, allowing eligible travelers with electronic passports or residence permits to clear immigration more quickly. Official descriptions of the system note that adults who meet height and documentation requirements can process both departure and arrival through automated gates, reducing congestion for popular outbound routes including those to mainland China.

Airline scheduling has gradually adjusted to the renewed demand. Major carriers based in Taiwan and on the mainland have been restoring frequencies on key cross-strait corridors connecting Taipei and Kaohsiung with hubs like Shanghai, Beijing, Xiamen and Guangzhou. While detailed 2026 route maps and seat capacity figures are still catching up to pre-2019 levels, passengers currently booking tickets encounter a broader range of nonstop and one-stop options than were available even a year earlier.

Safety, Politics and the Future of Two-Way Tourism

Safety concerns and political tensions continue to cast a shadow over the travel rebound. Statistics compiled by the Mainland Affairs Council and reported by local media show that, in addition to general consular assistance cases, more than 400 Taiwanese have been reported missing, questioned or detained in mainland China since the beginning of 2024. Discussions in Taiwan’s legislature have frequently highlighted these numbers when debating whether to further restrict, or alternatively normalize, cross-strait tourism.

At the same time, opinion surveys commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council in late 2025 suggested that a majority of respondents favor a cautious approach to reopening broader tourism ties, particularly when it comes to allowing large numbers of Chinese group tourists back into Taiwan. More than seven in ten respondents supported linking any full resumption of two-way tourism to formal communication mechanisms that can address safety, verification and regulatory issues on both sides.

The current pattern leaves cross-strait tourism in a lopsided state. Far more Taiwanese are now traveling to mainland China than mainland Chinese tourists are visiting Taiwan, due partly to Taipei’s restrictions and Beijing’s own controls on outbound group travel to the island. As 2026 progresses, further changes in flight links, permit policies or travel alerts could shift the balance again. For now, the numbers show a clear reality for travelers: even in a period of political friction and official caution, more Taiwanese are choosing to cross the strait for work, family and exploration in mainland China.