Tax Newsflash

Since 11 January 2024, China’s National Immigration Administration (NIA) has officially launched five measures to ease the entry process for foreign nationals to visit China. This will simplify business activities, education, and tourism in China and make it more accessible for foreign nationals by removing obstacles related to such activities.

Following are the measures:

• Relaxed conditions for foreign nationals applying for port visas: Foreign nationals planning to visit China for non-diplomatic business, non-government affairs, investment, and entrepreneurship activities, visit relatives and personal reasons, who are unable to get visa processed due to time constraints are now allowed to apply for a port visa at a port visa authority, with an invitation letter and other accompanying documents.
  
  The above measure will widen the scope of port visa applications covering majority of the foreigners with urgent needs to visit China, a move to give full play of port visa and provide more convenient and flexible ways for foreign nationals’ entry to China.
  
  
• Foreign nationals eligible for 24-hour visa-free transit are exempted from border inspection at nine Chinese international airports, i.e. Beijing Capital International Airport, Beijing Daxing International Airport, Shanghai Pudong International Airport, Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport, Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport, Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport, Chengdu Tianfu International Airport, and Xi'an Xianyang International Airport.
  
  This measure will bring convenience and efficiency to foreigners amid international transit.
  
  
• Foreign nationals already in China are allowed to apply for visa extension, renewal, and reissuance at the nearest public security bureau (PSB). Foreigners in China with valid reasons for extending their short-term stays, due to non-diplomatic business, non- government affairs, investment, and entrepreneurship activities, visit relatives and personal reasons, may now submit their visa application to the nearest PSB rather than the one where the inviting party (company or individual) is located.
  
  The above measure is based on the preliminary pilot implementation to extend the "remote visa application" to all short-term non-diplomatic and non-government affairs in China, hence easing foreigners’ visa applications in China.
  
  
• Foreign nationals already in China are allowed to apply for a multiple-entry visa for valid reasons. Foreigners already in China can submit a multiple-entry visa application for legitimate reasons to PSB with an invitation letter and other relevant documents.
  
  For foreigners who have frequent travel needs to China for the purpose of project and business exchanges, this measure will greatly facilitate their work schedule.
  
  
• Reducing the materials for foreign nationals’ visa application in China: Foreigners whose invitation letter, residence registration record, inviting company’s business license and other supporting documents can be checked through the information sharing portal are no longer required to show the physical certificates during the visa application process. For visa application for short-term family visits or reunions with relatives in China, applicants may choose to submit a declaration of kinship in place of the formal kinship certificate.

Our View

In the past year, Chinese government introduced a series of measures to facilitate the entry and exit of foreigners, i.e. optimizing visa application forms, reducing visa fees, exempting foreigners from retaining passports when filing residence permits, and implementing unilateral visa exemption program for ordinary passport holders of six countries.

The five measures, being an extension of the current trend, aim to further ease foreigners’ entry to China and bring more entry-exit facilitation services for foreigners working and living in China. Chinese government will continuously collect feedback and comments from foreign nationals and relevant enterprises in China to optimize immigration policies and smoothen entry channels.

Authors:

Cecille Yang
National Leader of Immigration Services, Deloitte China
Partner
+86 21 6141 1440
cyang@deloitte.com.cn

Selina Yu
Director
+86 10 8512 5413
syu@deloitte.com.cn

Rachel Yao
Senior Manager
+86 10 8520 7715
ryao@deloitte.com.cn

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