Reporter of China Development and Reform News |Ji Xiaoli.
On January 28, China and Thailand signed an agreement on mutual visa exemption for ordinary passport holders. The agreement will enter into force on 1 March. Thailand is the third country to sign a visa waiver agreement with China this year, following Singapore and Antigua and Barbuda, to benefit ordinary passport holders. Up to now, the number of countries with such comprehensive visa exemption arrangements with China has increased to 23, covering five continents. After China and Singapore and China and Thailand reached a mutual visa exemption agreement, during the Spring Festival, the travel orders of Chinese tourists to Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand and the travel orders of Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand tourists to China increased significantly year-on-year.
The two countries or territories that have concluded the mutual visa exemption agreement can enjoy a visa-free stay in the other country, usually for 30 days, as long as their citizens hold a valid passport or international travel document as specified in the agreement. However, if you stay for more than 30 days, or if you are studying, living, working, etc., you still need to apply to the visa authority or competent authority of the other party before entering the country. The scope of comprehensive visa exemption includes not only diplomatic passports, service passports, official ordinary passports, etc., but also ordinary passports.
It is reported that up to now, China has concluded visa exemption agreements covering different passports with 157 countries, agreements or arrangements with 44 countries to simplify visa procedures, and comprehensive visa exemption with 23 countries, including Thailand, Singapore, Maldives and the United Arab Emirates. In addition, more than 60 countries and regions have granted visa-free or visa-on-arrival convenience to Chinese citizens.
The above-mentioned measures have made it more and more convenient for Chinese citizens to leave the country, and the 'gold content' of Chinese passports has become higher and higher, and it has also provided more convenience for foreigners to travel, work, study and live in China, which has been widely welcomed by the international community. *Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said in response to relevant questions at a regular press conference on January 31 that China's visa-free "circle of friends" continues to expand, and more and more countries have officially entered the "visa-free era", and its positive effects are constantly emerging.
According to the World Tourism Barometer report recently released by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (now UNWTO), international tourist arrivals will return to pre-pandemic levels in 2024. The report predicts that China's outbound and inbound tourism market will grow rapidly in 2024. The person in charge of the organization recently said that China's visa-free policy will help the world's tourism industry to pick up again, and the vigorous development of China's tourism industry will also drive the common development of tourism in neighboring countries.
Starting from December 2023, China has successively introduced a number of visa enhancement measures to further facilitate people-to-people exchanges between China and foreign countries, and has implemented a unilateral visa exemption policy for France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia. Chinese embassies and consulates abroad have taken phased measures to reduce or exempt visa fees for coming to China, and the fees will be charged at 75% of the current fee standard. Five measures to facilitate the arrival of foreign nationals in China have been officially implemented, further breaking down the blockages in the areas of business, study and tourism for foreigners coming to China.
At the same time, more and more countries are offering various forms of visa facilitation to Chinese citizens. France** recently announced that holders of a master's degree with Chinese study experience in France will be granted a 5-year visa; Switzerland will provide more visa facilitation for Chinese citizens and Chinese companies investing in Switzerland; Ireland expressed its willingness to actively consider providing more convenience for Chinese citizens to visit Ireland and welcome more Chinese enterprises to invest and set up businesses.
Data shows that in 2023, China will have 42.4 billion people entered and exited, an increase of 266 year-on-year5%；Among them, the number of foreigners increased by 693 year-on-year1%。*The relevant person in charge of the Consular Department said that China's confidence and determination to promote high-level opening-up have never changed, and China welcomes friends from all over the world to travel, do business, invest and study in China, and will continue to strive to provide more convenience for Chinese citizens to leave the country.