Visa-Free Processing Comes to Chongqing

IMPACT – Low

What are the changes? China has added the southwest municipality of Chongqing to its list of cities allowing 72-hour visa-free stays for travelers from 45 countries.

What does the change mean? Travelers from any one of 45 approved countries landing at Jiangbei International Airport in Chongqing will get visa-free processing, allowing stays of up to 72 hours.

• Implementation timeframe: November 2013.
• Visas/permits affected: Tourist visas.
• Who is affected: Travelers on short stays to one of five regions in China, including Chongqing.
• Impact on processing times: No impact.
• Business impact: No impact.

Background: Chongqing is the fifth city that China has opened to 72-hour visa-free travel. The program was launched on Jan. 1, and now includes Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu and Chongqing.

Travelers must be from one of the 45 countries, including the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Singapore and most EU countries. Travelers must also have purchased plane tickets departing within 72 hours of their arrival for onward travel to a third country or region, and they must hold a visa for the destination country.

BAL analysis: The visa-free transit will ease hassles of getting a visa for travelers from the 45 listed countries who are visiting for short stays within the five areas.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group and our network provider located in China. For additional information, please contact GlobalVisaGroup@bal.com.

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