EU Travelers Have Advantage of Loosened Travel Restrictions in China

BEIJING, KOMPAS.com – Travel restrictions in China have loosened for EU travellers from 36 European countries.

The decision comes months after thousands were left stranded as the country closed its borders and reduced flights to stem the spread of the Covid-19 virus.

In March, the Chinese government imposed strict lockdown measures which essentially barred all foreign nationals from entering the country.

Read also: Air Travel Picking Up Steam Despite Indonesia’s Covid-19 Transition Period

Those with work or residence permits or family living in China were also forbidden from entering Chinese territory.

Part of the loosening of travel restrictions in China encompasses the relaxation of bureaucratic requirements for EU travellers seeking re-entry into the country.

The new rules will allow European passport holders from 36 countries — including France, Germany and the UK — with a valid residence permit to apply for a Chinese visa without an invitation letter, according to a notice by the Chinese embassy in Berlin published Wednesday.

Read also: Greece Tightens Coronavirus Restrictions for EU Tourists

Everyone returning to China has to reapply for their visa, since travel documents issued before the pandemic have been nullified.

Previously, China had allowed only a small number of skilled foreign workers to return with special official invitation letters — a process which proved slow.

China's foreign ministry said in a statement published Monday that European passport holders who qualify will now be allowed to "apply for a Chinese visa free of charge".

Anyone coming from abroad is still subject to Covid-19 tests and a 14-day quarantine — and will still have to find a plane ticket, after Beijing ordered a drastic reduction in international air links at the end of March, and prices soared.

Read also: Indonesia’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport Provides Covid-19 Rapid Test Services

Some of these strict flight quotas are also being lifted, with Air France allowed to operate three weekly flights between China and France from the end of August.

China has largely brought the spread of Covid-19 under control after the disease first emerged there late last year, but there has been a series of local clusters in recent months.

(Writers & Editors: BAR-PRW/ROX/LEG, Agence France-Presse) 

Source: http://u.afp.com/32XY