Foreign exchange control refers to the restrictive measures taken by a government to balance the international payments and maintain the exchange rate of its own currency. It is also called foreign exchange management in China. The government's international trade policy of restricting imports through laws and regulations to restrict international settlement and foreign exchange transactions.

Foreign exchange control is divided into quantity control and cost control. The former means that the State Administration of Foreign Exchange directly restricts and allocates the volume of foreign exchange transactions, and achieves the purpose of restricting exports by controlling the total amount of foreign exchange; The latter means that the State Administration of Foreign Exchange implements a multiple exchange rate system for foreign exchange transactions, and uses the differences in foreign exchange transaction costs to adjust the structure of imported goods.