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China Is Set to Resume Issuing Visas as It Emerges From Covid Zero

  • Visa issuance was suspended for much of the pandemic
  • China abandoned its stringent Covid regime in December
A Covid testing station is dismantled in Shanghai on March 9.
A Covid testing station is dismantled in Shanghai on March 9.Photographer: Wang Jun/VCG/Getty Images
Updated on

China will resume issuing visas to tourists and other foreigners, a significant step in the country’s move to rejoin the world and leave its stringent Covid restrictions behind. 

The shift comes into force from Wednesday, China’s embassy in the US said in a statement. It will also see visa-free entry into Guangdong province resumed for foreigners in groups from Hong Kong and Macau, and for those on cruise ships stopping in Shanghai.