A New York Times journalist left China on Thursday after the Government refused to grant him a new visa.

Austin Ramzy, 39, said he had passed through immigration at Beijing’s main airport and was waiting to board a flight to Taiwan.

The Beijing-based Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China (FCCC) said it “strongly regrets” the Chinese Government’s action.

“Suggestions by Chinese officials that Mr Ramzy did not correctly comply with Chinese visa regulations are disingenuous,” the FCCC said.

The Foreign Ministry has said Ramzy failed to comply with visa regulations during a change of employer.

“The regulations are unclear and have not been applied to other journalists in similar situations to that of Ramzy,” it said.

Ramzy, a US citizen, is the third New York Times journalist denied a visa in the past 18 months.

“In these circumstances it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that the authorities are punishing the New York Times for articles it published concerning [the wealth of former] premier Wen Jiabao and his family,” the FCCC said.

“Such behaviour falls well short of international standards,” it said.

Ramzy is expected to continue working for the newspaper in Taiwan or Hong Kong. He had worked in China for six years, leaving Time magazine for the New York Times in April.

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