The action was essential to safeguard security amid deepening cross-strait tensions, according to the island’s government.

The cancellations were carried out under an article in the “Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area”, which bars Taiwanese citizens from applying for household registration or passports in mainland China.

People caught violating the rules could lose their Taiwan household registration, effectively forfeiting their citizenship – including their ID cards, passports, voting rights and government-backed health insurance.

Chiu Chui-cheng, head of the Mainland Affairs Council – the island’s top cross-strait policy planner – said the regulation clearly stated that citizens were banned from applying for household registration or passports in mainland China, and that violations would result in their Taiwan status being revoked.