Xi Says China Weighing Visa-Free UK Access After Meeting Starmer

Keir Starmer with Xi Jinping in Beijing, on Jan. 29.Photographer: Carl Court/Getty Images

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By Alex Wickham and Lucille Liu

January 28, 2026 at 1:19 PM UTC

Updated on

January 29, 2026 at 8:05 AM UTC

Chinese President Xi Jinping praised British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s landmark visit to China and vowed to consider granting UK citizens visa-free entry, as ties between the two nations continue to thaw.

Beijing will “actively consider” implementing unilateral visa-free entry for the UK and expand economic cooperation, the Xinhua News Agency reported Thursday, after Xi welcomed Starmer to the Chinese capital for the first such visit by a British prime minister in eight years.