Chinese Visa Experience

This post is in part to purge myself from a recent bureacratic experience. Rather than rant about it (working on improved karma), I thought that I could do a brief information session for any of you Canadians residing in B.C. who might be coming to visit us in China. There are a few things that you might want to know about the process of applying for a visa to travel to China.

The place to obtain your visa, is not at the consulate on Granville street; that is where the embassador resides. Even if all of the internet research points to this as being the place to go, and the house gates are open and you walk in, they will not process your visa application there. You will have to go to the address on Broadway (1388 on the second floor). The offices are only open from 9:00 to 1:00- but I really advise getting there before the doors open- like maybe around 8:30. Getting there at 9:30 will guarantee you a wait of about 2.5 hours. Get in, get a number from the red dispenser in the middle of the room on a post; if there are no numbers left in the dispenser, don't panic, the guard at the desk near the door seems to have another roll, or the rest of the first roll. Then sit (if you can find a seat) back, relax, and observe the multitude of people that come inand out (fascinating). You can keep an eye on the digital read out at the top of the wickets to find out about your progress, but the pinging noise everytime they move a number will alert you that the "line" is moving. There are forms on the far right hand side of the room and a spacious table for writing the information on your form ( you can download them ahead of time and do a draft or submit it). There are many variations on "the" form and it seems as though they accept them all. If you are the conservative type, I recommend that you use the form they have there. the guard is there to answer questions, but his answers might be kind of cryptic and he is definitely part of the bureacraic machine (i.e. ask your questions carefully). There are lots of people there that you can chat with , and it seems a good place to try and make some connections.

Once you make it to the wicket, it takes about a minute to hand over your passport, photograph and completed application form. If you have asked them for the same day rush, don't head out the door, just go to the end of the pick up line and wait there. Otherwise, keep your money and wait for the appointed day ( there are same day, next day, and regular time options that have different fees attached to them). I have not done this yet; if I don't post, it will indicate that all was well. Otherwise, you will hear from me.

Or you could disregard all of the above advice, find yourself a reputable travel agency that specializes in Chinese travel, and for a small fee (believe me 20.00/30.00 looks pretty sweet after all of that), they will process everything for you- they will even pick it up when it is ready.

Love to hear from you about your visa experience should you ever decide to come to Shanghai.