On the 20th of June 2008 the Taipei Times reported that Kinmen and Matsu can be used by foreign nationals to enter China:

Effective immediately, Taiwanese and foreign nationals holding valid travel papers will be allowed to enter China via the outlying islands of Kinmen or Matsu, the Executive Yuan announced yesterday.

Previously, only certain Taiwanese residents were allowed to visit China via the “small three links.” They had to be either Kinmen or Matsu residents for more than six months, civil servants working on the islands or relatives and spouses of Kinmen or Matsu residents working in Taiwan. Taiwanese nationals meeting certain other requirements were also allowed to use the links.

I visited Kinmen a few years ago and tried to get a ticket to board a ferry to Xiamen in China’s southern Fujian Province (only 20mins, 2km to the coast). Of course they said no.

If you are a Mandarin scholarship student this is good news as it’s much cheaper to　visit China this way. It’s also much more interesting．　Best to wait till you have a multi-entry visa (ARC).

Kinmen island is about 33 km from Xiamen City and 296 km from Kaohsiung in southern Taiwan. Matsu is a group of 36 isles about 28 km from the Fujian coast and 211 km from the main Taiwan island.

Update

For more information you can have a look at the Taiwan Journal’s article:

Cabinet expands mini links with mainland

Also, this ongoing discussion at forumosa.com has some interesting information:

Ferry from Jinmen/Mazu to Xiamen/Fuzhou

Q. Can anyone confirm whether or not foreign nationals can actually use these ferry services to travel from Taiwan to China.

A. Yes. That’s what the Chairwoman of the Mainland Affairs Council reported to the ECCT at a meeting this afternoon, as I translated for her yesterday. But she also added that, since Beijing still hadn’t adjusted its position on the status of the three small links, foreigners would not yet be able to make the journey in the other direction, though it was hoped this could be changed through future cross-strait talks.

If the information above is correct going from Kinmen to Xiamen or Matzu to Fuzhou should be possible although returning to Taiwan the same way could be tricky, if not impossible for now. Another poster brought up fact that obtaining a Chinese visa in Taiwan is very expensive. I got some quotes for Chinese visas which ranged from NT$2500 (US$85) to NT8500 (US$285)!

The only problem with travel in any direction, however, is that visas are still not issued in Taiwan. Going to China via Kinmen (Jinmen) will be very cheap but not if travel agents still have to apply for your visa through the Hong Kong visa office. Furthermore, if you have to fly back to Taiwan via HK, you might as well fly via HK, as the price for a one-way or return is about the same. This is just more empty symbolism from the Ma admin.

Update: Just came accross the information below about a new ferry from Kinmen (金門) to Xiamen (廈門). The new route, opened on August 31 2008, is only 13 kilometers and is the third to be opened between Kinmen and Chinese mainland.

New ferry route opens between Kinmen (金門) and Xiamen (廈門)
Golden Star ferry operates the ferry services on the new route which links Shuitou wharf on Taiwan’’s Kinmen Island and Wutong wharf in Xiamen, southern China. This new route which was launched on August 31st will reduce the travel time between Kinmen and Xiamen from one hour to thirty minutes. Wutong is only a 10-minute ride away from Gaochi International Airport in Xiamen from which passengers can fly to other Chinese cities. A normal China visa will still be required for foreigners traveling this route.

New bus routes have been added in order to provide passengers easy access to downtown Xiamen, the Convention Center, railway station, and its main bus station .