At a press briefing held on 30 March by the State Council inter-agency task force on the COVID-19 outbreak, Li Yang, Director-General for International Cooperation of the Ministry of Transport, said China will keep 34 out of its 65 land ports of entry open, but only to cross-border cargo transport, and all passenger services by road will be suspended. Every day, some 2,000 drivers and conductors of freight vehicles enter China through those border stations, and about 8,000 cargo truck drivers enter the mainland from Hong Kong and Macao.

According to the requirements of relevant departments, all inbound foreign drivers must return on the same day of entry, and Chinese drivers engaged in international shipping must have their information filed on record for management, and take nucleic acid tests on a regular basis.

Meanwhile, passenger services will be suspended for all the 128 river and sea ports of entry. According to Li, China receives an average of 500 international cargo vessels per day, with around 7,000 seafarers onboard. Relevant departments require all international vessels to make a declaration and report the health conditions of crew members 48 hours prior to docking at a Chinese port.