Beijing authorities may issue a record number of visas to foreigners visiting the city in 2010, after two years of relatively strict visa policies in the capital, the administration of exit and entry of Beijing public security bureau said yesterday.

A Dutch man completes a form at the Beijing Entry-Exit Administration Bureau yesterday. [China Daily]

The sharp increase, which may exceed 10 percent to surpass the previous record of 210,000 visas issued in 2007, is linked to the recovering economy, which is expected to draw more expatriates to job opportunities in Beijing, Jia Keming, director of the exit and entry administration of the Beijing public security bureau, told METRO section of China Daily in an exclusive interview.

 

"The reviving economy this year is expected to bring a consistent number of foreign students as before and attract a greater number of foreign employees. We also have similar predictions for travel and business visa holders," the official told METRO on the sidelines of the weeklong annual legislative meeting, which kicked off yesterday.

"Visas issued this year will very likely surpass the previous records. Our prediction is well above 200,000," he said, adding that authorities have opened new visa branches to cope with the anticipated boom.

While the number of visa registrations reached a historic height in 2007, it slumped to around 190,000 in both 2008 and 2009 as the authorities tightened visa applications to the capital and reduced visas issued during the Beijing Olympics and the unprecedented celebrations for the 60th-anniversary of the founding of New China.

The administration said yesterday that it did not have a ready ratio of successful visa applicants or a figure for the total number of applications in previous years. Local governments sometimes decline visa applications from foreigners over political concerns.

Jia said the recent restrictions were part of a nationwide campaign to ensure safety at the two major events.

"Visitors who find their visas denied include those who provide false identification or who violate specific regulations from the central government," said the official. He added that the majority of visa applicants will find their requests more likely to be accepted this year.

Terry Crossman, chief representative of Cross Search International, a foreign consulting firm, moved to China on a full-time basis in 2007. He uses a visa service company to renew his visa every July.

"I haven't heard it was getting easier," Crossman said. "I always hear it is getting harder.

"I never really had any problems with visas. I always use an outside service and somebody else handles it for me."

Mike Johnson, an expat from the United States who manages a local kindergarten, has lived in China for eight years, including six years in Beijing.

He now is on a Z visa but lived for the first six years on L/F visas, which he bought through visa servicing companies.

"I always got visas myself through outside contractors. You could flip through magazines and find 100 visa consultants. All you had to do was get the stamp outside of the country. That was back in the good old days before the Olympics," he said.

"There were a couple of times when I got a visa in California, and they gave me the wrong type of visa. I had to go and come back into the country every 60 days. Other than that, it has been pretty smooth sailing," he said.

More than 110,000 expatriates now live in the capital on long-term stays, with the majority having Korean or US citizenship, according to the latest official numbers. About 10,000 short-term travelers also visit Beijing each day.

The visa authorities have opened two new branches to provide better access to visa application and renewal services for foreign employees working in the Central Business District and on Financial Street. The administration will also open more branches for expatriates citywide, as the foreign workforce continues to grow in the capital, the official said.