The U.S. State Department has reinstated a wrongful detention warning for China, adding a "D" risk indicator to its travel advisory for the mainland on Oct. 19 while keeping the country at Level 2.
The advisory, which remains at the "Exercise Increased Caution" level, warns that Chinese authorities may enforce local laws arbitrarily and impose exit bans without a fair and transparent legal process, according to Voice of America.
The change follows the State Department's formal designation of two Americans held in China as wrongfully detained: seismologist Chen Youlin and Myanmar-born scholar Min Zin. President Donald Trump is due to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping twice in the next two months, and advocates expect both cases to come up.
In an emailed statement to VOA, the State Department said it had determined that Americans face a serious risk of wrongful detention in China. A department spokesperson told VOA that the Trump administration had no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans. The spokesperson said the administration was committed to securing the release of Americans wrongfully detained overseas.
Who faces heightened risk under the new China travel advisory
The department singles out several groups that may face greater danger of detention in China:
- Americans of Chinese descent
- People involved in business disputes
- Those with current or past ties to U.S. law enforcement, the military, intelligence agencies or the federal government
The House Select Committee on China described the new "D" indicator as a serious warning to all Americans in a social media post this week, VOA reported.
Who are Chen Youlin and Min Zin?
Chen, a Chinese American seismologist, had worked with Chinese researchers on a U.S. government-funded public research project that examined seismic signals from underground nuclear tests in North Korea, according to VOA.
Chinese authorities arrested him on Nov. 5, 2024, as he prepared to return to the United States after visiting family in China. On May 1, 2025, China accused him of espionage. The State Department designated his case as wrongful detention in March 2026.
Min Zin studies Myanmar politics and China-Myanmar relations. Chinese authorities detained him in June after he traveled to the southern province of Yunnan for a conference, VOA reported. Beijing accused him of suspected espionage that endangered China's national security. The State Department designated his case as wrongful detention on Aug. 20.
The designations make securing the release of both men a U.S. government priority.
Trump said he raised the cases of detained Americans and Chinese political prisoners with Xi during their White House meeting at the end of September. The State Department also confirmed to VOA that Washington had raised Chen's and Min Zin's cases directly with Beijing.
Chen's wife, Rong Yufang, welcomed the updated advisory in a written statement sent to VOA through Global Reach, a nonprofit working to free her husband. She thanked Secretary of State Marco Rubio, saying he had spent months trying to quietly resolve her husband's case. She added that Trump had asked Xi about Chen twice.
Aung Maw Zin, Min Zin's brother, told VOA that the family welcomed the reinstated warning. He called it a small but important step that could help spare other American families the ordeal his family has faced since June.
Why the warning was lifted in November 2024
The United States had previously placed China at Level 3, with a "D" indicator for wrongful detention. On Nov. 27, 2024, the State Department downgraded the advisory to Level 2 and removed the indicator. The change came after three Americans held in China for years were freed in a prisoner exchange between Washington and Beijing, according to VOA.
That decision came about three weeks after Chen's arrest. The warning has now been restored at the same Level 2 rating, with the wrongful detention indicator attached.
Pressure expected at Shenzhen APEC and Mar-a-Lago G20 summits
Eric Lebson, chief strategy officer at Global Reach, told VOA that the espionage allegations against Chen were fabricated.
Lebson said Trump could press for a resolution when he meets Xi at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen and at the G20 meeting at Mar-a-Lago. He said Xi should expect Trump to keep raising the case while the State Department increases the costs of holding the two U.S. citizens.
Beijing has rejected allegations of wrongful detention and maintains that its judicial authorities handle cases in accordance with the law, VOA reported. The Chinese Embassy in Washington had not responded to VOA's request for comment.