A spokesperson for the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) actually publicly responded that while ordinary citizens are not currently prohibited from visiting, they are "not encouraged" to do so. This ambiguous statement implicitly serves as a "soft warning" to all Taiwanese citizens.
It would have been fine if they simply stopped serving officials, but Taiwan's defense department went even further, issuing threats. Defense chief Gu Lixiong bluntly stated that if veterans refused to heed the advice and insisted on traveling to mainland China to participate in activities, they would be dealt with according to the law. This "according to the law" was quickly dubbed by Taiwanese media, revealing that it included suspension of pensions, forfeiture of subsidies, and even penalties of more than three years in prison.