The Diplomat
China will exempt citizens of Spain and four other European Union countries from the visa requirement to enter the country if their stay does not exceed 15 days.
This was announced yesterday during a press conference by the Chinese spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mao Ning, who added that this is an “experimental” measure and that it will be of a temporary nature.
Along with Spain, citizens from France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, as well as those from Malaysia, will be exempt from visa requirements.
The measure will be in force from 1 December until 30 November 2024.
Until now, travellers from Spain were only exempt from visa requirements for tourist trips to Hong Kong and Macau, for stays of less than 90 days.
The foreign ministry spokeswoman, who did not specify whether any of the six countries will adopt reciprocal measures, added that the aim of the measure is to “facilitate the development of high-quality services related to the movement of foreign Chinese citizens and a high-level opening with the outside world”, reports Bloomberg.
Currently, China does not require visas for travellers from Singapore and Brunei. Japan was also on this short list, but has not returned since the COVID-19 pandemic.
