China launches 'ASEAN visa' to facilitate regional travel: FM

To further facilitate cross-border travels in the region, China has rolled out an "ASEAN visa" for ASEAN's 10 member states and observer Timor-Leste. This new program offers five-year multiple-entry visas to eligible applicants visiting China for business purpose and their spouses and children, granting a maximum stay of 180 days, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Tuesday, responding to a question about China's announcement during the ASEAN-China-GCC Summit to offer greater visa facilitation to ASEAN countries.

In recent years, China and ASEAN have advanced the building of a community with a shared future and made important progress in building a peaceful, safe and secure, prosperous, beautiful and amicable home. Visits between the people of China and Southeast Asian countries have been frequent. There is a mutual hope to further ease travel between the two sides,? Lin said.

After the spokesperson introduced China's visa facilitation policy for ASEAN countries, another question was raised regarding the effects for China's frequent launch of visa-free policies in recent years and whether China will provide more of such policies in the future, in the context that beginning from June 1, China has provided visa-free policy to ordinary passport holders from Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru and Uruguay on a trial basis. China also announced that it "has given visa-free status to all GCC countries," which is warmly received in relevant countries.

Lin confirmed that starting on June 1, China's unilateral visa-free program is for the first time extended to Latin American and Caribbean countries, raising the number of countries given unilateral visa-free entry to China to 43. The growing "visa-free list" shows China's firm resolve in expanding high-level opening up, he noted.

The various measures China has taken to ease cross-border travel are all part of China's concrete action to create an open global economy, Lin noted.

Adding to the proof, in the first quarter of this year, China received over 9 million visits by foreigners, up by over 40 percent year-on-year. And in the first four months, more than 18 thousand foreign-invested companies were established in China, up by 12.1 percent year-on-year, Lin said.

"China will continue to improve entry policies and add more countries to the visa-free list. We welcome more foreign friends to visit China for excellent purchase experience, diverse consumption scenarios and more convenient services. China is committed to greater openness and deeper cooperation for shared prosperity with the rest of the world," the spokesperson noted.