Please speed up your
visa application!
请加速办理你的签证申请！
I was eventually granted an tourist
visa before departure.
我终于在出发前获得了旅游签证。
There is a tightening of US
visa requirements.
最近对赴美签证的要求提高了。
Signs of positivity – PolicySeveral measures to boost tourism were recently announced by the State Council on Sept 27, including optimizing visa and customs clearance policies, increasing international flight capacity and routes to key destinations, and improving inbound tourism products and information services for foreign visitors.
积极的迹象——政策国务院最近于9月27日宣布了几项促进旅游业发展的措施，包括优化签证和清关政策，增加国际航班容量和飞往关键目的地的航线，以及改善外国游客的入境旅游产品和信息服务。
Tencent Holdings announced on Thursday that it will fully open Weixin Pay to international card organizations like Mastercard, Visa, JCB and Discover Global Network, so as to further improve overseas users' digital payment experience in China.
腾讯控股周四宣布，将向万事达、Visa、JCB和Discover Global Network等国际卡组织全面开放微信支付，以进一步改善海外用户在中国的数字支付体验。
The pace of resumption of flights that connect China with Europe and the United States has been relatively slow due to several factors such as air rights, visa issuance and airport support capability, China Southern said.
中国南方航空表示，由于航空权、签证发放和机场支持能力等因素，连接中国与欧洲和美国的航班恢复速度相对较慢。
Wanda Group, Hisense Group, Vivo and dairy company Mengniu are four official Chinese sponsors of FIFA, while Wanda has become one of FIFA's seven corporate partners, along with Coca-Cola, Adidas, Hyundai-Kia, Qatar Airways, Qatar Energy and VISA.
万达集团、海信集团、维梧和乳业公司蒙牛是国际足联的四家中国官方赞助商，万达与可口可乐、阿迪达斯、现代起亚、卡塔尔航空、卡塔尔能源和VISA一起成为国际足联的七家企业合作伙伴之一。
YU: Innovation is the foundation of a vibrant digital economy and a core focus for Visa.
俞：创新是充满活力的数字经济的基础，也是Visa的核心关注点。
Visa opened its Beijing Innovation Center in 2019.
Visa国际组织于2019年在北京开设了创新中心。
Throughout the pandemic, the Visa Beijing Innovation Center has continued to host partners virtually.
在整个疫情期间，Visa北京创新中心继续以虚拟方式接待合作伙伴。
YU: We applaud China for its dual carbon goals and believe Visa has the opportunity to leverage its role in commerce to help inspire and empower sustainable living and support the global transition to a low-carbon, sustainable economy.
余：我们赞扬中国的双碳目标，并相信Visa有机会利用其在商业中的作用，帮助激励和增强可持续生活，支持全球向低碳、可持续经济转型。
In August, we launched Visa Eco Benefits in the Asia-Pacific region to promote sustainability-focused solutions that will help Visa cardholders across the region better understand the environmental impact of their day-to-day payments.
8月，我们在亚太地区推出了Visa生态福利，以推广以可持续发展为重点的解决方案，帮助该地区的Visa持卡人更好地了解其日常支付对环境的影响。
YU: At Visa, we believe everyone should have equal, full access to products and services that enable them to send and receive digital payments.
余：在Visa，我们相信每个人都应该平等、完全地使用产品和服务，使他们能够发送和接收数字支付。
Over the years, Visa has worked with a range of financial, technology and industry partners in China to support social imperatives around financial literacy, financial inclusion and rural vitalization.
多年来，Visa与中国的一系列金融、技术和行业合作伙伴合作，支持围绕金融知识、金融包容性和农村振兴的社会需求。
As a purpose-driven company, Visa is committed to delivering long-term value for all of our stakeholders, giving back to the local communities in which we operate.
作为一家目标驱动型公司，Visa致力于为我们所有的利益相关者提供长期价值，回馈我们运营的当地社区。
"Compared with its major competitor Mastercard, Visa Inc made a different choice regarding its push into China.
Alfred F. Kelly Jr, chairman and chief executive officer of Visa, said last year the leading global payments technology company has applied for a bank card clearing license in China as a wholly owned foreign enterprise.
Visa expanded its Beijing office to a new building and opened its China Innovation Center in the capital city on March 22, 2019, in an effort to encourage clients and partners — including banks, merchants and fintech companies — to develop solutions for customer pain points.
"If there are any significant changes, it might have bigger impact on visa issuance policies and air travel market demand," he said.
Driven by globalization, more convenient visa access and increasing transport links to various global destinations, the frequency of vacations abroad will increase, said Fan Jinsong, founder and chairman of Anhui Korrun.
Before the visa exemption announced in June 2016, Morocco received an average of less than 20,000 Chinese tourists per year.
More than 20 major international institutions including Visa, Mastercard, PayPal and Uber have signed up to get involved with Libra, which Facebook will unveil next week, and which it hopes could transform the international payment system.
Facebook is taking the lead on building Libra and its underlying technology; its more than two dozen partners — including PayPal, Uber, Spotify, Visa and Mastercard — will help fund, build and govern the system.
"According to Spring Tour, the travel arm of Shanghai-based Spring Group, the improvement in visa policies, transportation and payment channels has made Yangon a popular destination for Chinese tourists.
Visa is getting capabilities and infrastructure ready to participate in China's mobile payment marketVisa Inc has applied for a bank card clearing license in China as a wholly owned foreign enterprise, said Alfred F. Kelly, Jr. , CEO of the leading global payments technology company.
This choice is different from its major competitor Mastercard Inc, which is resuming a push into the country by forming a joint venture with China's online clearing house NetsUnion Clearing Corp. "Our competitors will do what they think is best; we are going to do what we think is best for Visa," Kelly said on the sidelines of the annual China Development Forum recently.
"Visa is spending a lot of time thinking about what it will deliver.
In an interview with China Daily, the CEO shared his thoughts on a number of topics, such as Visa's application for China market entry and plans for local business development.
How is Visa's application for direct access to China's bank card clearing market progressing?
"The approvals of business and tourism visa have become tighter, and travel demand growth is likely to slow down," Lin said.
With this policy, Chinese travelers can step out to explore the world, and more and more destinations now provide better visa policies for Chinese travelers.
Experts say the boom in Chinese tourists' travels to Japan is due to the rising willingness among Chinese residents to travel, easing of visa requirements, and favorable duty-free shopping policy.
"Some of the brands sold in Japan are cheaper than those sold in China due to the tax rebates, and it's also getting much easier to apply for a Japanese visa," she said, adding the environment there is very clean.
UnionPay, a card association similar to Visa and Mastercard, first became available in Finland in 2010.
UnionPay's UK expansion signifies its ambition to rival Visa and Mastercard for global business.
Luckily, UnionPay has already built up a certain level of reputation in the UK and across Europe, as more and more retailers have started accepting UnionPay cards to attract high-spending Chinese outbound tourists who do not have Visa or Mastercard.
UnionPay card numbers quickly grew, and by 2016 the number of new cards issued by UnionPay comprised 54.9 percent of the global total, which is more than Mastercard and Visa.
In addition, business and tourism visa approvals have become tighter, which may lead to slower travel demand growth.
"Recently we've seen students coming here facing more visa challenges, more immigration questions, so even if we embrace the openness, there are barriers that already have an impact on what we're doing," Matesic added.
Liu Anyu, a lecturer in hospitality at the University of Surrey, said: “Compared with Visa and Mastercard, Alipay does not charge the commission fee for consumption, only the exchange rate loss, if any.
Other American companies on the 2018 ranking include Visa Inc and Charles Schwab.
Nowadays, Chinese citizens holding national passports traveling overseas are able to enjoy visa exemption or visa upon arrival in 68 countries and regions.
The top 10 in order of ranking are Google, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Tencent, Facebook, Visa, McDonald's, Alibaba and AT&T.
The Development Research Center of the State Council signed a memorandum of understanding with US-based payment technology company Visa Inc on Saturday, in a move to leverage digital technology innovation to enhance inclusive finance in China.
Al Kelly, CEO of Visa Inc, said China is a leader in financial inclusion, with remarkable progress in bringing financial services to the population.
DRC and Visa will work together to understand the challenges, progress and innovations to date, and recommend paths forward, Kelly said.
Growing disposable income and favorable visa policies have pushed the number of outbound Chinese travelers to new heights.
Weiyi Ma, assistant professor of human development and family sciences at the University of Arkansas, who is working in the US on a H-1B visa, conducted the study with neuroscience researchers from China's Ministry of Education and the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China in Chengdu.
British Airways' chief executive has called on the government of the United Kingdom to relax visa requirements for Chinese business and tourist travelers.
"Now, we need the British government to take urgent action on its visa policy by making it easier for Chinese businesses and tourists to come to the UK," Cruz said.
"Using the renminbi as a settlement currency, as well as providing more convenient tax and visa facilities, can prompt more Chinese companies to invest in BRICS," Huang said.
""When conflict came to Singapore in 1942, Mr Parkane Hwang from the Bank of China's Singapore branch decamped and sort a visa to travel to Australia to establish a branch of the Bank of China in Sydney," Lowe told Xinhua.
"One can only imagine it must have been a difficult and stressful time, but true to Australia's welcoming nature, especially for those in need, the visa was granted.
If you have graduated from a Chinese university, you can apply for an entrepreneur visa with letters of support for your application (in the prescribed certificate format) from your financiers, university, startup incubator or the industrial park you are based in, along with a copy of your viable business plan.
The new policy announced this year grants a two- to five-year visa for fresh Chinese university graduates from other countries with viable business plans or demonstrable entrepreneurial potential.
For example, those with startups in such areas can apply for a permanent resident card after achieving 70 points in China's point-based visa system.
But in cities like Shanghai, you can apply for entrepreneur visa if you have graduated from a Chinese university, produce a financial guarantee and demonstrate a viable business plan.
When your application is approved, an S2 visa valid for up to six months will be issued.
There is not much difference in government policy in terms of sectors or industries, but you will be more likely to receive an entrepreneur visa if your business plan or startup is related to your academic background.
Versatile flights, convenient visa policies and advanced technology are making travel easier, and this is helping to fuel the growth in companies and websites specializing in the sector.
"With trips fueled by an open visa policy and emerging budget airlines, this is an industry that is changing fast, and presenting opportunities and challenges," she added.
"Since the end of 2016, Chinese tourists can obtain a "visa on arrival" at UAE international airports.
Earlier in the week, the UAE General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs said up to 265,698 Chinese tourists visited Dubai in the past five months since UAE began granting visa on arrival for Chinese citizens.
During Li's stay in Switzerland, China announced a unilateral visa-free treatment to Switzerland, and the Swiss side more visa facilitation for Chinese citizens as well as Chinese enterprises investing in Switzerland.
We hope that in the future, visa issuance and the freedom of movement between the two countries can return to the levels before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since the start of 2023, executives from multinational corporations, such as Siemens AG, ASML Holding NV, Tesla Inc and Visa Inc, have been engaging in a notable trend of consecutive visits to China, displaying their strong enthusiasm to explore and expand investments in the Chinese market, she added.
Other possible reasons include worsening geopolitical tensions between the US and China, US visa policies, personal safety considerations and increased competition from UK, Canadian, Australian, Singaporean and Chinese universities.
As CEO of LifePlus, an international education institution, Martin Klopper, from the United Kingdom, was delighted to obtain a multiple-entry visa for China this year to attend conferences and investigate the market.
Chinese embassies and consulates globally are putting in extra hours and workforce to process visa applications, which are rising since China resumed pre-COVID visa policies, said Wu Xi, an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Having an official invitation from the Canton Fair, one can apply for a visa at any Chinese embassy or consulate, Wu added.
Given the difficulties faced by enterprises in going abroad to participate in exhibitions, such as rising costs, visa application difficulties, and increased uncertainties in some countries, the CCPIT will take the initiative to communicate and coordinate with relevant ministries and commissions, release risk warning messages timely, and hold pre-exhibition meetings for projects heading for specific countries to help enterprises reduce risks and uncertainties.
Xu said that consultancies for international trips and searches for visa information, flight tickets and hotels surged on the platform after authorities announced on Dec 26 the downgrading of COVID-19 management from Class A to Class B starting on Jan 8.
"Searches for visa information increased fivefold on the platform that day.
Visa consultancies rose by 100 percent for two consecutive days from Dec 27, it said.
Figures from online travel agency Fliggy show that searches for international flight tickets on the platform increased eightfold after the policy adjustments on Dec 27 and views on its digital visa center increased 8.3-fold year-on-year.
Thousands of miles away, Roy van den Hurk, general manager of Theland Global R&D at Milk New Zealand Dairy, is busy applying for his visa to attend the coming 2022 expo.
Besides, more than 80 percent of companies are "content" about China'sxa0proactive fiscal policies such as cutting taxes and administrative fees, favorable monetary and credit policies, optimized visa policies for foreigners coming to China, as well as a variety of measures to stabilize the supply chain and investment.
"We used to go to three different places to apply for a visa, which took time and energy.
A report released in April by Visa Consulting and Analytics, Visa Inc's payments consulting arm, said sub-Saharan Africa registered a 42 percent year-on-year growth in e-commerce sales from 2019 to 2020.
On pooling talent from around the world to Hainan, the law stipulates visa and work permit facilitation for international talent, Feng said.
For example, the strained relations between the two countries, a slowdown in visa processing and a decline in the number of Chinese students and visitors in the United States crimped exports of services to China even before COVID-19 led to a pause for the travel industry.
Preferential policies in visa, tax and foreign exchanges at Hainan Free Trade Port have formed a good channel for international high-end brands, according to the report citing some exhibitors.
Wang Huajie, deputy director of the Shanghai Municipal Development and Reform Commission, said Shanghai will implement 29 policies to serve this purpose, including normalizing facilitation policies launched for the CIIE, as well as reforming visa and residential policies for foreign talent.
One is the time spent on visa applications.
Hang Yingwei, head of the Pudong New Area government, said the area has created a highway for working visa application procedures allowing foreigners to have their application materials halved and approval processing times cut from 12 working days to five days.
The number of inquiries about visa applications to those destinations has climbed, Qunar said.
Citizens of the five European countries and Malaysia can enter China without a visa for business, tourism, family visits and transit purposes.
They can also register and open a digital RMB wallet with an overseas mobile phone number through the E-CNY app, recharge the wallet with Visa or Mastercard cards, and then make payment.
Still, the industry requires comprehensive policy support for a full business recovery, which includes support for route operations, group tour policies for various destinations and the resumption of visa issuance.
Travel platforms say nation's residents show rising demand for overseas tripsChinese travelers have shown ever-increasing enthusiasm for traveling abroad this year, and the trend is on track to become more prominent for the rest of the year, fueling a growing demand for visa applications.
Thailand, a popular destination for Chinese residents, announced earlier this month that it has decided to waive visa requirements for Chinese travelers for five months, which will begin on Monday and run until Feb 29, 2024.
Visa service agency VFS said since March, it has witnessed surging reservations for visa applications to different countries.
As of May, visa applications from Chinese residents reached 40 percent of the 2019 level before the pandemic.
The agency expects that demand for visa applications is likely to remain high throughout the year.
For visa applications to most European countries, travel agencies usually help Chinese travelers make reservations one and a half months in advance.
According to the official website of VFS, for many Chinese cities, it shows that there are no available time slots in the near future to apply for a short-term Schengen visa for Germany.
Overseas destinations with a high demand for Chinese tourist visa applications include Canada, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The long waiting period for visa granting problems should also be solved as it currently takes a long time to get the visa for popular travel destinations, said Lin Zhijie, an aviation industry analyst.
They discussed Sino-Sri Lankan friendship and highlighted measures for assisting visa procedures for Chinese tourists and the tourism products and services they are provided with.
Those destinations with relaxed visa policies for Chinese visitors serve as good choices for travel," Xie said.
Chinese visa applications have witnessed a strong rebound this year, driven by pent-up travel demand after the reopening of international borders and removal of quarantine requirements early this year, according to VFS Global, the world's leading visa application outsourcing and technology service provider.
Data from VFS Global show that the overall visa application volume from China reached 35 percent of the pre-pandemic levels by the end of May.
Top destinations for visa applications from Chinese tourists include Canada, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States.