All visitors to China require a valid passport and visa. Visas must
be arranged beforehand through your nearest Chinese embassy. CTS and
CITS, China's state travel agencies, also arrange visas and have offices
worldwide.
There
are a few exceptions. Most tourists will be granted a tourist visa
on entry to Hong Kong SAR and Macau SAR. Some nationals visiting
Shanghai and Guangdong for short visits do not require visas. Generally,
it is simplest to consult your nearest Chinese embassy.
The
PRC embassy in the US
website has useful information on all its offices in the US and
links to Chinese embassies worldwide.
There
are a variety of types of visas. Most tourists opt for a single
entry tourist visa, which is valid for 3 months and costs around
US$40. Multiple entry visas, business visas, and student visas are
also available.
If
you plan to spend time in Hong Kong before entering the mainland,
visas can be obtained quickly and easily in the SAR within 1 or
2 working days. Most travel agents will arrange this for a small
fee or you can go directly to the Visa Office of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs of the PRC. The office is located on the 5th Floor,
China Resources Building (low block), 26 Harbour Road, Hong Kong.
For visitors, passports will be the prime means of identification
- you will need them to cash travelers checks, buy plane and train
tickets and as general identification. In case of theft or loss
of a passport, it is a good idea to have photocopies of your passport
stashed strategically throughout your luggage.
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