měi guó美国zàn tíng暂停zhōng guó中国gōng mín公民qián wǎng前往běi mǎ lǐ yà nà qún dǎo北马里亚纳群岛de的miǎn qiān免签jì huà计划
The U.S. government announced that, starting October 30, it will suspend the program that allows Chinese citizens to travel to the Northern Mariana Islands without a visa.
In the past, eligible Chinese tourists could stay there for up to 14 days as long as they first received electronic travel authorization.
The new measure applies to both new applicants and people who have already received authorization, but tourists who have already entered may stay until the end of their original permitted period.
In the future, most Chinese citizens will need to apply for a U.S. visa in order to travel there.
The U.S. government said it is suspending the program because of concerns about “birth tourism,” pressure on medical services, and security issues.
“Birth tourism” refers to foreigners going to the United States to give birth in the hope that their children will obtain U.S. citizenship.
The government is also concerned that some people may collect information at nearby U.S. military bases or illegally enter Guam by boat from the Northern Mariana Islands.
More than 3,000 Chinese citizens entered through this program in fiscal year 2025.
At present, the U.S. government is reviewing the risks of the program again and has not said when it will resume it.