Chinese authorities have started reissuing visas to nationals of Lithuania, a spokesperson for the foreign minister, Paulinas Levickytė, told the ELTA news agency.
Meanwhile, in January of this year, China suspended issuing visas to Lithuanian citizens, VisaGuide.World reports.
Back then, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, Gabrielius Landsbergis, said they were not provided any reasons regarding this decision.
We have been informed about this [China’s decision to suspend visa issuance for Lithuanians]. No further information has been provided.
Despite the reasons for this suspension, the Lithuanian authorities were unaware of the duration of this visa suspension.
China Previously Suspended Visa Issuance to Lithuanians in November 2021
This was not the first time China introduced such a measure toward Lithuania, according to the Lithuanian National Television and Radio. More specifically, in November 2021, China stopped issuing visas to citizens of Lithuania.
As Chinese authorities claimed, such a measure was taken due to technical reasons. Nevertheless, the Lithuanian authorities concluded that the visas were suspended due to the country’s decision to open the Taiwanese representative office in Vilnius.
China Recently Lifted & Eased Visa Rules to Numerous Countries
While having these visa issues with Lithuania, on the other hand, China removed visa restrictions to several European countries last December. As of then, citizens of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain have been granted visa-free entry to China for stays up to 15 days.
In addition, Chinese authorities have announced their plans to lift visa restrictions for citizens of Switzerland and Ireland.
Apart from EU states, China has implemented similar measures to other countries worldwide.
Recently, Georgian passport holders have been granted visa-free entry to China for stays up to 30 days. Meanwhile, citizens of the latter are able to travel to Georgia under the same conditions since September 2023.
Furthermore, China & Thailand permanently removed visa restrictions for each other’s citizens in January of this year. This policy, which entered into force today (March 1), was implemented in an effort to boost tourism in these countries.
Starting on February 9, citizens of China and Singapore have also been able to visit each other’s countries without visas for stays of up to 30 days.
In addition to dropping visa requirements to the mentioned countries, Chinese authorities have also eased visa application rules for American visitors.
Among other things, China has taken such measures in a bid to attract more international tourists and return to pre-pandemic figures.