Visa Policy of The People's Republic of China

Visa Policy Of The People's Republic Of China

A Chinese visa is a permit issued by the Chinese visa authorities (Chinese embassies, consulates, and other offices authorized by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs) to a foreigner, that authorizes entry into, exit from, or transit through the People's Republic of China. Visa authorities may issue a Diplomatic, Courtesy, Official or Regular Visa to an alien, depending on his/her status and purpose of visit to China, and/or passport type.

If a foreigner (alien) intends to enter into, exit from or transit through Chinese territory, he/she must apply for a Chinese visa to the above-mentioned Chinese visa authorities, usually where they are located in countries outside China. This application does not need to be done in person, but for tourists the procurement of a Chinese visa usually requires presentation of the original "ordinary" (tourist) passport to the authority in question. The reason is that the visa document is affixed in the form of an adhesive non-removable permanent sticker to one of the ordinary passport's visa pages (i.e., usually the same pages upon which entry and exit stamps are placed in the passport by non-visa requiring countries). This process nominally requires a few days, requiring passports to be dropped off and picked up on separate days, as it cannot be done by mail. However, for an extra fee, the process may be done in many embassies and consulates in a few hours during a single working day. Since passports do not need to be presented by the holder, some third parties will provide this service. A single person in a travel group may also submit and retrieve passports to obtain visas for the others, so long as the application paperwork and signatures are in order.

The Government of the People's Republic of China allows citizens of a few specific countries (see below) to travel to the Chinese Mainland for tourism or business for up to 15 or 30 days without having to obtain a visa. However, these do not include countries in the Americas, the U.K., or Europe. Most foreign travellers to China (travel "to" China being defined as leaving the security zone of an international airport) are required to hold a visa. Exceptions to this requirement exist in certain parts of the country, such as Shanghai and Beijing, but not in most of the entry points into China.

China's visa policies are constantly changing, which has been the subject of both official comment and news reports. In fact, the Australian government warns its citizens: "The Chinese authorities have put in place more stringent requirements for visa issue.... Police authorities (Public Security Bureau) have tightened regulations and are stringently enforcing regulations for the issue and renewal of visas."