Shanghaiist: More updates on the Chinese visa situation

Chinkerfly

Tue, 13 May 2008 17:44:29 +0800

I went to this place on a twitter recommendation from spinncafe (I think) http://www.fbt-chinavisa.com.hk/ There were extremely nice despite being swamped with people. The next day was a national holiday (5.1) so I could not get it in one day, but had it the day after that. They said normally if you have it in by 1pm you can pick it up after 1pm the next day (Monday-Friday only). I had a bunch of paperwork with me, airplane ticket back to China, business card, hukous and shenfenzheng from relatives, but they didn't want any of that. Just filled out the form, the woman behind the counter made some changes where I had filled it out too truthfully? so as to prevent problems. I have an American passport so it cost 1550 for a 90day tourist visa that I supposedly have to leave every 30 days. I've heard there are ways around that leaving bit in Shanghai. It was cheaper to apply for the same visa if you were from certain other countries.

Chinkerfly

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:39:53 +0800

@vladivostok Rub it in, why doncha. :) Thanks for all the info Shanghaiist. And to the last reader especially on where to avoid. I'm willing to pay 1750 at Shoestring for 30 days. Sure beats 7 days. (last September I paid 2100 for a 30 day L visa...) Why do they need to see a ticket to China? When applying for a US visa don't you have to show a return ticket to country of origin?

Dagwood

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 13:53:00 +0800

Hey, my F visa will expire on May 1st. I heard you can go to HK, get a 7 day tourist visa, come back to China and get that tourist visa extended twice (each time is a 21-day extension). Can anyone confirm this?

vladivostok

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 17:57:40 +0800

I'm so thankful I have my Z visa.