China’s Visa-Free Policy Shows Positive Results

Source: China Times

Reporter Wang Jing from Beijing

Recently, foreign tourists can be seen everywhere in Beijing's tourist attractions, streets, and public places. At the same time, topics like "popular attractions crowded with foreign tourists" frequently top social media search lists. These changes are driven by a series of policies that have significantly enhanced the convenience for foreign tourists to travel to China, thereby increasing their willingness to visit.

On June 17, following China's announcement on June 13 to include New Zealand in its unilateral visa-free policy, Australia also joined China's visa-free "circle of friends."

According to CCTV News, holders of regular Australian passports can enter China visa-free for up to 15 days for business, tourism, or transit. Additionally, China and Australia jointly announced that to promote business exchanges, encourage tourism, and facilitate family reunions, they would provide each other’s citizens with multiple-entry visas valid for three to five years.

Data from the National Immigration Administration of China shows that in the first quarter of this year, the number of foreigners coming to China increased more than threefold compared to the same period in 2023, with tourism accounting for more than 30% of the total. The number of visas issued to foreigners totaled 466,000, an increase of 118.8% year-on-year, and 1.988 million foreigners entered China visa-free, a year-on-year increase of 266.1%.

Han Tao, a senior civil aviation expert from the China Civil Aviation Administration's new think tank, told China Times reporters, "The significance of the visa-free policy lies in facilitating foreign tourists' entry, promoting the development of tourism, and enhancing China’s international image. For China's inbound tourism market, the implementation of the visa-free policy will attract more foreign tourists, further promoting the development of tourism."

Expanding the Visa-Free Circle of Friends

Since last year, China has gradually expanded the list of visa-free countries, established mutual visa exemption agreements with many countries, and trialed unilateral visa-free policies for some countries.

In December last year, China trialed a unilateral visa-free policy for six countries: France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and Malaysia. Starting from February 9 this year, China and Singapore mutually waived visas. From March 1, China and Thailand permanently waived visas. On March 7, China further trialed a visa-free policy for ordinary passport holders from six countries: Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg. On May 28, China and Georgia mutually waived visas.

Data from OTA platforms shows that in the first quarter of this year, the number of Singaporean tourists entering China visa-free increased tenfold year-on-year, Malaysian tourists increased ninefold year-on-year, and French, Spanish, and Thai tourists all increased by about four times year-on-year.

On June 15, at the 19th Beijing International Tourism Expo, travel agency personnel told China Times reporters that the number of inbound tourists received by their travel agency this year has increased significantly year-on-year.

Han Tao told our reporter that the selection criteria for visa-free countries mainly consider the country's economic, political, and security factors, as well as its friendly relations with China. When choosing visa-free countries, the Chinese government mainly considers these factors.

Regarding the recent addition of two countries to China’s visa-free "circle of friends," Zhi Peiyuan, a master's tutor at the School of Management at China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing) and president of Zhongqinnong Co., Ltd., told China Times reporters that this move aims to simplify the visa process, lower the threshold for tourism, thereby stimulating international tourists' enthusiasm for traveling to China, and promoting the recovery and prosperity of China's inbound tourism market.

Additionally, starting from May 15, China has fully implemented a visa-free policy for foreign tour groups arriving by cruise. Foreign tour groups (two or more people) traveling to China by cruise and organized by local travel agencies can enter China visa-free from cruise ports in 13 cities, including Tianjin, Dalian, Shanghai, and Qingdao, for a stay of no more than 15 days.

Zhi Peiyuan pointed out that from a macro perspective, the visa-free policy is expected to have a significant positive impact on China’s inbound tourism market. On the one hand, it is expected to attract more tourists from Australia and other potential visa-free countries, thereby increasing tourism revenue and foreign exchange reserves. On the other hand, it will promote cultural exchanges and economic cooperation between China and other countries, enhancing China's competitiveness in the global tourism market.

Policies Supporting the Inbound Tourism Market

Various market data indicate that the implementation of the visa-free policy has significantly increased the willingness of foreign tourists to visit China. However, with market recovery and the continuous rise in the number of foreign tourists, issues such as the innovation of tourism products and services and the optimization of the payment and consumption environment have gradually emerged.

During this year's "May Day" holiday, a total of 3.672 million inbound and outbound tourists were recorded, including 1.775 million inbound tourists. The World Economic Forum recently released the "2024 Tourism Development Index," in which China ranks eighth globally in promoting tourism development. In response to the main obstacles faced by foreign tourists coming to China, the government and relevant departments have introduced a series of optimization measures.

On January 11 this year, the National Immigration Administration introduced five measures to facilitate the entry of foreign nationals, further relaxing the conditions for foreign nationals to apply for port visas, implementing 24-hour transit visa exemption procedures at major airport ports, providing convenient services for foreign nationals to apply for visa extensions, renewals, and reissuance, and simplifying the application materials for foreign nationals to apply for visas in China.

In terms of the payment environment, relevant departments continue to promote the establishment of diversified payment methods in tourist attractions, including mobile payments, bank cards, and cash, to create an inclusive and diverse payment environment. They are also setting up foreign currency exchange points in tourism-intensive areas.

In March this year, China released the "Opinions on Further Optimizing Payment Services and Improving Payment Convenience," proposing to better meet the diverse payment service needs of elderly people, foreign visitors to China, and other groups in scenarios such as dining, accommodation, transportation, tourism, shopping, entertainment, and medical care.

Chen Yanyi, a senior brand marketing expert, told China Times reporters, "Foreigners in China often face the dilemma of having money but finding it hard to spend, mainly because the procedures for applying for local bank accounts and binding payment tools are complicated, while mobile payments are mainstream in daily life. Although large malls and hotels accept international credit cards, their use is limited in many small-scale payment scenarios, especially in some local shops that refuse to accept credit cards due to handling fees, causing distress for foreign visitors."

Chen Yanyi cited the example of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, which has specially launched the "Bay Area Pass" WeChat mini-program for foreign visitors to solve their needs for payment, travel, living, and administrative services.

"By simplifying the account opening process, expanding the acceptance range of international credit cards, and developing local payment tools suitable for foreign visitors, the payment convenience for foreigners in China will be greatly enhanced. This not only improves the experience of foreign tourists and business people but also promotes further integration between China and the international community," Chen Yanyi said.

Meanwhile, to enhance the touring experience of foreign tourists, relevant departments are also promoting convenience measures for park visits, such as retaining manual ticket windows, optimizing online reservation procedures, and providing multilingual signs and guidance facilities.

The visa-free policy and optimization of the payment environment are significantly increasing the willingness of foreign tourists to visit China. China's inbound tourism market is welcoming new growth opportunities, and related supporting measures need to be further sustained and optimized.

To enhance China's hotels' ability to receive foreign guests, Han Tao also suggested improving service quality and management standards, strengthening foreign language training and cultural exchange, and enhancing hotel staff's cross-cultural communication skills. At the same time, hotel facilities need to be updated and upgraded to improve the overall reception capacity. There are still some issues in the recovery of the inbound tourism market, such as cumbersome visa procedures, language barriers, and cultural differences. Further optimization of visa policies, strengthening language training and cultural exchange, and improving service quality are needed to promote the recovery of the inbound tourism market.