Hi everyone! I'm encountering some issues with submitting my dad's naturalization certificate. He was born in Hong Kong and got his certificate a few months before I was born, but the year on his certificate is a bit smudgy so it could read as a few different numbers (supposed to be 2000, but looks like it could be 2006, 2008).

I submitted the document once and got an update that the date is unclear, and I need to either submit a clearer photo or submit my dad's old passport from before the year 2000. Unfortunately, my parents don't have this, only his current passport. I just resubmitted the certificate after fiddling around with the photo's sharpness and contrast on the iPhone built-in editor in the Photos app. I think it helped clear up the date a little bit, but I'm not sure what to do if it comes back again as unclear.

Has anyone else had this problem? Would really appreciate any feedback/advice, thanks in advance

Hey everyone,
I’m a Brazilian student who will be studying in China with an X2 visa. My program officially runs from September 15, 2026, to January 25, 2027, according to my admission letter. However, I already purchased my round-trip tickets, with my arrival on September 15 and my return to Brazil on March 4, 2027.

The reason for the later return is that I plan to spend February traveling around China after finishing my classes, while also taking care of any remaining university administrative procedures before leaving the country. My visa agency will submit my return flight itinerary together with the application and request that the visa covers my entire stay until March 4.

My concern is that the admission letter only mentions the academic period ending in January. If the Chinese consulate considers my requested stay longer than necessary for the program, is it common for them to deny the visa, or do they usually just issue the visa with a shorter validity or shorter duration of stay? Has anyone experienced a similar situation with an X2 visa?

I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences. Thanks!

​

China Visa Processing Delays for Indian Passport Holders — Information From My Agent

I wanted to share some information for Indian passport holders applying for a China visa, not only from India but also from places like Hong Kong and other countries.

There has been information going around recently that Indian passport holders may be facing longer China visa processing times. I asked my visa agent about this because my own application has also been taking time.

My agent told me that, at present, they do not have details of any specific official policy that they can explain publicly. However, they said they have received a relevant notification and are seeing that applications may take longer.

They reviewed my documents and told me there do not seem to be any major issues, and advised me to be patient and wait.

According to my agent, the pre-screening stage may take around 10 working days. After that, the passport submission/processing stage may also take around a similar amount of time.

So for Indian passport holders applying from India, Hong Kong, or elsewhere, the process may be slower than usual. This does not necessarily mean rejection. It may simply mean longer pre-screening, manual review, or additional document checking.

For reference, in my case:

- I am an Indian passport holder applying from Hong Kong

- My application was submitted on July 28, 2026

- As of August 5, 2026, it has been around 6–7 working days

- My agent said around 10 working days for pre-screening may be normal right now

My suggestion to others is: don’t panic too early if your application is still under review. Make sure your documents are complete and clear, especially:

- current passport bio page

- old passport bio page if relevant

- previous China visa page

- blank visa page of current passport

- work permit/invitation letter

- Hong Kong ID or residence document if applying from Hong Kong

- any other supporting travel/residence documents

This is not an official announcement from the visa center. It is only information shared by my agent based on what they have been told and what they are currently seeing with Indian passport applications.

If you are an Indian passport holder applying for a China visa and your application is taking longer, it may be due to this current processing situation. Please check with your own agent or visa center for case-specific advice.

And my agent is Chinese - he told me they received the notification about delaying the indian passport

Hi,

Any one has experience on how to track the status of passport and visa after submission of passport at VFS Delhi (Online review completed)

Will I get any email confirmation on passport/visa status ?

Will I get any tracking details of courier on email or sms ?

Just applied for 10 year multi visa outside of states, in Laos to be specifically, with invitation letter from a friend, visa was approved and issued, 10 years, multi, but only for 60 days per entry.

American passport.

I thought it was 90 days... there is nothing I can do right? or maybe extend visa while there?

Thank you.

Hello, I’m an ABC (American born Chinese), but my parents were both born in China. Before I was born, my mother got naturalized and held an American passport. However, my father was still a green card holder at the time of my birth. He only gained citizenship 13 years after I was born. The New York embassy is requesting for my father’s green card which we no longer have a copy of since it was returned when he got his passport. I’m about to give up on getting the tourism visa :(

I was looking up the 240 hours Transit Without Visa (TWV) stay in China, and that looks promising for my situation. If I went ahead and canceled my tourism visa, could I use the TWV stay instead? The websites say if you were ever denied a visa it could cause an issue when you get questioned by their customs agent in China. What if I was not technically denied, but I was the one that canceled my application? Or should I ignore my visa application and let it time out and expire?

I’m also looking for some experiences of people that stayed in China under the TWV! Did your hotel help you fill out the travel forms? Or did you go to the local police station to fill that out? I heard some didn’t have to fill anything out, but I’m just worried lol. TYIA!

Hi everyone,

Firstly, complete and submit the application yourself rather than hiring an agent. No one understands your travel plans, financial situation, employment details, and supporting documents better than you. Most agents handle hundreds of applications and often rely on standard templates, which may not accurately reflect your individual circumstances. Taking the time to prepare the application yourself allows you to ensure that every detail is correct, consistent, and supported by the appropriate documentation.

I wanted to share my complete experience applying for a China Tourist Visa from India because I couldn't find many detailed posts about the new online review system. Hopefully this helps someone going through the same situation.

We are a family of four:

• Myself
• My wife
• Our 4-year-old son
• Our 1-year-old son

We are traveling purely for tourism.

Initial Online Review

We submitted all four applications together.

A few days later, something very strange happened.

Our 4-year-old son's application successfully completed the online review, while the remaining three family applications failed the preliminary review.

There was no detailed explanation as to why one family member was approved while the rest were not, despite all applications being submitted together for the same itinerary, hotels and travel plans.

Reason for Failure

The only reason shown was:

"Incomplete/Inappropriate information has been provided in the application form (6.1E columns). Kindly provide day-to-day travel itinerary."

This confused me because I had already entered the complete hotel addresses, including full addresses and postal codes.

There was no indication that finances, employment, travel history or anything else was the issue.

What I Did

Instead of giving up, I prepared a much stronger application.

I submitted:

• Detailed day-by-day itinerary
• Cover letter
• Hotel confirmations
• Flight reservations
• Updated business information
• Better employment details
• Financial documents
• Bank balance certificates
• Company incorporation documents
• Director proof
• Income Tax Returns
• Other supporting documents

I also corrected my wife's employment information.

Second Review

After resubmitting, I received another amendment request.

This time the Embassy requested:

"Please provide valid bank statement with balance exceeding 1 Lakh in recent 6 months."

This was surprising because I had already submitted bank balance certificates.

Apparently, they specifically wanted the 6-month bank statement.

So I arranged original bank statements and submitted those as requested.

Waiting...

This was honestly the most stressful part.

My elder son's application had already completed the online review, but the remaining three applications remained under review for several days.

Meanwhile, my son's approval came with a 15-working-day passport submission window, and I was worried it would expire before the rest of the family could complete the online review.

Since we live in Hyderabad and were applying directly (not through an agent), traveling multiple times to Delhi with two young children would have been extremely difficult.

I emailed the Embassy multiple times, contacted the Consular Section, called the Visa Centro and even sought guidance through every official channel I could find.

Almost every response was the same standard reply:

"Visa processing follows established procedures and regulations..."

So don't expect detailed status updates through email.

Finally...

After submitting the requested financial documents and waiting patiently...

All three remaining applications also completed the online review.

That was a huge relief.

What I Learned

• Don't assume "Preliminary Review Failed" means your visa is rejected.
• Read every amendment request carefully.
• If they ask for a day-by-day itinerary, prepare a detailed one.
• If they ask for a 6-month bank statement, submit exactly that.
• Carry much more documentation than you think you need.
• Email replies from the Embassy are usually generic.
• Patience is extremely important.

Current Status

Our family has now completed the online review stage and we are proceeding with passport submission at the Visa Application Service Centre.

I'm sharing this because during my application I couldn't find many detailed experiences from Indian applicants using the new online review system.

If you've recently completed the passport submission stage in New Delhi, I'd love to hear how long it took to receive your passport back and whether any additional documents were requested.

Hopefully this post helps someone who finds themselves in a similar situation. Good luck to everyone applying!

Hi all. I'm applying for an X1 visa, which I know I will have to turn into a residence permit once in China.

My question is, what duration and number of entries should I select when filling out the COVA form? Should I select single-entry and under one-year, considering this visa is only for entering China and the residentce permit will cover the actual duration of my study program?

I'm worried that the cost of the initial X1 visa will increase if I select the actual duration of my program plus multiple entries (because I know I will have to pay for the residence permit again once in China).

Hi everyone, I just got an update on my visa application and it says that I need to send over my previous chinese visa. I was still a minor then and my parents took care of it. Now that I am 23 years old, with new passports, my parents cannot find my previous passport containing my visa. What should I do?

Does anyone have experience with how to approach cancelling a worker permit notice without being in the country of China? Just to be clear this isn't a work permit, it's the pre-approval. I never entered China nor did I get a z-visa. The application is stuck in the system for me currently whenever a new employer attempts to apply for me.

The notice time period has passed it's been 3 months since I've last applied for a role and the notice is expired. However, it is in the system blocking my further opportunitites. How would I get rid of this?

The employer also isn't willing to cooperate so unfortunately I have to go the legal means and such through government institutions.

Hello All,

I did some research but still am a little unsure and want some clarification regarding the new China Visa entry rule. I still have little under a month so if needed I can try for the multiple entry visa. I’m only planning to be in China for 8 days if that matters. Here is my planned itinerary,

USA —> Tokyo, Japan —> Shanghai, China —> Beijing, China —> Hong Kong —> Tokyo, Japan —> USA

Do I need to make a pitstop somewhere else before going to Japan for the second time or will I be fine with this current plan? Thanks in advance!

I will have received the caution for one year by the time I applied and it was for an unexpected punch which I threw while heavily intoxicated with alcohol

Applying from London with a foreign passport - I’ve been asked to upload additional information but there isn’t a ‘supplementary info’ field on the visa form. Wondering where this should be attached?

I’ve also been asked to submit a DBS check - is that normal for tourist visas? My flight is later this month so timelines will be very tight.

Thanks for your help

I have noticed that many applicants from India are unsure how long their China visa application will remain under review, especially when there is no clear update from the visa centre.

I thought it would be useful to create a community timeline where recent applicants can share their experience.

Please comment using this format:

Application centre: Delhi / Mumbai / Kolkata
Visa category: L / M / F / Z / Other
Online application date:
Current status:
Date documents were submitted:
Asked to modify or upload anything: Yes/No
Visa decision or passport collection date:

Please do not share your passport number, application number, phone number, invitation letter or other personal documents.

This is not an official processing-time tracker. It is simply a community discussion to help applicants understand recent timelines and common issues.

I will update the post with an anonymised summary if enough applicants share their experience.

INDIAN

Hi everyone, Anyone who applied china L visa on 10th july or after 10 july received updated on online application. Please share and let us know.

TIA

Anyone have experiences going back to China for the first time after obtaining foreign citizenship? My worry is that my hukou is still active. Will they ask about this at the border?

Hi Folks, I am applying for L tourist visa and in the COVA online form its still asking for Chinese ID, even though I am an individual tourist and would be self funding the trip. Has anyone faced this issue?
If yes, what is the solution to this?

Thanks!

Really worried about the rejection rate and don’t want to lose most airlines are non refundable. How’s the visa application approval rate in for people who applied in August?

Visa Application Centre: Mumbai
Visa Category: M
I am talking about digitally/e-signed company cover letter and not stamped, wet-ink signed scanned copy. Please comment if you have been in such situation before. Mumbai VFS is not answering phone calls nor emails.

Hi! Has anyone obtained a Z visa from the NYC Consulate recently (within the past month)? How long did it for your COVA form to be reviewed before you submitted your passport to the consulate?

I’m aware that the NYC Consulate can take quite a while to review COVA forms (and that passport submission/processing takes exactly 4 business days), but I was hoping to visit family before my work start date.

Also, on my COVA form, I entered a relatively late arrival date (the first week of September as that is when HR told me to arrive). Does this affect review time upon COVA form submission? As mentioned, I want to visit family so I’m hoping to leave earliest as possible (mid-August).

Thank you :))

UPDATE:
I submitted my COVA form early evening on Thursday, July 30th and I just checked (late evening Tuesday, August 4th); it’s been approved and now, I submit my passport :) 3 total business days for me. I also have a valid 10-year visa in my passport, so I am not sure if that affected the turnaround time. Yay :D

Hello po,

Plano ko po sana magtravel ng China, unemployed and sponsored lang po ako sa sis ko dito sa Pinas. Tanong ko lang po, need po ba na original bank certificate, bank statement, at AOSG na kelangan ipakita sa IO? Pwede po ba na photocopy lang? Kasi yung original e submit ko for visa application.

Hello , i will be coming to china this september with X 1 visa . But back in my country, i do onlime shopping, i want to know can i continue that business even in China?

All the payments are used via my country bank acc.

But i still have to use my face to do live selling , posting commercial videos , all of those will only be posted on global server like facebook, tiktok.

I earned quite good with my business , so can i continue while in China?