China adopts measures to promote recovery of inbound tourism

China has taken steps to offer convenience for foreigners and speed up international personnel exchanges, which are set to boost inbound travel to the world's second-largest economy next year, industry observers said. 

As a latest move, Chinese embassies and consulates will temporarily charge 75 percent of tourist visa fees from Monday to December 31. 

Many Chinese embassies have already officially announced cuts in visa fees, including those in Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Thailand, Mexico, Azerbaijan, Vietnam, Bahrain, Kyrgyzstan, Cambodia, Fiji, Kazakhstan and the Philippines. 

"The pace of recovery since the market reopened earlier this year has been quite strong, so I think that is the reason we are optimistic about it going forward," International Air Transport Association (IATA) Director General Willie Walsh said last week on the sidelines of a media event at the association's headquarters in Geneva, according to a report from the South China Morning Post on Monday.

The Chinese mainland accounted for 9 percent of all international air passenger demand before the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, it said.

As a major trading partner of more than 140 countries and regions and one of the world's major investment destinations, China's international travel demand is huge, Wang Xiaoyu, a specially appointed expert from the World Tourism Cities Federation, told the Global Times on Monday. 

Wang said that after the COVID-19 pandemic came to an end, China took steps to create favorable conditions, provide more convenience and enhance exchanges between Chinese and foreign personnel.

China has tried to expand the scope of unilateral visa-free countries, restored visa-free entry policies for some economies, optimized visa and customs clearance policies, and increased international flights.

In a significant move in November, a visa-free entry policy for citizens of five European nations and Malaysia was announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

These measures have triggered an immediate boost for inbound tourism. The Foreign Ministry, citing immigration data, said about 7,000 of nearly 18,000 travelers from the countries covered by the visa waiver policy entered China in the first three days of December.

Daily tourist arrivals from those countries rose 39 percent on the first three days of December compared with the last day of November.

"We hope the government will consider expanding the list, which will facilitate international travel to China," said Xie Xingquan, IATA's regional vice-president for North Asia. 

As China continues to advance its opening-up and the desire for cultural and business exchanges between Chinese and foreign individuals constantly grow, the demand for international travel to and from the Chinese mainland is expected to further increase in 2024, Wang said. 

In the third quarter of 2023, China's immigration management agencies cleared 123 million entries and exits, up 454.4 percent year-on-year and reaching 73 percent of the 2019 level, the National Immigration Administration said.

They issued 608,000 visas and documents for foreigners, up 268.5 percent year-on-year and matching the 2019 level.