The Ministry of Public Security announced February 3 that it allowed nearly 4.3 million Chinese citizens to leave the country for personal matters last year, 50.8% higher than in 1998, setting a historical high.

The number of Chinese permitted to reside abroad dropped. But, the number of Chinese allowed to visit Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, travel abroad, visit relatives and friends living abroad and study abroad all went up.

Last year, 2.9 million Chinese were allowed to go abroad, a 52.2% increase from the year before. 1.32 million mainland residents were permitted to visit Hong Kong and Macao, a 48.6% increase. 92,000 mainland residents were permitted to visit Taiwan for personal affairs, a nearly 40% increase.

1.93 million Chinese received approval to travel abroad, the number one reason why Chinese wanted to go abroad, a 60% increase. 536,000 Chinese went overseas to visit relatives or friends, up 51%. The number of approvals for Chinese seeking to move overseas has continued to drop, 58,000 Chinese were allowed to leave, down 6.5%. The number of Chinese students who pay for the expenses to study abroad themselves permitted to leave has continued to increase, reaching 80,000 last year, up 60% from the year before.