Visa China
Are you planning to travel soon and do you want to apply for a visa to China? At Traveldocs you can easily and quickly apply for a tourist visa from € 247.95 per person.
How does it work?
1. Apply
Easily apply for a China visa by filling in the required information online.
2. Checkout online
You will receive an email from Traveldocs with instructions on how to send your passport and required documents.
3. Receive your visa
You can collect your passport with an official visa or have it sent back by registered courier.
Visa requirements
China
Passport
First of all, each traveller must provide a passport. An emergency passport is not sufficient.
It must contain at least three consecutive blank pages.
The passport must be presented together with several other documents (see the rest of this page).
Hand it in without a sleeve or cover.
The minimum period of validity depends on the type of visa China you apply for.
Passport photo
A recent passport photo must be provided.
- 1 digital photo (via the application form) and 1 hardcopy in high quality, which has been printed on high quality photo paper,
- The photo must be 48x33mm in size and have a white background.
Please note: this size is different from the standard size of Dutch passport photos! Please inform your photographer and request a digital copy of the photo in addition to the hardcopy. There should be no jewellery, teeth or completely white clothing in the photo and people wearing glasses should remove them.
The passport photo must be delivered not only digitally but also separately, i.e. not glued to another document.
Signed embassy form
After you have completed the online visa application form for China on this website, you will receive an e-mail which states which other documents are required in your case (you can also check this on this page). In addition, you will find an embassy form in this e-mail.
This embassy form is already filled in digitally, but still has to be printed out (note: one-sided!) and signed. This should be done with a black pen.
Personal travel schedule
An itinerary must be provided showing the dates of all travel to and from China, as well as all domestic flights in China. Are you applying for a double or multiple entry visa for China? In that case, the itinerary must show that you will actually need it.
All places to be visited in China must be included in the itinerary, including dates of arrival and departure. For each trip to China, the purpose of the trip must also be specifically stated, for example: “see factory X” or “meet the management of company Y”.
The itinerary must be signed. Are you submitting several visa applications at the same time for travellers using the same itinerary? If so, all these travellers must sign this itinerary.
Flight confirmation
All flights listed in your itinerary must also be booked. The booking confirmations for all these flights must also be provided. We always recommend that you first provide a pro-forma (pro-rata) ticket before booking your actual tickets.
Hotel confirmation
In addition to confirmation of the booked flights, confirmations must be submitted for all accommodation booked; for all persons and all nights in the personal travel itinerary.
*This does not apply during covid-19.
Employer Statement
All travellers (tourist and business) must provide a copy of a statement of employment. This must state
- Your name and passport details
- Date of arrival in China and date when you are expected back in the office
- A salary indication (per month or per year)
- the reason for the trip must be stated
- If the trip is for business, the desired type of visa must also be mentioned.
- The letter has to be written on the official letterhead of the company, including the contact and company details.
- The letter has to be signed
- We will send you a sample document after placing your order. You can use this letter as a format.
If you do not have an employer or are self-employed, please read the requirements e-mail carefully to see which documents apply to your situation. You will receive this e-mail after placing the order on our website.
Business travellers
Business travellers should provide the following additional documents:
- Copy of the invitation letter from the company in China
- Copy of the Business License from the company in China (Chinese Trade Register)*.
* Universities, hospitals and fairs often cannot provide a Business License. If you are going to visit a trade fair, you must provide proof of participation/registration in the form of a visitor’s badge or code that clearly shows your name. This replaces the Business License in most cases. If in doubt, please contact us for tailor-made advice.
Additional documents
In addition to the above, you may also be required to submit additional documents. This may vary depending on the type of visa and its validity.
After you have placed your order in our system, you will receive an email from us which describes exactly which documents and conditions apply to your chosen visa type. Please read this carefully before sending us any documents! Incomplete or incorrect documents may lead to rejection.
Have you read the email and our FAQ China page and still can’t find your way? Please contact us.
Health statement
In connection with the COVID-19 virus, all future visa applications for China must have a fully completed and signed Health Declaration Form.
This form is included in our document package and must be filled in and signed per person before submitting this form to Traveldocs, along with the other documents.
Are you planning to travel to China soon?
Dutch passport holders have to apply for a visa China before departure, with a few exceptions, for example in case of a transit (72 hour visa China, which is valid for some big cities). If you want to stay in China for a longer period of time for tourist or business purposes, you will have to apply for a visa on arrival.
Besides tourist and business visa we also provide China visas for students, volunteers, interns and workers, which you can apply for by phone, email or through our contact form.
What is a visa China?
The visa China is a sticker, which you have to apply for at the relevant Chinese government authority, such as the embassy or consulate. This visa is issued by the Chinese government and is placed in the passport. It serves as a permission for you to enter the territory of China. In most cases the China visa is issued by the Consulate General of China in The Hague. You cannot apply for a visa through other authorities or cities, such as Amsterdam. You can only do this through the Consulate General of China in The Hague.
Our staff will work professionally to ensure that your visa application is presented to the Chinese consulate without any errors, so you can travel with peace of mind.
Which type of visa for China can I apply for?
China has various visa types, which Traveldocs can arrange for you.
The most common ones are:
- E-visa (group visa) China, which is intended for group travelers who travel together and who enter and leave China from the same airport. You may not stay longer than 9 consecutive days in China on an e-visa. Are you staying longer or not travelling together or from another airport than the point of entry? Then you need to apply for a regular visa China;
- Tourist visa China (L), is the standard tourist visa, meant for tourist travellers who plan to stay 30-60 days in China. In most cases only 30 days are granted, so keep this in mind!
- Business Visa China (M), intended for business travellers who plan to visit China for a short stay (30-60 days max.). On this visa you are not allowed to be employed by a Chinese company.
- Work visa China (Z), for travellers who intend to do paid work in China and have to register at the Public Security Bureau within 30 days after arrival to be able to apply for a work permit. Usually the inviting party takes care of this.
Other visa types China we can apply for:
- Student visa China (X1/X2), which is intended for travellers who plan to study for a period of time at a recognized school in China and have the right requirements for this visa type;
- Private visa China (S1/S2) is for travellers with direct family members in China. Holders of the S1 visa China must register with the Public Security Bureau in China within 30 days to apply for a residence permit and can stay in China for a longer period. S2 visa China holders can only stay in China for 30 to 90 days per visit in most cases;
- Family visa China (Q1/Q2). This visa is for foreigners who are spouses of Chinese citizens and intend to visit their Chinese relatives, whether for a longer period or not. The Q1 visa offers a long stay (with possibility to obtain a residence permit) and the Q2 visa offers a short stay (up to 120 days per visit).
- Crew visa China (C), meant for crew members of aeroplanes, trains, ships and motor vehicles who are engaged in transport activities. Any accompanying family members can also apply for this visa.
- Journalist visa China (J1/J2), this visa can be applied for by journalists who have the correct authorization letter from the Press Section of the Chinese Embassy.
Am I obliged to apply for a visa China and what does a 72 hour visa China imply?
In most cases, you are required to have the correct visa before departure, however, there are some exceptions. In general, at the major airports in China, there is no visa requirement for a transfer of up to 24 hours. In addition, you can (only in the case of a transfer to a third country) apply for a visa on arrival in China.
Visa on Arrival is possible for the following cities:
- 6 days (144 hour visa China) in Bejing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Nanjing
- 3 days (72 hour visa China) in Changsha, Chengdu, Chongqing, Dalian, Guangzhou, Guilin, Harbin, Kunming, Shenyang, Tianjin, Wuhan, Xiamen and Xi’an
- 1 day (24 hour visa China) in all other cities with an international airport.
- You may visit the provinces of Zhejiang and Jiangsu if you land in Shanghai, Hangzhou or Nanjing. From these airports you are free to travel there. You may also explore Hunan, Guangdong and Fujian if you land in Changsha, Guangzhou and Xiamen. At all other airports, you are not allowed to leave the city.
- However, the city limits often end many kilometres outside the city so a visit to the Great Wall of China, if you are under visa-free regime, is not a problem from Beijing airport.
In this case, you have to travel on to China from the Netherlands and then travel on to another country, or depart from the Netherlands and change trains in a third country in order to travel on to China. The transfer may be on the outward journey or on the return journey. Do you have a direct flight from the Netherlands to China, or do you plan to visit several cities? Then you are obliged to apply for a visa in advance. Not sure whether you fall under the visa-free regime? Please consult our staff for advice.
Visa China costs, validity and procedure
A tourist visa for China costs from € 247.95 per person. This visa is valid for 3 months and allows you to stay in China for 30 days.
You can apply for a business visa from € 247.95 per person. This type of visa is valid for 3 months (single or double entry) and allows you to stay in China for 30 to 60 days.
The above-mentioned visa fee for China includes our agency fee, the consular fee and VAT. If you wish to have documents collected or returned by our courier service, additional costs will be charged. These can be found on our fees page.
Procedure
After you have applied for your visa, you will receive an explanation about the visa requirements and the photograph requirements. At the top, under supplies, you can find these requirements. As soon as you have received this package, you can prepare your visa application and submit all necessary documents to us (by mail or not). You may also bring your passport and passport photo to the biometrics appointment (only if you have not previously submitted biometric data to the consulate in The Hague or if you are travelling with a different or new passport). We will also be present to assist you during this process. Then you can leave and we will take care of the rest.
As soon as your passport with visa China is ready, we will pick it up for you and return it to you in the desired manner. Of course it is also possible to pick it up at our office free of charge, or to have the passport ready at Schiphol Airport for a fee of €45,-.
Emergency visa application for China
Do you want to apply for a visa China urgently? For this you pay a surcharge, which depends on the chosen procedure. Below you can see the surcharges per procedure for your Express Visa China:
- 4 days procedure has a surcharge of €52,- incl. VAT
- 3 days procedure has a surcharge of €77 euro incl. VAT
- 2 days procedure has a surcharge of €128 euro incl. VAT
Biometrics
China has a new regulation from December 2019 that all travellers between the ages of 14 and 70 must provide their biometrics before applying for a visa. This means that, after receiving your documents, we will contact you by phone to schedule an appointment at the Chinese visa application centre in The Hague where your fingerprints and an iris scan will be taken. Our service includes this standard appointment which is allocated in order of entry. You can also apply for a visa China urgently. For this we charge a surcharge for each urgent procedure required.
Other (travel) stamps in your passport
Since August 2016, the Chinese government has become very strict when it comes to issuing visas to travellers with stamps in their passports from some Middle Eastern countries, Egypt and Turkey. If you have obtained multiple stamps in your passport for any of these “risk” countries since 2015, we recommend that you attach a cover letter in English that includes:
- State when and why you visited the country,
- State what your purpose of travel was,
- Describe in as much detail as possible what you did there,
- Also provide proof. Provide evidence, such as payments/invoices, references such as friends/family you visited, letters of invitation, etc.
There is a big chance that you will still be called in for an interview to explain this in person. Please take this into account.
Why apply for your Visa China at Traveldocs?
Are you going to apply for a visa to China? Then you can count on Traveldocs for professional, correct, swift and reliable service.
Our experienced experts will check your application before it is submitted to the Consulate of China. This way you can be 100% sure that your application is correct and safe.
You will also be kept informed of the status of your application by email or phone. In addition, you can follow your application at all times via the Tracking function on our website.
Traveldocs is a Dutch company with years of experience and the right connections to process your request correctly. We work together with various tour operators, top clubs and large (international) companies. Your documents are therefore in safe hands with us at all times.
Are you planning to visit other countries besides China?
Then take a look at the visa countries below, so you can be well prepared and equipped with the right documents for your trip.
Apply for your visa to China now
Do you want to apply for your visa directly? Then go directly to the online application form. Want to know more about the visa and the procedure? Please read our FAQ China page, or contact us via the online contact form.
Traveldocs helps companies and private individuals to apply for a visa or legalization. As a recognized legalization agency, we assist you administratively and we take care of the complete settlement at the relevant embassy or consulate. We charge agency fees for this service. We are not a government agency or affiliated with it. All costs to be paid by you are clearly visible and completely transparent and Traveldocs uses competitive prices, a professional service with adequate know-how within the world of legalisations. Of course you also have the option to submit your application directly to the relevant government agency. When you submit an application via visum-legalisatie.nl, you never pay more for the consular costs than at the embassy / consulate.