China's immigration authorities say border inspection services will remain available to Chinese citizens returning home because some nations and regions may prevent the entry or exit of passengers from areas closely linked to the country's coronavirus outbreak.

Chinese citizens can enter the country from any open port with valid passports or other entry-exit certificates, the National Immigration Administration said.  Immigration administrations at all levels will cooperate with medical and health institutions to carry out epidemic screening procedures and assist in properly processing passengers who need medical observation or quarantine, the agency said.

In order to effectively control the epidemic, some ports of the National Immigration Administration have adjusted the entry and exit management measures for Chinese citizens. The Municipal Public Security Bureau Exit-Entry Administration Department in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province, has suspended applications for ordinary passports and travel documents to Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Emergency cases will, however, be handled. 

For those who hold endorsements for travel to those three areas and fail to enter them within the valid period because of the epidemic, the Exit-Entry Administration Department will reissue documents of the same type and validity for free till the epidemic situation ends. 

Some ports have suspended self-inspection services and changed to manual inspection.

After the outbreak of the new coronavirus, immigration administrations at all levels have strengthened controls in cooperation with other departments to prevent the spread of the virus through exit-entry points. 

Wuhan Tianhe Airport Port and Wuhan Hankou River port have not had any passengers for four days, reported CGTN's Wu Guoxiu.