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How-to Chengdu: Visa & Passport |
The article by Klein Consulting Expatriation Services was first published in Chengdoo Citylife Magazine issue 5
This article was in chengdoo CITYLIFE magazine no.5 and written with information provided by Klein Consulting Expatriation Services. It is intended for rough reference purposes only. It is not legal consultation, and CHENGDOO citylife takes no responsibility for any injury, damage, or fiscal loss resulting from following it.
For more information on Klein Consulting, visit their <link=http://www.kces.eu]website</link>.
For those who live abroad, visas are generally a source of constant vexation. With constantly changing regulations and plenty of gray space between the black and white, not even professional agencies know every detail about every type of visas. If you are in the midst of or are planning to arrange your own visa — i.e., your visa is not arranged by your school or company — you will likely sooner or later encounter some sort of hassles or confusion.
To add to what is normally a frustrating process, with the Olympic Games drawing nearer, governmental authorities are keeping a closer watch on foreigner-related affairs. The watchful eye manifests itself in various ways, one of the most notable being seemingly arbitrary restrictions placed — sometimes with little or no warning — on the citizens of entire countries or regions from obtaining visas. Nor are these regulations necessarily consistent from city to city, or from province to province.
Of some assistance to the hapless foreigner in pursuit of a visa is the fact that Chengdu has about 20 agencies who are licensed to process visa paperwork; however, not all of them issue visas in Chengdu or even within Sichuan province, which can make later extensions or conversions of your visa difficult and time- and money-consuming. Additionally, as most of these generally cater to Chinese nationals going overseas — with the exception of the foreign agencies — not all have English-speaking representatives.
Of course the cheapest way to obtain a visa is to go directly to the Public Security Bureau (address at the end of this article) and apply yourself — but if you’re applying for anything other than a tourist visa or first-time tourist-visa extension, you’ll need official documentation provided by a company or school. The visa-application form is printed in Chinese and English, but not all officers employed at the foreigners’ counter speak English, so if your Chinese-language skills are limited it would be wise to bring somebody who can translate.
Additionally, if you are extending an already-existing tourist visa, you might be asked to provide documentation such as a hotel receipt, a police-registration form, and proof that you possess “sufficient” funds to travel in China.
As of recently, if you are converting your visa from one type to another, you cannot simply attach a photo to your application; the photo must be taken at the PSB.
The Visa Application Form of the People’s Republic of China that went into effect on Sept. 1, 2007 states that the normal visa-processing time is four days, but express service (two to three working days) or even one-day rush service options are also available.
Anybody who entered the country on a tourist (L) visa may extend it at least once for one month — and in most cases, a second month-long renewal is allowed. The law stipulates that those who overstay their visas will be fined RMB500 per day past visa-expiration date. In addition, the overstay will be entered on the visa holder’s record, and he or she will not be eligible to extend future visas.
Until recently, it was common practice for schools and companies to ask overseas hires to enter the country on a tourist visa, which would then be converted in-country. However, with increasingly stringent visa policies, this type of conversion is no longer allowed in country; therefore overseas hires are advised not to enter on tourist visas.
Schools have the right to cancel visas they have issued for students who do not pay tuition fees. Likewise, employees who do not complete their term of contract will face cancellation of their residence permit.
When all in-country visa extension and conversion options have been exhausted, people looking to stay on in China generally head down to Hong Kong, though it’s also possible to make a visa run to Thailand, Vietnam, or another nearby country. But with the Beijing Olympics rapidly approaching as well as the increase in political activity involving foreigners, the PSB is keeping a close eye on foreigners in China via our documentation. The days when one could walk into any of the numerous visa agencies in Hong Kong and pay around HK$1,000 for a year-long business visa are over; now those business visas cost substantially more and usually come with a 30-day duration of stay limitation attached — meaning even if it is a six-month visa, you are required to exit the country every 30 days — or face the RMB500-per-day overstay fee.
If you are going to Hong Kong to get an L visa, the cheapest way is to fly to Shenzhen (or, if you’re really on a tight budget, make the 30-hour train ride to Guangzhou and then catch the one-hour bullet train to Shenzhen) and cross the border via ferry or Shenzhen Metro/KCR and then go directly to the China visa office on Hong Kong Island. However, unless you have proper documentation (including an official invitation letter from a registered company), you won’t be able to get a business visa there. If you’re hoping for same-day visa service, you should plan to arrive at the office before 9 a.m.; if that’s not possible, you might be better off heading directly to an agency on Kowloon Island.
Visa costs vary depending on type, length of stay, number of entries, and nationality of the passport holder. This last factor depends largely on the arrangement China has made with the passport holder’s country — the most expensive visas go to citizens of Panama, Congo, Holland, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
If you lose your passport, you should first report it to the PSB, who will issue a proof of lost passport. With this document you can apply for a new passport from your country’s consulate or embassy. You will need to supply information exactly as it was recorded on your original passport; for this reason, it’s a good idea to always keep a copy of your passport and most recent visa. For further information, contact your country’s consulate or embassy (see page 39 for addresses, phone numbers, and web sites of foreign consulates in Chengdu).
The Chengdu Exit and Entry Administration Office of the Public Security Bureau is located at 144 Wenwu Lu. Phone: 86407067. 成都市公安局出入境管理处，文武路144号.
“report on the loss of foreigner passport”
Among the dozen or so phones and many other things I’ve lost or had stolen during my past two years in China was my passport. When it happened, I first went to the U.S. Consulate, where I was told that I needed to report it at my local police station.
There, I was told that there’s no reason for somebody to steal a passport: It can’t be reused or copied. The Public Security Bureau officer handed me a slip labeled "Report on the Loss of Foreigner Passport."
"Take that to the American Consulate," she said. As I walked out the building, I realized she had taken all of my photocopies of my previous passport and visas. I ran back inside to retrieve them.
"Those papers are ours now," she said.
"But they're my only proof of entry and clearance in China!"
"You can use that slip as your proof."
"No, I can't!" I whined. "I'm going to Ningxia soon! I need to show my passport at hotels when I check in."
"You don't have a passport," she said flatly, "and you're not leaving this city until you do."
The next day I got a temporary passport from the consulate and rushed to the PSB to get a visa.
Foiled.
Visas take five days, they informed me. No way to get one before I was supposed to leave.
The consulate said that after my travels, I could trade my emergency temporary passport for a 10-year one. In the end, I didn't bother to get a visa. I was just going to exchange my passport in a week anyway. I spent the interim traveling.
— Teed Tiggs
Currently the biggest problem the police has with foreigners in Chengdu is visa overstays. In that spirit, we bring you …
“i overstayed my visa once”*
I overstayed my visa once, about two years ago. It was completely accidental. At the time, I believed that the law allowed a one-week leniency period after the visa expiration date. Such was my fervor for this belief that I even successfully convinced the local police/paichusuo to file residency papers with my expired visa.
At the visa office, though, I quickly learned my error. With much tsk-tsking, immigration sternly demanded I pay the expired visa fine. A little talk and a lot of luck later, they waived the fine and granted me a visa extension. At the same time, they made a record of the expired visa in my file and explained that if I ever again allowed my visa to expire while I was in the country I would a) be forced to immediately leave the country and b) not again be eligible for a Chinese visa—meaning I wouldn’t be able to legally live or even visit.
— Anonymous
*This is an actual personal experience narrated here for entertainment purposes. It is not to be taken as indicative of standard or legal procedures.