CHONGQING (CQNEWS) -- China’s visa exemptions for Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg on a trial basis took effect on March 14. At 4:57 on the same day, Flight CA436, carrying 26 foreign travelers, arrived at Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport from Budapest, Hungary. Chongqing Exit & Entry Frontier Inspection Station handled the visa-free entry procedures for 11 eligible passengers, welcoming its first visa-free travelers from the above six European countries.

“I’m excited about the visa exemption policy,” said KAPORNAI ISTVAN, a Hungarian traveler engaged in trade in China. His job involves traveling to and from China frequently, and the implementation of the visa-free policy will greatly facilitate his travel between the two countries.

To further promote people-to-people exchanges between China and foreign countries, China had planned to extend its visa exemption policy to Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg on a trial basis.

During the period between March 14 and November 30, ordinary passport holders from the above six European countries can enter China without a visa and stay for up to 15 days for business, tourism, family visit, and transit purposes. This policy is another visa-free measure following China's trial implementation of a unilateral visa-free policy for France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and Malaysia, which will further promote tourism and trade exchanges between the Chinese and relevant countries.

With the continuous optimization of the visa-free policy, Chongqing’s port of entry has seen a significantly increasing number of travelers granted visa-free entry to China. Since the beginning of 2024, the number of foreign travelers entering China via Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport without a visa has exceeded 7,000, up 650% from last year, and most of these travelers came to China for tourism and business purposes.

At present, the air passenger routes from Chongqing to 21 countries/regions including the UK’s London, France’s Paris, Australia’s Sydney, and Spain’s Madrid are available in Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport, with an international air route system covering Europe, Australia, the Middle East, Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia and other regions. The airport will continue to increase the number of direct flights to Italy’s Milan and other international flights. The visa-free policy and direct flights have brought Chongqing closer to the rest of the world and presented more opportunities for exchanges and cooperation.

The implementation of the visa-free policy not only helps relevant travelers save time for visa applications but also significantly improves the overall efficiency of border inspection and customs clearance, said Wu Dan, Vice Captain of the Second Patrol Team, Chongqing Exit & Entry Frontier Inspection Station. In view of the increase in passenger flow stimulated by the visa-free policy, Chongqing Exit & Entry Frontier Inspection Station has taken measures to ensure safe and smooth customs clearance at Chongqing’s port of entry, such as prediction and analysis of flight flow, allocation of police with a high foreign language level, dynamic adjustment of inspection channels, optimization of border inspection process, and strengthening the pre-inspection and guidance for visa-free travelers. (Translated by Yuki, Fathom Language Limited)