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| Frequently Asked Questions | ||||
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What is a visa? | |
| A visa is an authorized permission issued by the Embassy or Consulates of a country that permits a foreign traveler to visit that country. Most visas are stamped or affixed into the traveler's passport. Visas are issued with specific limitations regarding purpose of visit, length of stay, validity of visa, etc. It is the traveler's responsibility to obtain necessary visas before he/she travels abroad. A traveler must follow very distinct guidelines and procedures established by Embassy or Consulates of a country when applying for the appropriate visa. | ||
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| Americans or Canadians traveling to Mainland China, whether for business or pleasure, require a visa, which should be obtained in advance. You are exempt from this requirement if you travel and stay only in Hong Kong or Macao for less than 90 days. However, if you travel beyond Hong Kong, even for a few hours, you will need a China visa. As a matter of fact, visas are required for visitors from most foreign countries to Mainland China. | ||
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Do I need a visa for Hong Kong or Macao? | |
| No, if you are holding US, Canadian or British passport. You do not need a visa if traveling to Hong Kong or Macao, for up to 90 days stay. Any entry into Mainland China, however, requires a visa. | ||
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How to obtain a China visa? | |
| The Chinese Embassy and Consulates do not accept mail-in applications. Applicants for visas are requested to appear at the Consulate in person, or apply through an authorized visa agency. VisaRite Services is authorized by the Chinese Consulate to handle China visa service. We can process visa application on your behalf no matter where you live. We server residents in all 50 state. We have clients all over the U.S. |
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Do I need to send my physical passport? | |
| Yes. it is required to send your actual passport. The
Embassy/Consulate needs your passport in order to affix or stamp your visa
onto it. |
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Why must I have a full blank visa page in my passport? | |
| China visas are affixed in your passport on the pages specifically marked for them, and countries require that visa stamps be placed on those pages that do not contain any other stamps. | ||
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Can a visa be issued on a blank amendment page at the back of my passport? | |
| No, amendment pages at the back of passports are specifically for changes and endorsements to a passport after initial issuance. Embassies and Consulates generally refuse to recognize the usability of an amendment page for visas. | ||
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What is the requirement of the photo?? | |
| The Consulate and passport agency require passport type photo i.e. full face frontal, 2" x 2", with white or off-white backgroud.You can obtain this type of photo anywhere that advertises "passport photo" service. If you print your own photo, it must be high resolution and needs to be printed on special photo paper. Cutout from personal photograph is not acceptable. | ||
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What are the fees involving visa processing? | |
| Total cost of visa includes Consular Fees, VisaRite Services Fees and Shipping Fee. Consular Fees are fees paid to an embassy or consulate in order to fulfill visa issuance requirements. The VisaRite Service Fee is charged for the services performed by VisaRite in facilitating the application. Shipping Fee is for the return of your completed documentation. | ||
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How should I send you my passport and other materials? | |
| We highly recommend that you use a traceable courier service to send your passport and valuable documents such as FedEx, UPS, Airborne, DHL or United States Postal Service express mail, registered or certified mail. Regular mail is not recommended. | ||
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How does the status tracking system work? | |
| Simply enter the passport number and names as directed on our website to obtain an instant status of your application. | ||
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Will any of the information I submit to you be sold or disclosed to others? | |
| No. Information about you provided to us stays with us. We will not disclose or sell your information to third party for any reason or under any circumstance. Please refer to our privacy policy for more information. | ||
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If my application is rejected by embassy or consulate, is the consular fee refundable? | |
| No. Embassy or Consulates do not refund consular fees under any circumstance. | ||
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What forms of payment does VisaRite accept? | |
| Payment can be made in forms of money order, cashiers check, bank check, certified check, company check or cash. Checks and money orders should be payable in US dollars and drawn on a bank in the US or Canada. International money orders must be in the form of US dollars. You may also pay by all major credit card. You will receive a receipt with your completed documents. | ||
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What type of visa do I need? | |
| Visas are issued with specific type relevant to the purpose of visit. The most popular types include tourist, business, student, work, crew. You may also select number of entries such as single entry, double entry or multiple entry ("entry" means number of trips), if you apply for tourist or business visa. While number of entries is pretty much regulated, if you apply for student, work or crew visa. | ||
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What is the difference between a tourist visa and a business visa? | |
| Visas are issued to permit entry into a country for a specific purpose: to allow travel for leisure, or to conduct business activities. In general, "tourist" visas are issued specifically for the purpose of travel for pleasure, while a "business" visa generally permits a traveler to engage in normal business-related activities. You need a supporting letter to apply for business visa. However, there is no distinctive line between tourist visa and business visa. In another word, tourist visa will not prevent you from conducting business in China. | ||
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How long can I stay in China for each entry? Can I extend my stay in China while I am there? ? | |
| With regular tourist or business visa, you can now normally stay 30 -90 days for each entry. If you need to stay longer while you are in China, please contact with the visa office of the local Public Security Bureau to file for an extension. Do not overstay. | ||
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I am going to mainland China first, then to Hong Kong (or Macao) and back to mainland China again. Will single entry visa suffice? | |
| No! You need to apply for a double entry visa in this case. Because, Hong Kong and Macao are Special Administrative Regions. Once you go there from mainland China, you are considered to exit China mainland already. Therefore you need another visa to go back in. | ||
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I applied for single entry visa. Now I changed travel plan and I need to enter China twice, Is it possible to change the visa to double entry and just pay the extra amount. | |
| Unfortunately, visa once issued can not be changed. You will have to apply for a new visa. You need to go through the whole visa application process and pay the fee for the new visa again. | ||
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I'm traveling to Beijing for business and then plan on staying for a few extra days and doing the tourist thing, then travel to 1 or 2 other cities for sightseeing. Will a single entry business visa suffice or will I need a separate business and tourist visa? | |
| Business visa won't prevent you from doing sightseeing, no need to apply for a separate tourist visa. As long as you travel within mainland China, you don't need separate entry visa to travel to other cities. | ||
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My visa says "Enter Before" 30SEP2008, "Duration of Stay" 90, can I use this visa for trip arriving China on Sep 20 and departing on Oct 15, 2008? Or do I have to leave before Sep 30? | |
| You can enter China any date before "enter before" date specified
on the visa, then stay up to the days specified by "duration of stay".
You don't need to leave before Sep 30. |
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When to apply for visa? | |
The best time to apply for your visa is between 30 - 90 days before your departure. Chinese visa is valid immediately once issued, expires in 3 months, 6 months, 12 months respectively, depending on the visa granted. |
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Are the Chinese Embassy or Consulates open on the weekends and Holidays? | |
| No. The Embassy and Consulates are closed on the weekends and US national holidays. The Embassy and Consulates will also close to observe Chinese national holidays. | ||
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When do you begin processing my application? | |
| Application will be reviewed on the day of arrival and submitted to the Consulate or Passport Authority for processing the next business day. | ||
| Rush Chinese Visa Application (Express Plus Service) received by 9:00AM will be reviewed and processed on the same day. Rush Chinese Visa Application received after 9:00AM will be completed the next business day. If you need Express Plus service, please be aware of this cutoff time. | ||
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Does the processing time include shipping time? | |
| No. Shipping or return delivery time should be added to the processing time when determining the total amount of time needed to fulfill your order. Shipping times do not include Saturdays or Sundays unless specified. Deliveries may not be available on some holidays. | ||
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I am not a U. S. citizen. Can you still process my application? | |
| Yes, we may help you to obtain the Chinese visa in the US, if you had a Chinese visa in the past and is able to provide a photocopy of the visa. You will also need to provide the legal status in the US, such as photocopy of US Green Card or valid US residence visa such as F-1, L1, H1. B1 B2 doesn't count. You may only be able to apply for a single entry visa. Other restriction may apply. Policy may change without notice. Please call for details. | ||
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I am a US citizen currently living abroad. Can you still assist me? | |
| Yes. The application process is the same. However it is best to contact us regarding return delivery fees. Shipping times vary depending upon your location. In most cases FedEx will deliver within a few days. | ||
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I will be needing to enter China multiple times, is it possible to get a Z Visa that can allow me to do this? | |
| Z visa will only be issued as Single Entry. You need to convert to Residence
Permit within 30 days after your arrival into China. You may request for
multiple entry Residence Permit at that time. |
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Will you be needing me to mail in the
original copy of Visa Notice and Work Permit, and if so will they be returned
to me after you have finished processing the Visa? |
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| Both Work Permit and Official Visa Notification needs to be original. They won't be returned to you, please make a photocopy for your own record. Some applicants have Alien Employment License (instead of Work Permit), which will be returned. | ||
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I recently received my Student X Visa for China. However, I noticed that the "duration of stay" listed on the visa is 000 days. I assume that this means my length of stay is indefinite, but I wanted to make sure. Is this correct, or was this a typo? | |
| That is not a typo. Duration of Stay listed as 000 means to be determined. It is required by law that you register with local public security bureau with 30 days of arrival. Your student visa will be converted to Residence Permit. Duration of stay will be specified by then. Residence Permit normally allows you exit and enter China multiple times within it's validity. | ||
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I recently received my Work Visa Z Visa for China. However, I noticed that the "duration of stay" listed on the visa is 000 days. Is this correct, or was this a typo? | |
| That is not a typo. Duration of Stay listed as 000 means to be determined. It is required by law that you register with local public security bureau with 30 days of arrival. Your work visa will be converted to Residence Permit. Duration of stay will be specified by then. Residence Permit normally allows you exit and enter China multiple times within it's validity. | ||
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