Foreign visitors who hold Special Economic Zone (SEZ) visas must leave the country through SEZ cities rather than other Chinese exits to avoid penalties, the Beijing Times quoted Shanghai's immigration police as saying.

A dozen foreign tourists had been stopped in the middle of their boarding checks to board overseas flights after being spotted carrying passports with SEZ visas at Pudong International Airport in the past month.

They were fined before being allowed to board their flights, and most of them were not acquainted with the visa rule.

Immigration police said that if foreign visitors enter the country with SEZ visas, then they must return to any of the open ports inside the zones to leave the mainland.

China's Special Economic Zones are Shenzhen, Shantou, Zhuhai and Xiamen cities as well as Hainan Province.

Source: SD-Agencies