January 18, 2016

New Visa System for Chinese Nationals

This post was written by: Amarjit Atwal

new visa system for chinese nationals blog bsnnre

On Monday 11 January 2016, the Home Office launched a new visa scheme for Chinese nationals wishing to travel to the UK.

A new two-year visa has been created that will cost Chinese nationals £85 (or approximately 14,200 yen) and will allow them to undertake multiple visits to the UK within the two-year period, without the need to apply for a new visa.

Previously, Chinese nationals had to either apply for a six-month visa – which carried a fee of £85 – or apply for a Schengen visitor visa. A Schengen visitor visa, however, carried a 60 euro fee and would only last for 3 months.

The new two-year visa will reform the way in which Chinese nationals can travel to the UK, and will be available to those who wish to visit the UK for business reasons such as investigating how to set up a business, or for tourism purposes.

In return, China has also revamped its visa policy, allowing UK nationals to visit China multiple times within two-years for a visa fee of £85.

The changes come in a bid to encourage business relations with China. In 2015 the UK issued over 484,000 visas to Chinese nationals and hopes to be able to encourage more Chinese nationals to visit the UK with these new changes.

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Author:

Amarjit Atwal