Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - China Visa at Airport?????????????????

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China Visa at Airport?????????????????

Is it possible to get a double entry Chinese Visa at the airport? We are from USA and would be traveling in two and a half weeks.

Last I did it, which was a couple of years ago it was NOT possible to get a visa at the airport. You may need a visa service to rush it for you.

For Americans it is not even possible to get a single entry visa at the airport. If I were you - with only 2 weeks until departure - I would get to the Chinese embassy pretty quickly. If you don't live in a city with a Chinese embassy or consulate, I would hire a visa service to express process your visa application with the nearest Chinese embassy. Good luck.

I was told that one can get a visa in Hong Kong for entry in to China-- but that you would need to stay over 24 hours for it to be processed. Not sure if they can do "double" entry-- but I seem to recall that it can be done. Another option is to contact Express Visa Service in NY or Washington-- they can do it quickly. Good luck!

This may be too late for Wendy but others may find it useful. There is an outfit here in the US as well as in Hong Kong: CTS San Francisco 575 Sutter Street, L/F San Francisco, CA 94102, USA Tel: 1-800-899-8618 Fax: 415-352-0399 Email: [email protected] or CTS Los Angeles 119 S. Atlantic Blvd., Suite 303 Monterey Park, CA 91754 Phone: 1-800-890-8818 Fax: 626-457-8955 Email: [email protected] They need the following from you: Visa for China Americans traveling to China, whether for business or pleasure, require a visa. You are exempt from this requirement if you travel and stay ONLY in Hong Kong. However, if you travel beyond Hong Kong, even for a few hours, you will need a China visa, which should be obtained in advance. Listed below are what we need to process your visa application, as well as answers to frequently asked questions. What we need Your passport (original, not a copy), which must be valid for at least 6 months from the date of travel, with at least two blank visa pages (amendment pages and pages with bar codes are not acceptable for visa stamping). One completed, signed Visa Application Form for each passport, with one passport-style photos (please contact China Travel Service to obtain a current visa application form). Visa processing fee: $ 50.00 for single entry $ 70.00 for double entry Applicable rush service fees: It takes approximately 7 working days to process a standard visa application. If rush service is required, please add the following fees. (Note: all materials must be received in our office before 10:30 a.m.): $ 20.00 for three day service $ 30.00 for next day service $15.00 passport mailing fee: We will return your passport to you via FedEx standard overnight service (where available). You may waive this fee by supplying us with a FedEx airbill, your FedEx account number, or the account number of another trackable express courier service. Payment for visa processing is accepted in the form of check or cash ONLY. Make all checks payable to: U. S. China Travel Service. or contact them in Hong Kong: China Travel Service 77 Queen's Road Central or China Travel Service 27-33 Nathan Road TsimTsaTsui Kowloon In HK you will need at leat three working days. They also have sam day service if you get there early in the Morning. Michael

Visas are only available on arrival in China if you are crossing the border between Hong Kong and Shenzhen, or between Macau and Zhuhai, and these are theoretically only to be used in the immediate area, although people do go further afield. This service is not available to UK passport holders. In all other cases you must apply in advance for a visa. However this is something you can do for yourself with considerable ease, and there is neither need nor point in using an agent, unless you truly delight in paying more money than you need to. The standard period of time taken to process a visa is five working days, but visas are also available in three or one day for the payment of extra fees. The standard visa is a single entry visa valid for up to three months. When issued overseas it's usually valid for one month unless a specific request is made for longer (which may or may not be granted depending on the current state of relations between your country and China). These visas can easily be extended for three 30-day periods while in the country. You must enter China within 60 days, and your visa is valid for 30, 60, or 90 days from date of entry. Hotel receptionists, police, and other officials are often not too bright, and may question why you are in China after the 60 days from date of issue, but that is the way it works, as is clearly explained on the visa in both English and Chinese. There's also a couble-entry visa available, but this cannot be extended. A multiple-entry visa valid for six months is also available, but when bought overseas requires a letter of invitation from a recognised institution. This can be obtained without a letter if you buy it in Hong Kong, but a recent change in the regulations (which may be temporary) requires that you've recently made another visit to China in order to qualify. Visas in HK are generally cheaper than when bought at home, but CTS is one of the most expensive places to make the purchase. The cheapest agent I've found is: Hung Shing Travel Service Ltd. Room 711, 7/F New East Ocean Ctr 9 Science Museum Road, TST East, Kowloon Standard tourist visas are only HK$150 (less than US$20) whatever your nationality, and if you go in the morning your visa is available after 5.30pm the same day at no extra charge. One photo and your passport is all that's required. If you don't have a photo they'll take one for HK$30. Peter Neville-Hadley http://members.axion.net/~pnh/China.html