China News Service: As cross-border travel resumes, the ease of travel to China for foreigners has drawn wide attention. What policies and measures has the foreign ministry taken to facilitate travel to China by foreigners, and how are the effects?
Wang Wenbin: Since early this year, to support China’s high-quality development and high-level opening-up, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been improving visa and other relevant policies, worked with competent departments to roll out a number of facilitation measures, and asked our diplomatic missions overseas to make all-out efforts to ensure unimpeded channels for foreigners to travel to China.
Following the decision to manage COVID-19 with measures against Class-B infectious diseases, competent authorities and diplomatic missions of China resumed the issuance of multiple-entry visas and port visas as well as the policy of visa-free transit. Starting from March 15, issuance of tourist visas, visa exemption for certain regions and the use of multiple-entry visas issued before the pandemic are fully resumed; a number of measures have been adopted to improve visa issuance efficiency and green channels have been provided for groups for important and urgent business and humanitarian affairs. Starting from May 1, foreigners are allowed to enter China with virtual APEC Business Travel Cards. From July 26, unilateral visa-free policy for Singapore and Brunei is resumed. From mid-August, temporary exemption from fingerprinting is provided for eligible applicants for commercial, tourism and family-visiting purposes. From August 30, inbound travelers will no longer be required to take a pre-entry nucleic acid or antigen test for COVID-19. In addition, China has signed visa-exemption agreement with Kazakhstan, Madagascar and other countries this year, increasing the total number of mutual visa-exemption agreements to 155.
These measures have received positive response. Visa issuance by diplomatic missions has rebounded rapidly and the number of foreigners traveling to China has risen steadily. Going forward, the Foreign Ministry will continue to improve visa policies and work actively to create favorable conditions and provide more facilitation for cross-border travel.
(Source: Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin’s Regular Press Conference on September 1, 2023)