Date: January 26, 2026
Location: Washington, D.C.
Organization: ChinaAid
WASHINGTON, D.C. — ChinaAid strongly condemns a newly adopted policy by China’s state-controlled Catholic authorities that confiscates and centrally controls all travel documents belonging to Catholic clergy, effectively placing priests, bishops, and nuns under Party-state–style personnel surveillance and movement restrictions.
On December 16, 2025, China’s Catholic “One Association, One Conference” — the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and the Bishops’ Conference of the Catholic Church in China — formally adopted a new internal regulation titled “Provisional Regulations on the Standardized Management of Exit-and-Entry Travel Documents for Catholic Clergy.”
This policy marks a significant escalation in the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) campaign to control religion, formally incorporating Catholic clergy into a “quasi-cadre management system” previously reserved for government officials and state-owned enterprise executives.
Key Provisions of the New Policy
Under the regulation:
• All Catholic clergy, including bishops, priests, deacons, and nuns, must surrender their passports and travel permits
• Documents are centrally stored by Party-controlled religious bodies or dioceses
• Clergy are prohibited from personally holding their own travel documents
• Any overseas travel, whether official or personal, requires:
• Written application at least 30 days in advance
• Detailed itinerary and stated purpose
• Signed commitment and post-travel accountability report
• Failure to comply may result in:
• Suspension of travel document processing
• Disciplinary action under church regulations and state religious-affairs rules
This system mirrors the CCP’s long-standing “border control” mechanisms used to restrict the movement of officials deemed politically sensitive.
A Direct Assault on Religious Freedom
Historically, Catholicism is a universal faith with essential international connections, including theological study, pastoral formation, academic exchange, and global synods. Under this new system, all legitimate religious engagement beyond China’s borders becomes subject to political approval.
Although labeled “provisional,” the regulation strongly signals long-term institutionalization. ChinaAid has also received information indicating that similar passport-confiscation systems are under consideration for Protestant clergy within the state-controlled Three-Self Patriotic Movement.
A Broader Pattern of Isolation and Control
This policy follows a clear trajectory in China’s domestic governance:
• Removal of English content from school examinations
• Elimination of foreign-language public signage
• Expansion of digital surveillance across civil society
• Now, direct control over clergy mobility
Together, these measures form what observers describe as a “new closed-door system,” isolating Chinese society, and especially religious communities, from the outside world.
ChinaAid Statement
“This policy marks a dangerous escalation in China’s war on religious freedom. By confiscating passports and imposing cadre-style controls on Catholic clergy, the Chinese Communist Party is transforming pastors and priests into state-managed security subjects. This is not ‘Sinicization’, it is the criminalization of faith and the systematic severing of China’s churches from the global religious community.”
Bob Fu, Founder and President of ChinaAid
Call to Action
ChinaAid urges:
• The United States government, European Union, and democratic partners to publicly condemn this policy
• The Vatican to seek immediate clarification and accountability
• The United Nations Special Rapporteurs on freedom of religion or belief to initiate urgent review
• International civil society to stand in solidarity with persecuted clergy and believers in China
About ChinaAid
ChinaAid is an international human rights organization committed to promoting religious freedom, the rule of law, and human dignity in China through advocacy, documentation, and humanitarian assistance.
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