An act to promote access for United States diplomats and other officials, journalists, and other citizens to Tibetan areas of the People's Republic of China, and for other purposes
PL 115-330 (H.R.1872), enacted 12/19/2018

132 STAT. 4479 
PUBLIC LAW 115–330—DEC. 19, 2018 
Public Law 115–330 
115th Congress 
An Act 
To promote access for United States diplomats and other officials, journalists, and 
other citizens to Tibetan areas of the People’s Republic of China, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act 
of 2018’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The Government of the People’s Republic of China does 
not grant United States diplomats and other officials, journal-
ists, and other citizens access to China on a basis that is 
reciprocal to the access that the Government of the United 
States grants Chinese diplomats and other officials, journalists, 
and citizens. 
(2) The Government of China imposes greater restrictions 
on travel to Tibetan areas than to other areas of China. 
(3) Officials of China have stated that Tibet is open to 
foreign visitors. 
(4) The Government of China is promoting tourism in 
Tibetan areas, and at the Sixth Tibet Work Forum in August 
2015, Premier Li Keqiang called for Tibet to build ‘‘major world 
tourism destinations’’. 
(5) The Government of China requires foreigners to obtain 
permission from the Tibet Foreign and Overseas Affairs Office 
or from the Tibet Tourism Bureau to enter the Tibet Autono-
mous Region, a restriction that is not imposed on travel to 
any other provincial-level jurisdiction in China. 
(6) The Department of State reports that— 
(A) officials of the Government of the United States 
submitted 39 requests for diplomatic access to the Tibet 
Autonomous Region between May 2011 and July 2015, 
but only four were granted; and 
(B) when such requests are granted, diplomatic per-
sonnel are closely supervised and given few opportunities 
to meet local residents not approved by authorities. 
(7) The Government of China delayed United States con-
sular access for more than 48 hours after an October 28, 2013, 
bus crash in the Tibet Autonomous Region, in which three 
citizens of the United States died and more than a dozen 
others, all from Walnut, California, were injured, undermining 
Reciprocal Access 
to Tibet Act 
of 2018. 
8 USC 1182 note. 
Dec. 19, 2018 
[H.R. 1872] 
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132 STAT. 4480 
PUBLIC LAW 115–330—DEC. 19, 2018 
the ability of the Government of the United States to provide 
consular services to the victims and their families, and failing 
to meet China’s obligations under the Convention on Consular 
Relations, done at Vienna April 24, 1963 (21 UST 77). 
(8) Following a 2015 earthquake that trapped dozens of 
citizens of the United States in the Tibet Autonomous Region, 
the United States Consulate General in Chengdu faced signifi-
cant challenges in providing emergency consular assistance 
due to a lack of consular access. 
(9) The Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 
2015 of the Department of State stated ‘‘With the exception 
of a few highly controlled trips, the Chinese government also 
denied multiple requests by foreign diplomats for permission 
to visit the TAR.’’. 
(10) Tibetan-Americans, attempting to visit their homeland, 
report having to undergo a discriminatory visa application 
process, different from what is typically required, at the Chinese 
embassy and consulates in the United States, and often find 
their requests to travel denied. 
(11) The Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 
2016 of the Department of State stated ‘‘The few visits to 
the TAR by diplomats and journalists that were allowed were 
tightly controlled by local authorities.’’. 
(12) A September 2016 article in the Washington Post 
reported that ‘‘The Tibet Autonomous Region . . . is harder 
to visit as a journalist than North Korea.’’. 
(13) The Government of China has failed to respond posi-
tively to requests from the Government of the United States 
to open a consulate in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region. 
(14) The Foreign Correspondents Club of China reports 
that— 
(A) 2008 rules prevent foreign reporters from visiting 
the Tibet Autonomous Region without prior permission 
from the Government of such Region; 
(B) such permission has only rarely been granted; and 
(C) although the 2008 rules allow journalists to travel 
freely in other parts of China, Tibetan areas outside such 
Region remain ‘‘effectively off-limits to foreign reporters’’. 
(15) The Department of State reports that in addition to 
having to obtain permission to enter the Tibet Autonomous 
Region, foreign tourists— 
(A) must be accompanied at all times by a government- 
designated tour guide; 
(B) are rarely granted permission to enter the region 
by road; 
(C) are largely barred from visiting around the March 
anniversary of a 1959 Tibetan uprising; and 
(D) are banned from visiting the area where Larung 
Gar, the world’s largest center for the study of Tibetan 
Buddhism, and the site of a large-scale campaign to expel 
students and demolish living quarters, is located. 
(16) Foreign visitors also face restrictions in their ability 
to travel freely in Tibetan areas outside the Tibet Autonomous 
Region. 
(17) The Government of the United States generally allows 
journalists and other citizens of China to travel freely within 
the United States. The Government of the United States 
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132 STAT. 4481 
PUBLIC LAW 115–330—DEC. 19, 2018 
requires diplomats from China to notify the Department of 
State of their travel plans, and in certain situations, the 
Government of the United States requires such diplomats to 
obtain approval from the Department of State before travel. 
However, where approval is required, it is almost always 
granted expeditiously. 
(18) The United States regularly grants visas to Chinese 
diplomats and other officials, scholars, and others who travel 
to the United States to discuss, promote, and display the 
perspective of the Government of China on the situation in 
Tibetan areas, even as the Government of China restricts the 
ability of citizens of the United States to travel to Tibetan 
areas to gain their own perspective. 
(19) Chinese diplomats based in the United States generally 
avail themselves of the freedom to travel to United States 
cities and lobby city councils, mayors, and governors to refrain 
from passing resolutions, issuing proclamations, or making 
statements of concern on Tibet. 
(20) The Government of China characterizes statements 
made by officials of the United States about the situation 
in Tibetan areas as inappropriate interference in the internal 
affairs of China. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES.—The term 
‘‘appropriate congressional committees’’ means— 
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary of the Senate; and 
(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives. 
(2) TIBETAN AREAS.—The term ‘‘Tibetan areas’’ includes— 
(A) the Tibet Autonomous Region; and 
(B) the areas that the Chinese Government designates 
as Tibetan Autonomous, as follows: 
(i) Kanlho (Gannan) Tibetan Autonomous Prefec-
ture, and Pari (Tianzhu) Tibetan Autonomous County 
located in Gansu Province. 
(ii) Golog (Guoluo) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, 
Malho (Huangnan) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, 
Tsojang (Haibei) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, 
Tsolho (Hainan) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, 
Tsonub (Haixi) Mongolian and Tibetan Autonomous 
Prefecture, and Yulshul (Yushu) Tibetan Autonomous 
Prefecture, located in Qinghai Province. 
(iii) Garze (Ganzi) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, 
Ngawa (Aba) Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefec-
ture, and Muli (Mili) Tibetan Autonomous County, 
located in Sichuan Province. 
(iv) Dechen (Diqing) Tibetan Autonomous Prefec-
ture, located in Yunnan Province. 
SEC. 4. ANNUAL REPORT ON ACCESS TO TIBETAN AREAS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for the following 
five years, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees, and make available to the public on 
the website of the Department of State, a report that includes 
Time period. 
Public 
information. 
Web posting. 
Assessment. 
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132 STAT. 4482 
PUBLIC LAW 115–330—DEC. 19, 2018 
an assessment of the level of access Chinese authorities granted 
diplomats and other officials, journalists, and tourists from the 
United States to Tibetan areas, including— 
(1) a comparison with the level of access granted to other 
areas of China; 
(2) a comparison between the levels of access granted to 
Tibetan and non-Tibetan areas in relevant provinces; 
(3) a comparison of the level of access in the reporting 
year and the previous reporting year; and 
(4) a description of the required permits and other meas-
ures that impede the freedom to travel in Tibetan areas. 
(b) CONSOLIDATION.—After the issuance of the first report 
required by subsection (a), the Secretary of State is authorized 
to incorporate subsequent reports required by subsection (a) into 
other publicly available, annual reports produced by the Depart-
ment of State, provided they are submitted to the appropriate 
congressional committees in a manner specifying that they are 
being submitted in fulfillment of the requirements of this Act. 
SEC. 5. INADMISSIBILITY OF CERTAIN ALIENS. 
(a) INELIGIBILITY
FOR VISAS.—No individual whom the Sec-
retary of State has determined to be substantially involved in 
the formulation or execution of policies related to access for for-
eigners to Tibetan areas may be eligible to receive a visa to enter 
the United States or be admitted to the United States if the Sec-
retary of State determines that— 
(1)(A) the requirement for specific official permission for 
foreigners to enter the Tibetan Autonomous Region remains 
in effect; or 
(B) such requirement has been replaced by a regulation 
that has a similar effect and requires foreign travelers to gain 
a level of permission to enter the Tibet Autonomous Region 
that is not required for travel to other provinces in China; 
and 
(2) restrictions on travel by diplomats and other officials, 
journalists, and citizens of the United States to areas des-
ignated as ‘‘Tibetan Autonomous’’ in the provinces of Sichuan, 
Qinghai, Yunnan, and Gansu of China are greater than any 
restrictions on travel by such officials and citizens to areas 
in such provinces that are not so designated. 
(b) CURRENT VISAS REVOKED.—The Secretary of State shall 
revoke, in accordance with section 221(i) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1201(i)), the visa or other documentation 
to enter or be present in the United States issued for an alien 
who would be ineligible to receive such a visa or documentation 
under subsection (a). 
(c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than one year after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for 
the following five years, the Secretary of State shall provide to 
the appropriate congressional committees a report identifying the 
individuals who have had visas denied or revoked pursuant to 
this section during the preceding year and, to the extent practicable, 
a list of Chinese officials who were substantially involved in the 
formulation or execution of policies to restrict access of United 
States diplomats and other officials, journalists, and citizens of 
the United States to Tibetan areas. The report required by this 
Time period. 
List. 
Determination. 
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132 STAT. 4483 
PUBLIC LAW 115–330—DEC. 19, 2018 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—H.R. 1872: 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 164 (2018): 
Sept. 25, considered and passed House. 
Dec. 11, considered and passed Senate. 
subsection shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include 
a classified annex. 
(d) WAIVER FOR NATIONAL INTEREST.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State may waive the 
application of subsection (a) or (b) in the case of an alien 
if the Secretary determines that such a waiver— 
(A) is necessary to permit the United States to comply 
with the Agreement Regarding the Headquarters of the 
United Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, 
and entered into force November 21, 1947 (TIAS 1676), 
or any other applicable international obligation of the 
United States; or 
(B) is in the national interest of the United States. 
(2) NOTIFICATION.—Upon granting a waiver under para-
graph (1), the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees a document detailing the evidence 
and justification for the necessity of such waiver, including, 
if such waiver is granted pursuant to paragraph (1)(B), how 
such waiver relates to the national interest of the United States. 
SEC. 6. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of State, when 
granting diplomats and other officials from China access to parts 
of the United States, including consular access, should take into 
account the extent to which the Government of China grants dip-
lomats and other officials from the United States access to parts 
of China, including the level of access afforded to such diplomats 
and other officials to Tibetan areas. 
Approved December 19, 2018. 
Determination. 
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