| People's Republic of China passport 中华人民共和国护照 | |
|---|---|
| Front cover of the current Chinese passport (with chip | |
| Personal data page of the current Chinese biometric passport | |
| Type | Passport |
| Issued by | |
| First issued | 1949 |
| Purpose | Identification |
| Eligibility | Chinese nationals with Hukou residing in Mainland China, or Chinese nationals residing abroad who do not qualify for travel documents issued by Hong Kong SAR or Macau SAR. [1] |
| Expiration | 10 years after acquisition for adults aged 16 or over, 5 for children or non-ordinary passport 3 months for single group travel [2] |
| Cost | ¥120 for both first passport and renewed passport |
| |
|---|
The People's Republic of China passport [a] (commonly referred to as the Chinese passport) [b] is a passport issued to citizens of the People's Republic of China for the purpose of international travel, and entitles its bearer to the protection of China's consular officials overseas.
On 1 July 2011, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs launched a trial issuance of e-passports for individuals conducting public affairs work overseas on behalf of the Chinese government. [3] [4] The face, fingerprints, and other biometric features of the passport holder are digitized and stored in pre-installed contactless smart chip, [5] [6] along with "the passport owner's name, sex and personal photo as well as the passport's term of validity and [the] digital certificate of the chip". [7] Ordinary biometric passports were introduced by the Ministry of Public Security on 15 May 2012. [8] As of January 2015, all new passports issued by China are biometric e-passports, and non-biometric passports are no longer issued. [7]
In 2012, over 38 million Chinese citizens held ordinary passports, comprising only 2.86 percent of the total population at the time. [9] In 2014, China issued 16 million passports, ranking first in the world, surpassing the United States (14 million) and India (10 million). [10] The number of ordinary passports in circulation rose to 120 million by October 2016, which was approximately 8.7 percent of the population. [11] As of April 2017 to date, China had issued over 100 million biometric ordinary passports. [12]
Articles 3, 4, 5 and 8 of the Passport Law of the People's Republic of China, which went into effect in 2007, declares three types of passports issued in China: [13]
Article 9 of the Law states that the "issuing scope of diplomatic passports and service passports, the measures for issue of such passports, their terms of validity and the specific categories of service passports shall be prescribed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs".
The ordinary passport is considered a passport "for private affairs" (因私护照), while service (including for public affairs passports) and diplomatic passports are passports "for public affairs" (因公护照). [15]
The passports for Macau and Hong Kong SARs are issued and regulated by the governments of these regions, and are therefore not covered by this law.
In July 2011 the Chinese government began to issue biometric diplomatic passports, service passports and passports for public affairs. [14] The launch date of biometric ordinary passports was May 15, 2012.
A different passport for public affairs (Chinese:因公普通护照; lit.'ordinary passport for public affairs') was issued until 2006. Unlike the current version, it was classified as a variation of ordinary passport. The abuse of the use of document resulted in its subsequent cancellation. Unlike other passports, it was issued by the provincial or municipal Foreign Affairs Offices, rather than the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Ministry of Public Security. [16] Chinese ordinary passport for public affairs was used at the end of the 1980s and the 1990s.[ citation needed ] The passport information was written by hand, and these ordinary passports were usually valid for 2 or 5 years.[ citation needed ]
In 1996, 77% of persons exiting China held a passport for public affairs. [17] The rate had dropped to 39% by 2002. [18] The reason for the high rate of usage was because the passport for public affairs offered more visa-free countries, such as Russia, than the ordinary passport. [16] Chinese regulations require public affairs passports to be kept in the possession of the holder's work unit, [19] and they must be surrendered by the individual within one month of returning to China. [20]
The passport previously had an across-the-board 5-year period of validity. Since 2007, ordinary passports are valid for 10 years for bearers above 16 years of age, and for 5 years for bearers below 16 years of age, and diplomatic or service passports are valid for 4 years. According to the 2006 Passport Law of the People's Republic of China, renewal of previously issued passports ended on January 1, 2007. However, passports renewed before 2007 remained valid until expiry.
The newest version of the regular Chinese passport is the biometric version, which replaced its predecessors "Form 92", "Form 97-1" and "Form 97-2", but Form "97-2" passport is still being issued for single group tourism to Russia in some Sino-Russia broder cities and valid for only 3 months or after returning to China. [2] It was released to the general public in May 2012. The passport contains 48 pages.
The Form "1982" ordinary Chinese passport is a hand-written passport and issued in 1982. Chinese, French and English are used in all pages.
The Form "1992" ordinary Chinese passport is not a machine-readable passport, and issued in 1992.
The Form "97-2" ordinary Chinese passport is a machine-readable passport, and issued in February 1997. In "97-2", personal data is on the inside front cover along with a coloured photo printed with inkjet printer, with a protective film covering most of the data page. Details include:
In the biometric Passport, the personal data page was moved to a separate sheet of paper, and the design of personal data page has been amended significantly, adding the full name of PRC in Simplified Chinese and English on top along with an e-passport symbol printed with optically variable ink. New security features include a second ghost image of the holder and additional holographic graphs including the PRC emblem and the laser-printed world map. The details included are as follows:
All information is printed in Simplified Chinese and English, except for the "Attentions" page, which is only printed in Simplified Chinese.
中华人民共和国外交部请各国军政机关对持照人予以通行的便利和必要的协助。
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China requests all civil and military authorities of foreign countries to allow the bearer of this passport to pass freely and afford assistance in case of need.
Le Ministère des Affaires étrangères de la République populaire de Chine prie les autorités civiles et militaires des pays étrangers de laisser passer librement le titulaire de ce passeport et de lui prêter aide et assistance en cas de besoin.
In the biometric version, selected natural landmarks and famous sights from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan are printed on the inner pages. Each page also features a transparent watermark depicting another landmark from the same region.
The last page has the notes for the passport. For e-passport, inside the backcover, a caution for the biometric chip is written in both Chinese and English:
本护照内置敏感电子元件。为保持最佳性能,请不要将护照折弯、打孔或者暴露在极端温湿度环境。
This passport contains sensitive electronics. For best performance, please do not bend, perforate or expose to extreme temperatures or excess moisture.
请勿在此盖印 DO NOT STAMP HERE
The fee for a Chinese passport is CNY 120. When applying for a passport overseas, the fee is US$25 or €20. No extra fees are charged for expedited processing if approved. [23]
Normal processing time is 10 business days when applying from mainland China, and 15 business days from Chinese diplomatic missions outside mainland China (including Hong Kong and Macau). In some Regions, processing time is 7 business days such as Shanghai City if application was submitted electronically (online or by cell phone APPs such as WeChat). [24] Expedited processing is available for 5 business days, but is only available if the applicants have genuine emergencies, such as they have deceased relatives abroad, their first day of school is near, or they have unused visas in old passports that are expiring soon. [25]
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport (Chinese :香港特別行政區護照) is a passport issued to permanent residents of Hong Kong who also hold Chinese citizenship. [26] In accordance with the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, since the handover in 1997, the passport has been issued by the Immigration Department of the Government of Hong Kong under the authorisation of the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China. As the official languages of Hong Kong are Chinese and English, the passport is printed bilingually in both Chinese (traditional characters) and English.
The Macao Special Administrative Region passport (Chinese :澳門特別行政區護照; Portuguese: Passaporte da Região Administrativa Especial de Macau) is a passport issued to Chinese citizens who are permanent residents of the Chinese Special Administrative Region of Macau. While both "Macao" and "Macau" are used interchangeably, "Macao" is the officially adopted English-language spelling for the SAR's government and its official documents, [27] including the passport.
The following travel documents are also issued by mainland China to Chinese citizens who may or may not qualify for a Chinese passport for various reasons:
The People's Republic of China Travel Document (Chinese :中华人民共和国旅行证) is a type of travel document issued by Chinese embassies, consulates, and other foreign offices to Chinese citizens for their international travel to China and other countries. [28] The bearer of the Travel Document is legally a Chinese citizen in accordance with the Nationality Law. [29]
The Hong Kong and Macao Travel Permit [30] [31] [32] [33] (alternatively known as the Exit-Entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao; [34] [35] colloquially as Two-way Permit [36] or EEP [37] ) is a travel document issued by the Exit and Entry Administration of the People's Republic of China. This card-size biometric document is issued to Chinese citizens residing in the mainland for traveling to and returning from Hong Kong and Macau for personal purposes.
The Permit for Proceeding to Hong Kong and Macao, [38] [39] colloquially known as the One-way Permit, [39] [40] is a travel document issued by the Exit and Entry Administration of the People's Republic of China. This passport-size document is issued for its bearers, Chinese citizens residing in the mainland with relatives in Hong Kong or Macau, to proceed to the special administrative regions for residency. [41] [42]
The Taiwan Travel Permit [c] is a travel document issued by the Exit and Entry Administration of the People's Republic of China. [47] This card-size biometric document is issued for its bearers, Chinese citizens residing in the mainland, to travel from the mainland to the Taiwan Area for personal, business, or other purposes. [48] [49] [50] [ dead link ]
Holders of Chinese biometric passports may use automatic immigration clearance, known as e-Channel. These lanes are available at major international airports in mainland China, including Beijing Capital, Shanghai Pudong, Shanghai Hongqiao, Guangzhou Baiyun and Chengdu Tianfu, as well as at land border crossings in Shenzhen and Zhuhai.
E-Channel was originally introduced for returning Chinese citizens. Eligibility requires a biometric passport with fingerprint data stored on the chip. Travelers whose passports lack fingerprint data must first register with China Immigration Inspection at an international airport or land border checkpoint. [51]
Starting from August 19, 2016, passengers are able to use the e-Gates in terminal 2 of Beijing Capital International Airport to complete exit procedures from China as well. [52] Starting from Dec 1, 2017, Shanghai international airports including PVG and SHA both have e-Channel for exit. [53]
The extended list of eligible travelers is: [54] [52]
Registration with CII not required:
Registration with CII required:
Visa requirements for Chinese citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of the People's Republic of China. As of 2025, Chinese citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 85 countries and territories, ranking the Chinese passport 60th in the world according to the Henley Passport Index. The latest visa exemption is granted by Kiribati Ministry of Foreign Affairs to all Chinese citizen for tourism purpose. [55] [56] Chinese passport is also the highest-ranked passport among Communist states. After Covid travel restriction was lifted, the resume of free-to-travel is on high demand as well as align to government's economic boosting strategy; Passport offices are also introducing new mobile-app allow hassle-free passport application or renew, together with video-call and facial recognition techniques to enable this service 24/7. According to Henley's report, Chinese Passport is the front runner for visa-free travel ranking among all countries. The Electronic Visa Update System (EVUS) is introduced in 2016 for Chinese passport holder who hold a valid 10-year B1, B2, or B1/B2 visa to travel to the United States. [57]
Chinese passports cannot normally be used when travelling directly to Hong Kong, Macau, or Taiwan from mainland China, except for transiting to another country.
In order for such Chinese citizens to travel from mainland China to Hong Kong and Macau, a Two-way Permit is required. Chinese foreign missions, however, do issue visa-like Hong Kong SAR Entry Permits for up to 14 days to Chinese citizens residing outside mainland China upon request, so PRC passport holders can travel solely between Hong Kong and Mainland with passports.
Travelling to Taiwan from mainland China requires the Travel Permit to and from Taiwan as well as Exit and Entry Permit issued by the Taiwanese government. Although Chinese passports are accepted as valid travel documents by the National Immigration Agency (NIA) and Taiwanese diplomatic missions, [58] the NIA does not allow Chinese citizens with hukou to travel to Taiwan when departing from mainland China unless holding the Mainland Resident Travel Permit with valid exit endorsement.
These are the numbers of mainland Chinese visitors to various countries or territories:
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