The United States is considering placing new COVID-19 restrictions on arrivals from China, government officials said on Tuesday.

The officials, who requested anonymity, were cited by both Bloomberg and the Reuters news agency.

China is in the midst of an unprecedented surge in COVID-19 cases, and Beijing will soon allow citizens to leave the country again.

But observers say official statistics hide the true extent of the wave.

"There are mounting concerns in the international community on the ongoing COVID-19 surges in China and the lack of transparent data, including viral genomic sequence data, being reported from the PRC," the officials said, using the initials of the People's Republic of China.

China opening up

China's abandonment of COVID-zero policies have revived the prospect of outbound tourism for the first since early 2020.

From January 8, people landing in China — including returning Chinese nationals — will no longer have to quarantine for five days.

The passport application process will also resume from that date.

The announcement caused a surge in traffic to Chinese travel websites as airlines race to bring international routes back online.

Japan tightens rules for visitors from China

Elsewhere, Japan announced Tuesday that it will tighten its border by requiring tests for all visitors from China, starting Friday.

For now it is seen as a temporary emergency measure against the surging number of COVID infections there.

Last week, India mandated COVID tests for travelers arriving from China, Japan and several other Asian countries.

In response to questions about Indian and Japanese requirements for Chinese travelers, China's foreign ministry said on Tuesday that "COVID measures should be scientific, moderate and should not affect the normal flow of individuals."

Malaysia also announced increased additional tracking and surveillance measures in response to the situation in China.