Taiwan's China-born spouses caught in loyalty debate as rules tighten

When Li Chen-hsiu took her seat in Taiwan's legislature, the first question was not about policy but about belonging. A China-born citizen who gained Taiwanese nationality through marriage, she became the island's only lawmaker from that community — a tenure that lasted just two months before she was forced out.

Li's case has become a flashpoint in a broader debate over the loyalty of Taiwan's roughly 369,000 "mainland spouses." As Beijing intensifies military pressure on the island, the government has moved to tighten rules affecting this group, raising concerns among some that discrimination is creeping into policy.

Historically, many mainland spouses were brides of Nationalist soldiers who fled to China after the 1949 civil war. Mi Zhengrong, 72, met her late husband through relatives in Hubei province and later moved to Taiwan. She now lives on a modest pension and insists she has no desire to return to the mainland. "How many of us want to go back? No one wants to go back," she said.

Taiwan had spent years easing the path to citizenship for mainland spouses, shortening waiting periods and granting work rights. That trend has reversed. Last spring, authorities deported three women who had advocated for forceful unification with China, citing national security threats. Separately, about 12,000 spouses were ordered to prove they had cancelled their Chinese household registrations or risk losing their citizenship.

Li's expulsion came after officials said she failed to submit paperwork renouncing her Chinese citizenship in time. She maintains she has held Taiwanese citizenship since 1999 and met all requirements. Her party expelled her, and the government subsequently toughened standards for China-born legislators.

Deputy Mainland Affairs Council Minister Liang Wen-chieh defended the moves as purely procedural, saying the issue of unreported Chinese household registrations is a "systemic problem" that must be resolved. But some scholars see a different motive. "You can't move against the mainland, but you can bully the mainland spouses here, and use them to create hostility," said Bruce Liao, a law professor at National Chengchi University.

Others argue the state has legitimate security concerns. "The government has a compelling interest in protecting the safety of the country," said Yen-Tu Su, a researcher at Academia Sinica.

Mainland spouses remain legally distinct from other immigrants, waiting six years for citizenship instead of four and facing a longer ban on government jobs. Writer and activist Shangguan Luan, who moved to Taiwan in 2021, says she is constantly asked whether she takes orders from Beijing or works as a spy. She argues that mainland spouses are unlikely espionage targets. "The people who are most convenient targets are those closest to the secrets, in defense or tech," she said, "or those with social resources like businessmen and academics. There's no room for mainland spouses."