Visa application
When crossing the border with China, you must present a visa. For its registration, the following documents are required (for citizens of Russia and Belarus ):
- Passport, which expires more than 6 months after the visa is issued;
- 1 photo 3×4 cm;
- Completed and signed application form.
When traveling across the border with a minor child, a notarized permission from the second parent is required, or from both, if the child is traveling alone. Check a2zdirectory for history of China.
A group visa is issued for several persons who cross the border at the same time. There are tourist (group of at least 5 people) and business (group of 9 people) visas.
Documents required for issuing a tourist visa:
- An invitation from a Chinese travel agency registered in the country;
- List of people in the group, indicating the data of all international passports;
- When applying for a group visa, photos and profiles are not provided.
In the process of filling out questionnaires or group lists, corrections and blots are prohibited. If inaccuracies in the data of the questionnaire are found, the issuance of a visa may be denied. After receiving the documents, a visa is issued within 7, 3, or 1 working day. In case of urgent paperwork, you must present an air ticket and pay an additional consular fee (120, 180 and 240 dollars, respectively).
In order to obtain a visa for citizens of Ukraine, in addition to the general list of documents, a certificate from the place of work and one more photo are required. Citizens of Kazakhstan present only a passport and 1 photo.
Upon receipt of a visa to China, you will be asked to apply for an additional visa to Hong Kong. If you open a Hong Kong visa separately, it will be cheaper. Visa-free travel across the Chinese border is allowed if the airport transfers to another flight. In this case, you must have an air ticket with you.
Payment of the consular fee is made in the department of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China simultaneously with the submission of documents. In case of refusal to issue a visa, the paid consular fee is non-refundable.
Customs regulations
The movement of individual items across the border of China is regulated by customs regulations. See China import restrictions. Allowed to import duty-free:
- Camera 1 pc.;
- Tape recorder – 1 pc.;
- Portable video camera – 1 pc.;
- Portable computer – 1 pc.;
- Silver, gold and jewelry made of them for personal use weighing less than 50 grams. If the total mass is exceeded, all decorations are indicated in the declaration;
- Import of national currency in the amount not exceeding 6 thousand RMB;
- The import of foreign currency is unlimited;
- 400 cigarettes, 100 cigars or 500 grams of tobacco;
- 5 liters of alcohol;
- Household appliances, the total cost of which does not exceed 5 thousand RMB.
Citizens departing from an airport in China must indicate all their valuables in the customs declaration.
Allowed to export duty-free:
- Foreign currency in any amount. If the local currency was exchanged for a foreign one, then it is necessary to present a certificate from the exchange office;
- Carriage of gold, silver and products made from them is allowed upon presentation of the “Special Invoice” of the People’s Bank of China;
- Artistic Values with Expert Opinion from China’s Administrative Cultural Organs. They must be indicated in the declaration when crossing the border;
- Medicines purchased in foreign currency (required to present a receipt of the exchange office).
It is forbidden to export and import from China:
- Weapons, pornography, drugs, explosives, poisons;
- Historically valuable objects and works of art without the appropriate permission from the Ministry of Culture of the People’s Republic of China.
