China and Canada have moved forward and will grant each other’s citizens visas valid for up to 10 years. The announcement came from Beijing’s Foreign Minister on Sunday, saying that the agreement will go into force today.
The moves comes as Western countries increasingly seek Chinese business and investment deals – and mirrors that made by the United States last year.
“China and Canada have just reached an agreement on issuing visas to each other’s citizens with the validity period of up to 10 years,” Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi said at a press conference in Beijing. No other details were immediately available – but the move seems to be a counter measure from 2014 when Ottawa cancelled permanent residency visa schemes for foreign investors – the move directly effected wealthy Chinese investors, many of whom has pending applications.
Beijing and Washington announced in November a reciprocal deal to extend student visa validities to five years, with business and tourist visas stretched out to a decade, up from one year before – that announcement came during a visit to the Chinese country by President Obama.