TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chen Ming-tong (陳明通) said on Monday (May 6) that about 100,000 Taiwan nationals have applied for China residence permits, Central News Agency reported on Monday.

Chen made the statement in answer to Kuomintang (KMT) Legislator Lin Li-chan's (林麗蟬) question about whether the MAC knew how many Taiwan citizens had applied for China residence permits. Chen said that China had at first detailed the numbers of applicants itself, but later stopped doing so.

Chen added that a registration mechanism will be set up to keep track of how many Taiwan nationals apply for China residence permits.

In the future, Taiwan nationals who apply for China residence permits but fail to register will be fined NT$10,000 to NT$50,000, he said, adding the exact sum is still being negotiated.

The minister also said Taiwan nationals who live in China and have residence permits will be barred from taking part in Taiwan's civil service examinations, or entering the civil service for a determined period of time after foregoing their China residence permits. Chen said a five- or 10-year hiatus is being discussed.