Chinese Visa Issued By Chinese Consulate, Chiang Mai

[eljuwa]

Hello Forum Members

I asked this question from the Forum before and got varying answers.

Today, 14 March, I got a 2 entry tourist visa to enter China.

I applied on 11 March and this what you need for documentation:

(1) There is a new form called V.2013. This replaces the old form called V.2011 A. Only 1 copy is needed - previously 2 copies.

(2) You only need to provide an airline booking, called a BOOKING CONFIRMATION BY AIR ASIA ( I used them). You do not need to physically buy your airline prior to receiving your approved tourist visa. This confirmation of booking that I got from Air Asia was deemed sufficient. ROUND TRIP TICKET.

(3) You need a hotel booking confirmation. Again, you do not have to pay for the hotel before you get the tourist visa. I am going to Shenzhen, China and I went directly to Century Plaza Hotel and they gave me a confirmed reservation.

(4) You need to provide the Chinese Consulate with a travel itinerary for the cities that you intend to visit.

That is all. My cost was Thai Baht 4,560. USA passport holders pay more than others.

Happy travels to all of you

James

Edited March 15, 2014 by metisdead
Please do not post using all caps. Topic title edited to remove all caps.

[binjalin]

great - many thanks and have fun

[junglechef]

Looking for info on the possibility of driving my personal vehicle from CM to China. A few weeks ago I drove to Laos crossing at Chiang Klang into Huay Xai and up to Luang Namtham. Roads were great (and unbelievable Mt. Biking for any fellow riders looking for an easy but adventurous trip) and I want to go next time to continue to the Boten/Mohan border crossing into China and do some sort of loop if possible with the family, perhaps to Kumming. Saw lots of cars from China on my drive as I do here in town so figuring there might be reciprocation. Any useful insight appreciated, thanks.

[DonaldBattles]

I think it is very difficult to get permission to drive from Lao to China. I some a group of vehicles in Yunnan once and they said they had to have a Chinese guide with them and only one person in the car was allowed to have a driving permit.

Think that driving to Kunming would be a great trip. You could spend one night in Jing Hong. Further north toward there are some great hot spring resorts plus the stone forest.

[vagabond48]

I thought about doing it myself when we decided to visit China this past January for 2 months. Chinese cars are allowed into Thailand but Thai registered cars cannot continue to China from Laos. You also definitely need a Chinese drivers license. The Chinese don't accept foreign or International drivers license.

[mromem]

James,

Thanks for the useful info...I will be in Chiang Mai in a couple days also applying for a Chinese visa.

I plan to visit different cities but have no set itenerary. To help the visa process, I can make up an itenerary and present booking confirmation for flights and a hotel.

As per your process the Air Asia booking confirmations, can those be canceled and/or changed without costs? Same for the hotel reservations...can those be canceled once visa is issued?

Thanks in advanced,

Marcelo

Sent from my SM-N900T using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Edited March 15, 2014 by mromem

[northernjohn]

Went to MongLar Myanmar on the border with China. Did not try to enter China there. Not sure where it would put you once in China if it would even be possible to enter with a Thai vehicle.

[eljuwa]

Marcelo

The ITINERARY you can make-up. They are not that picky about that.

The AIRLINE - On the Air Asia screen you proceed with your booking up to the point before the payment screen. At that time make a screen copy. The screen will say Booking and also have your name, airline itinerary and the cost. You take that copy to the Chinese consulate.

The HOTEL booking. In my case I went directly to my hotel's web-site and made the booking. For you, I propose you go the agoda.com web-site and make a reservation. You do not have to pay until a future date. Or go directly to one hotel in any city that you are visiting and get a hotel booking for them. You only have to cover one city for the consulate. If you can cover all the cities that would be better also. agoda.com let's you book and pay in the future..

Good luck

James

PS: The lady at the Visa counter is very nice and pretty also !!!

[naugastyle]

This is a requirement on the Bangkok embassy website:

"(3) Proof of legal stay or residence status (applicable to those not applying for the visa in their country of citizenship)

If you are not applying for the visa in the country of your citizenship, you must provide the original and photocopy of your valid certificates or visa of stay, residence, employment or student status, or other valid certificates of legal staying provided by the relevant authorities of the country where you are currently staying."

If I don't have a visa (just on a 30-day visa-exempt stay in Thailand), do you think that's good enough? Did they ask for any residence certificate or just look at the visa in your passport?

Or maybe the Chiang Mai consulate does not make this requirement at all?

[arunsakda]

This is a requirement on the Bangkok embassy website:

"(3) Proof of legal stay or residence status (applicable to those not applying for the visa in their country of citizenship)

If you are not applying for the visa in the country of your citizenship, you must provide the original and photocopy of your valid certificates or visa of stay, residence, employment or student status, or other valid certificates of legal staying provided by the relevant authorities of the country where you are currently staying."

If I don't have a visa (just on a 30-day visa-exempt stay in Thailand), do you think that's good enough? Did they ask for any residence certificate or just look at the visa in your passport?

Or maybe the Chiang Mai consulate does not make this requirement at all?

Just got a visa from China Consul CM in January. My 30 day Thai visa exempt status was not an issue.

[TerraplaneGuy]

James,

Thanks for the info. You said you got a double-entry visa. A question about timing: How long does the visa last after you first enter? Is there a fixed duration (e. g. 30 days) for each entry, or for the total of two entries?

Also did you explore with them the possibility of a multi-entry (more than two)? According to the guidelines on the embassy website such a visa is available for either 6 months or 12 months but from my experience applying from my home country (Canada) they just won't issue those unless you're part of a special group, etc.

Finally does anybody know whether the Chiang Mai requirements according to James also apply in the Bangkok visa office (e. g. no need to have an actual paid airline ticket, etc.)?

Thanks,

TG

[Jerrie Pelser]

Thank you for sharing James. I am about to go through the same process and this is useful information to have.

[eljuwa]

TerraplaneGuy

2 entry tourist visa: My visa was issued on 11 March 2014. I need to enter China before 11 September 2014. Duration of each stay is 30 days after entry. I have to enter China on my 2nd entry before 11 September.

You can apply for the multi entry at the Chiang Mai Consulate.

Airline ticket: You need not BUY the airline ticket. You need proof that you have a BOOKING. You can do this with Air Asia.

Hotel: Again, you do not pay for your hotel reservation. Only a booking is needed.

I entered China in June 2012 after obtaining my Chinese Visa in Bangkok. I did not have to provide airline tickets/hotel bookings nor itineraries in June 2012 out of BKK. Things have changed and Chiang Mai Consulate requires all of this. If BKK wants the same, I do not know. Maybe the BKK Forum members may have the recent answers on that fact.

When you apply at the Chinese consulate in Chiang Mai, they send the passport and the package to BKK Embassy for the final approval and entry stamp is affixed in BKK.

Good luck with your travel to China

James

[yohoo]

The AIRLINE - On the Air Asia screen you proceed with your booking up to the point before the payment screen. At that time make a screen copy. The screen will say Booking and also have your name, airline itinerary and the cost. You take that copy to the Chinese consulate.

I've just tried to do the same as James but failed with the airline booking. It seems like AirAsia changed the booking process so that you never get to a screen that say "Booking" together with my name, airline itinerary and the cost. Whatever I've tried, it doesn't work without actually paying.

I did some further research, if it could be done with other airlines, but I didn't find anything except buying very expansive but refundable tickets, what I don't wanna do.

To sum it up: at the moment I don't see a way to get the visa without actually fix the dates of the journey and actually buy the flight tickets (that is unfortunately no solution for me).

Anyone with further ideas?

[CNXBKKMAN]

Yahoo a decent travel agent will create a valid airline reservation for you. If its not ticketed ie paid in full it will expire so you will be free to book later on the correct dates on whatever airline. You may need to pay a deposit with the agent and buy the real ticket with them later.

Someone did say Thai Airways website will let you create a reservation which has a 24 hour life awaiting payment? If you don't pay it expires. You might want to check that.

If you book an air Asia flight to be paid for at 7 11 or tescos that will also expire if you don't follow it up and pay. Have you tried that?

[CNXBKKMAN]

Should read Yohoo above not yahoo

[yohoo]

CNXBKKMAN, Thank you! AirAsia with 7 11 / tesco payment doesn't work either (I tried that, you don't get a proper confirmation until it's paid). But Thai Airways works perfect. You get an official fligth confirmation with all relevant data but can wait up to 72hrs to pay in an ticket office. Or not pay at all. This should (hopefully) work!

[Tomtomtom69]

I thought about doing it myself when we decided to visit China this past January for 2 months. Chinese cars are allowed into Thailand but Thai registered cars cannot continue to China from Laos. You also definitely need a Chinese drivers license. The Chinese don't accept foreign or International drivers license.

This is currently a bit of an unknown as there is almost no information online about entering with a Thai car, except for the usual "foreign registered vehicles must go on a tour with guide and obtain a Chinese driver's license". I have heard some information indicating Thai cars may travel to Sipsongbanna, which is known as Xishuangbanna in Chinese, without any special requirements, but seen no hard evidence of anyone ever making a crossing. When I was last in Sipsongbanna, I drove down from Kunming in a local car and upon entering Jinghong and throughout all of the region saw plenty of Lao cars, Lao registered buses (mostly operating as China-Laos through services) and Lao trucks, but not a single Thai registered vehicle.

What this indicates is that Lao cars CAN enter China and travel at least in southern Yunnan (all that is needed is a yellow international cross border permit for the car, similar to the purple one issued for Thai cars). There is now a second China-Lao international crossing open in northern Phongsali province since December 2013, that very few foreigners have ever crossed. Presumably, Lao cars can also enter there. The GMS agreement signed between 6 countries including Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, China (Guangxi and Yunnan provinces), Vietnam and Cambodia was supposed to allow for cars, buses and trucks registered in any of these 6 countries to travel freely between each other's country, meaning that Thai vehicles should also be permitted to travel into China (only Yunnan and Guangxi provinces). The reality on the ground may be quite different though as currently only Thailand and Laos fully honor this agreement (although Thailand reciprocates Burmese restrictions on it's vehicles crossing into Myanmar, similarly Thailand restricts Vietnamese vehicles crossing into Thailand since Vietnam doesn't allow Thai vehicles into it's territory).

If you want to drive yourself into China - the best way is to rent a car through AVIS Laos and drive up yourself. You won't need a Chinese driver's license before you get there. I know some foreigners who have driven to Kunming by renting through AVIS Laos and drove up themselves, albeit switching driving duties with a Lao driver (not normally needed if you don't want one). The proviso at the time was that in order to drive north of Jinghong, a Chinese guarantor was required. This required a phone call to a Chinese national once at customs, at which stage a customs form was printed out, allowing for travel north of Jinghong. Now that the second international crossing is open, which is much further north of Jinghong, who knows how all of this will be interpreted.

I doubt a Chinese driver's license is the restricting factor in all of this (after all, arrangements can be made to have one issued beforehand). It's more of a customs issue instead.

However, by 2015, Thai driver licenses will supposedly be recognized in China according to the Thai LTD. This indicates to me that by next year, Thai vehicles will be allowed to enter China without the supposed restrictions that are being applied now.

[Tomtomtom69]

Went to MongLar Myanmar on the border with China. Did not try to enter China there. Not sure where it would put you once in China if it would even be possible to enter with a Thai vehicle.

That border crossing takes you to Sipsongbanna, the first town is Daluo and then it's maybe a 90-minute drive to the provincial capital of Jinghong.

When did you go there? The border there is currently shut to all - including locals (although it's possible local Burmese traders are still allowed to travel back and forth on one day permits but only within a limited radius from the border). No vehicles are permitted to cross, even when the border is open except MAYBE within a limited one or two km radius on either side of the border and only for Burmese/Chinese vehicles.

One day fairly soon, they may open up that border, but indications are that the other border (Ruili-Jiegao/Muse) will open up as a fully fledged international crossing much sooner. However, even once that's the case, don't expect to be able to easily take a vehicle across. Even at that border, Chinese vehicles can only travel 10km inside Myanmar (thus only inside the Muse economic zone) and Burmese vehicles can only travel inside Jiegao, 2km inside Chinese territory to pickup/drop-off goods and passengers.

If you want to enter China in your own vehicle, you would need to travel via Laos. However, as mentioned indications are that only Lao vehicles can enter without a guide, and even then are restricted as to how far they can travel. For Thai vehicles, there is apparently a provision that allows them the same privileges as Lao vehicles but in practice these privileges are not being extended to Thai vehicles for unknown reasons. 2015 should open things up a fair bit though.

Edited May 21, 2014 by Tomtomtom69

[Tomtomtom69]

This is a requirement on the Bangkok embassy website:

"(3) Proof of legal stay or residence status (applicable to those not applying for the visa in their country of citizenship)

If you are not applying for the visa in the country of your citizenship, you must provide the original and photocopy of your valid certificates or visa of stay, residence, employment or student status, or other valid certificates of legal staying provided by the relevant authorities of the country where you are currently staying."

If I don't have a visa (just on a 30-day visa-exempt stay in Thailand), do you think that's good enough? Did they ask for any residence certificate or just look at the visa in your passport?

Or maybe the Chiang Mai consulate does not make this requirement at all?

That's good enough. There is no need for any visa or long term visa however you should make sure that by the time you get your passport back, your Thai entry permit is still valid. That's what's implied here. Do not apply for a Chinese visa if your Thai entry permit has expired or is close to expiring (i.e. will be expired before you get your passport back).