Khanh Hoa Province will fine Chinese temporary visitors and force them to leave Vietnam if they are found to illegally work as tour guides and do business.

A illegal Chinese tour guide in Nha Trang. Photo Zing

The punitive measures against Chinese violators were confirmed by Nguyen Tan Tuan, vice secretary of Khanh Hoa Province’s Party Committee, according to Tuoi Tre newspaper. He said the immigration police would expel Chinese people who illegally work as tour guides and traders in the central province.

The provincial departments of tourism and labor-invalids-social affairs were told to enhance the monitoring of foreign guest workers in the province and take prompt sanctions against violators. Agencies will have to strictly tackle violations committed by Chinese tourists. 

Ngo Hoai Chung, deputy head of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), was quoted by the newspaper as saying that the agency has written to the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) complaining about Chinese tourists’ illegal actions in Vietnam like burning Vietnamese banknotes and working as tour guides.

“We have requested CNTA to verify the cases and work with Chinese travel companies which arranged Vietnam tours for those committing the violations,” Chung said.

Chung requested the authority of Khanh Hoa to instruct the local department of tourism to continue investigating illegal transactions conducted by Chinese and Vietnamese firms at tourist sites and shops frequented by Chinese tourists. He called for tough punitive measures against violators.

VNAT urged the tourism department of Danang City to collaborate with local police to verify reports by local media that illegal Chinese tour guides have been found to give Chinese travelers falsified information about Vietnam’s history.

The administration asked the General Department of Security under the Ministry of Public Security to check foreign businesses in Danang and fine and expel Chinese who use a tourist visa to enter Vietnam for guest work.

Danang and Nha Trang in Khanh Hoa Province have emerged as destinations for Chinese tourists in recent years.

SGT