The Chinese government has introduced a five-year multiple-entry visa known as the “ASEAN Visa” for citizens of the ten ASEAN countries and Timor-Leste. The new facility permits eligible individuals to stay in China for up to 180 days, or six months, per visit.
During a briefing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian announced the policy, stating, “China has launched an ‘ASEAN visa’ for 10 ASEAN member states and Timor Leste observers.
The new programme offers a five-year ‘multi-entry’ visit visa for qualified applicants visiting China for business purposes.”
According to Lin, the visa is available to business professionals from ASEAN member countries and Timor Leste, as well as their spouses and children, provided they meet the requirements.
“The visa allows holders to make multiple visits within five years with a maximum stay of 180 days per visit,” he added.
Part of Broader Regional Integration
The ASEAN Visa builds upon China’s existing bilateral arrangements, such as reciprocal visa exemptions with Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia, and follows the earlier rollout of the “Lancang-Mekong Visa” for countries along the Mekong River.
Lin explained, “The ASEAN Visa was launched based on comprehensive reciprocal visa exemption with Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, and some other countries, as well as the issuance of the Lancang-Mekong Visa, aiming to further facilitate cross-border movement in the region.”
@peoplesdaily_renminribaoStarting on June 1, Chin’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, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian introduced at a press conference on Tuesday.♬ 原声 – People’s Daily 人民日报
He also noted that the initiative is aligned with the vision of fostering a China-ASEAN community with a shared future.
“In recent years, the construction of a China-ASEAN community with a shared future has been continuously enhanced, and important achievements have been made in building a common home that features peace, tranquillity, prosperity, a beautiful environment, and friendship,” he said.
China’s Expanding Visa-Free Access
The ASEAN Visa is part of a broader push by China to ease travel restrictions and promote international exchange. “Visits between the people of China and Southeast Asian countries are intensive. There is a common hope to further facilitate travel between China and ASEAN,” Lin said.
He added that China has already granted unilateral visa-free access to 43 countries. “The growing ‘visa-free list’ shows China’s strong determination in expanding high-level openness,” Lin noted.
China has also extended visa-free entry to six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, as well as to ordinary passport holders from Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, and Uruguay.
Providing recent figures highlighting these policies’ impact, Lin said, “In the first quarter of this year, China received more than 9 million visits by foreign nationals, up more than 40% year-on-year. In the first four months, more than 18,000 enterprises with foreign investment were established in China, up 12.1% year-on-year.”
For further information regarding application procedures or eligibility, Lin advised applicants to contact Chinese diplomatic and consular representatives in their respective countries.
