Chinese government officials ban LDS Church activities in Beijing

BEIJING, China (ABC4) — Government officials in Beijing released an announcement last week banning activities of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

On Sunday, June 22, the Civil Affairs Bureau of Chaoyang District of Beijing announced it was banning the “Mormon Beijing Branch.” The bureau cited a 1998 agreement between the United States and China.

The agreement reads as follows:

“The registration and management bureau must cancel the registration of social organizations that engage in fraudulent or deceptive activity when applying for registration or that have not conducted activities within one year of receiving the ‘Social Organization Legal Entity Registration Certificate.'”

In response, Doug Anderson, global director of Media Relations for the Church, said, “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints strives to honor, obey, and sustain the law in every country and encourages its members to do the same.”

The ban comes amid recent crackdowns by the Chinese Government on foreign religious groups.

In March 2025, China’s National Religious Affairs Administration issued an order implementing tighter restrictions on many religious groups, according to Chinese State Media.

The order requires foreign religious organizers to “have no hostile words or deeds against China, have no negative records.”

Groups are now required to provide city officials with a number of details of the religion’s activities including “time arrangement, activity methods, number of activities, number of participants, security measures, etc.,” the order states.

“In places where laws are evolving and subject to interpretation, it seeks understanding through dialog and adapts to changing environments as needed,” Anderson added.

On April 5, 2020, in a stunning announcement, President Russel M. Nelson announced construction of a Latter-day Saint temple in Shanghai, China. However, no groundbreaking date has been released.