Starting on February 9, which also marks Lunar New Year’s Eve, China and Singapore will drop visa requirements for stays of up to 30 days for each other’s citizens.
As Beijing is set to encourage cross-border exchanges, the bilateral agreement was signed in the Chinese capital on Thursday, January 25, and is expected to connect the two countries further, VisaGuide.World reports.
In December, Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong pointed out that personnel exchanges between the two nations are on the rise, also saying that flights between Singapore and China are reaching pre-pandemic levels.
The 30-day mutual visa exemption arrangement between our two countries will also support such progress, which can promote more personnel exchanges and strengthen the cornerstone of bilateral relations.
On the other hand, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin pointed out that the representatives of the two countries are in close communication regarding these matters. He also added that both China and Singapore look forward to implementing these arrangements.
In recent months, China has lifted or relaxed visa requirements for many countries – a move which aims to improve the connectivity with the rest of the world and restore tourism numbers to the country, which during the COVID-19 pandemic was almost inactive.
Previously, Asia’s largest economy introduced a visa-free travel trial for citizens from France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and Malaysia for a year, with the measure being effective from December to November 2024. During this period, nationals of these countries will be able to travel or do business in China for up to 15 days.
This move has resulted in a boost for the Chinese tourism industry, as 118,000 visitors from these countries came to China under the visa-free regime in December alone.
According to data from China’s National Immigration Administration, 214,000 people from five European countries, in addition to Malaysia, entered China last month, over half of them visa-free.
These changes are expected to strengthen the Chinese passport, which currently ranks 119th internationally, as the Visa Guide Passport Index shows.
With a passport score of 31.22 points, Chinese passport holders are able to travel visa-free to 46 countries, with an Electronic Travel Authorization to two and with a visa-on-arrival to a total of 35 countries.
In addition, China has an e-visa agreement with 24 countries, allowing its citizens to travel to these countries by applying for an online visa prior to their trip. On the other hand, travelling to 119 countries requires Chinese nationals to apply for a visa – a process that can be lengthy at times.
On a good note, there is no entry ban for Chinese nationals, but there is no country that has a passport-free travel agreement, either.