A Chinese visa consists of different factors, and some of them might confuse people when it comes to validity of their document. We will first have a quick look at what the numbers on your visa mean and then explore some "What if...?" scenarios that will help you understand their meaning. In the following explanations, I am referring to L (tourist) and F (business) visas. Slightly different rules apply to X (student) and Z (work) visas because they are changed into residence permits upon arrival in China.
The "Number of entries" refer to the number of times the visa holder is allowed to enter China before the "enter before" date. In case your visa has single or double entry, the entry/ies will be crossed out by the Immigrations Officer when you arrive in China. If you get a single entry visa in China, you can therefore leave the country and come back once - the mere fact that the visa was issued in China does not make your entry invalid. Traveling on a visa with no valid entry left results in refusal of entry at the border.
The "Enter before" date on your visa is pretty much self-explanatory - you have to use up all your available entries before or on that date. This date is often referred to as validity of your visa, which some may find misleading. What is important to know is that you can still stay in China after the "enter before" date if you don't exceed the duration of your stay.
The "Duration of stay" refers to the maximum days visa holder is allowed to stay in China each time, counted from and including the date of entry. Even if you arrive in China at eleven in the evening or leave the country at 01.00am, both will count as full China days.
Q: What if... my enter before date is August 20th and my duration of stay is 30 days, and I want to enter China on August 15th and stay for a month?
A: Even if your date of exit is beyond the "enter before" date, you can use up your full thirty days as long as you enter the country before that date.
Q: What if... I have a double or multiple entry visa and extend it in China? Will I still have as many entries left?
A: When you extend your visa, you are technically always issued a new document. In most cases, this new visa will either have zero or one entry.
Q: What if... I overstay my visa?
A: Overstaying your visa is not a petty crime in China. You will be fined 500 RMB for each day you overstay, up to a total amount of 5000 RMB. Even if you need only one or two more days, go talk to the PSB and see if you can extend with them.
Q: What if... I have to renew my passport?
A: When you renew your passport, you will usually take it to your embassy which will cut a corner of your old passport. Take that (now invalid) passport and the new one to the PSB within ten days from the issue date of your new passport and ask them to transfer your visa.
Sometimes, when you pick the new passport up from the embassy, the issue date will already be more than 10 days ago. In that case, you will need to ask your embassy to certify the date you picked up your new passport; otherwise, the Chinese authorities will not transfer your visa.
0 comments:
Post a Comment