According to the officials, the immigration administration issued 214,000 regular passports in Q2, a rise of 41.8% compared with Q1 and handled residence certificate applications for about 140,000 foreigners in China, showing a quarter-on-quarter increase of about 50%.
Zhang Ning, a spokesperson for the immigration administration, said that, as some places in China have put local outbreaks under control, there has been an increase in demand for international trips from Chinese travelers. He noted that the administration will continue to optimize border entry and exit control measures in accordance with the epidemic situation to fully satisfy people's demand and facilitate exchanges between Chinese and overseas personnel.
According to the administration, border entry and exit applications will be timely dealt with if the applicants indeed need to enter or exit China for some reason, especially for epidemic control and construction work, transportation, trade, business, studies overseas, exams and family reunions. An expedite channel will be provided if the situation is really urgent, according to the officials.
Recent positive signs that China is gradually reopening its borders to the world include halving the quarantine time for international inbound travelers and the streamlining of procedures for those coming to the Chinese mainland, which are good news for the rapid resumption of people-to-people exchanges, with students swarming back home and the tourism industry yearning for a possible comeback of international travel.
