China Closes Certain Visa Centres in France and Italy
Multiple Chinese visa application centres in France and Italy will close in June 2024 amid sweeping travel facilitation measures, including expanded visa-free entry for short stays.
Official announcements from Chinese visa application centres in France and Italy confirm that several centres will temporarily suspend operations starting in June 2024. The closures follow unprecedented measures to simplify travel to China, including the rollout of unilateral visa exemptions for short stays in 12 countries through December 31, 2025.
Countries Eligible for China’s Visa-Free Entry
Citizens of the following 12 countries may travel to China for up to 15 days without a visa for tourism or business purposes: France, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, and Malaysia. The list is set to expand to include Australia and New Zealand in the coming months.
Visa-Centre Closures in France and Italy
France
China operates four visa application centres in France, located in Paris, Marseille, Strasbourg, and Lyon. The centre in Lyon stopped accepting new applications on June 14, 2024 at 5:00 pm and will no longer process submissions. Applicants based in the Lyon metropolitan area and the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region are now directed to submit visa applications at the Paris, Marseille, or Strasbourg centres.
Update, June 21: the Chinese visa centre in Strasbourg will also close as of June 26, 2024.
Italy
In Italy, the visa application centre in Florence will close permanently on June 21, 2024. Travellers requiring a China visa who are based in the surrounding region must now submit applications at the centre in Milan.
Passport Collection After Centre Closures
For applicants who completed their visa applications before the affected centre closures, passport-return procedures are outlined below:
Collection Date | Collection Location |
|---|---|
Before June 17, 2024 | Lyon Visa Application Centre |
June 18–21, 2024 | Consulate General of China in Lyon (69 rue Duquesne, 69006 Lyon) |
Passports can be collected between 9:00 am and 3:00 pm at the Consulate General of China in Lyon.
According to the official website of the Embassy of China in France, ordinary passport holders from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and Malaysia travelling to China for tourism, business visits, family reunions, or transit from December 1, 2023 to November 30, 2024 are exempt from visa requirements for stays of up to 15 days.
In addition, from August 11, 2023 through December 31, 2024, applicants requesting China visas for purposes such as business (M), tourism (L), family visits (Q2), transit (G), or crew (C) are exempt from in-person fingerprinting for single- or double-entry visas.
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