Several airports have started requiring Chinese passengers to present their ID cards to board domestic flights despite the fact they made the bookings with passports, causing confusion among fliers.
The new security rule had been introduced without notice at several airports by Monday afternoon.
According to customer service employees at airports that have adopted the rule, including Shanghai Hong¬qiao and Guangzhou Baiyun international airports, the practice started on May 8 and is a result of new guidelines from the Civil Aviation Administration of China.
China Daily reporters contacted 29 airports in the four municipalities as well as 24 provincial and regional capitals on Monday. Customer service employees at 13 airports said Chinese passengers must present ID cards to fly domestically, even as a stopover on an international flight that was booked with a passport.
Details of the guidelines remain unknown, and the CAAC declined to comment.
The change has affected many passengers, including those who earlier traveled abroad with only a passport yet found they had to wait up to several hours for a temporary travel permit before they were allowed to transfer onto a domestic flight.
Chinese people who work and study abroad are among those affected.
"Many students, including me, usually leave our Chinese ID cards at home because they are no use in the US and we can board domestic flights in China with our passports," said Li Ye, 21, who is studying in New York.
"Many of my friends have decided to fly directly or stop over in foreign cities to bypass the new rule," she said.
Customer service employees at Shanghai Pudong and Beijing Capital international airports said Chinese passengers could still travel on domestic flights with passports, as they had not received any orders to the contrary.
"We strongly suggest people carry their ID cards if they plan to travel with their passports because the new rule may come into effect soon," a security officer at Shanghai Pudong International Airport said on Monday.
