TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Taiwan's Immigration Department said 337 Chinese nationals were caught breaking the law for crimes like burglary, fraud and other anti-social behavior while visiting on tourist visas during Jan.-May 2018, in a press statement on July 20.

The Immigration Department said it will work to continue to maintain Taiwan's rule of law and quality tourism environment, and to review the entry of Chinese tourists according to the legal frameworks enabling cross-strait tourism.

The Immigration Department said that some Chinese nationals had come to Taiwan to deliberately break the law and conditions of their tourist visa. In doing so, some of these people had damaged social custom, worked illegally, lived inconsistently with the legal provisions of their stay and overstayed their welcome.

The department said that these people had affected the stability of society.

The Immigration Department will continue to monitor and review the entry of Chinese nationals, in order for all tourists to have a safe, democratic and friendly tourism environment in Taiwan, the statement said.

Permission for Chinese nationals to visit Taiwan is subject to an application process, in which the Immigration Department examines the nature of the visit and the character of the applicant. If the application is submitted in-line with regulation, the relevant visa will be issued within two days.

The department stressed that only applications by those who fall under suspicion, submit incomplete applications, or supply fake documents will face stronger scrutiny.

According to statistics from the Immigration Department, the total number of Chinese tourists who visited Taiwan during Jan.-June 2018 increased by 19,212, when compared to the previous year.

The Immigration Department stressed that it continues to sincerely welcome Chinese tourists.