PSB Officer Clarifies Visa Extension Rules & Rumors

Our phones were ringing off the hook yesterday as worried foreigners tried to get confirmation about a story reporting that foreigners who enjoyed the 60 day visa extension must leave China before it expired and would not be allowed to re-enter.

The article has since been deleted; however, to help put people at ease, we spoke with Officier Tian, the Deputy of  the NanShan Immigration Section of the PSB, who provided us with the following clarifications:

• The current 60 day automatic extention is still in place.
• There is no plan in place to ask foreigners to leave after or within 60 days.
• IF your passport is about to expire, you can renew your passport at your consulate or embassy in China, but you should check with your consulate for their passport renewal procedures. When you get your new passport you can still enjoy the 60 day extension (or whatever days are provided on your current Visa), or you can also apply for an extention.
• China will always put our residents' safety in first. We don't want people in the situation where they have to travel internationally when it is not safe to do so.

The bottom line, Officier Tian said, is that people should not panic. "Don't listen to the rumors, people should get information updates from official channels or other credible platforms, like ShekouDaily."

If you have any further questions, doubts, or would like clarity on your particular situation, you can try calling the following numbers for assistance:

• For epidemic-related consultations, please call Guangdong Service Hotline 1258088 (in Chinese, English, Japanese and Korean)
• Shenzhen Government Service Hotline 12345 (in Chinese and English),
• Service Hotline of Foreign Affairs Office of Shenzhen Municipal People's Government 0755-88121224 (in Chinese and English),
• Public Hotline of Shenzhen Center for Disease Control and Prevention 88812320 (in Chinese) and
• Platform of Shenzhen Family Doctors 4401191160-2 (in Chinese).