Keeping doors between China and Malaysia open

Easier: Agreements between the Chinese and Malaysian government are making travel between the two countries much easier. — SIN CHEW

THE enduring friendship between China and Malaysia spans generations, with close ties established between our peoples through trade and economic and cultural activities.

In 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic, the number of bilateral people-to-people exchanges between China and Malaysia reached 3,795,800 and China had become Malaysia’s largest source of tourists outside Asean countries for seven consecutive years.

The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Malaysia attaches great importance to and actively promotes exchanges and cooperation between China and Malaysia in various fields, and has been making continuous efforts to promote the facilitation of bilateral people-to-people exchanges so that the friendly relations between the two countries will continue to benefit the people.

In 2023, the embassy in Kuala Lumpur processed nearly 260,000 visas, with the highest number of applications processed on a single day exceeding 4,000. The embassy overcame difficulties, aligned its efforts with the needs and urgencies of applicants, and actively adopted optimisation measures and services to facilitate visa applications and border entry for Malaysian citizens to China.

On Jan 8, 2023, the embassy resumed issuing business and family-visit visas, and issued business visas with up to a three-year validity and family visit visas with up to a five-year validity for eligible Malaysian citizens; on March 15, the embassy resumed issuing tourist visas with up to a one-year validity to eligible Malaysian citizens; from May 1, Malaysian citizens have been allowed to enter China with virtual Apec (Asia-Pacific Eco-nomic Cooperation) business travel cards.

Beginning Aug 10, 2023, and continuing until Dec 31, 2024, there is a temporary exemption from fingerprinting provided for eligible applicants for commercial, tourism and family-visit purposes; from Aug 30, travellers from Malaysia have not been required to take the pre-entry nucleic acid or antigen test for Covid-19; and on Sept 20 the optimised visa application form was introduced.

During the peak period of visa application, the embassy, together with the Chinese Visa Appli-cation Service Centre in Kuala Lumpur, made efforts to improve the quality of service, scientifically deploy resources, simplify processes, and improve window service, while providing green channels to more than 10,000 individuals travelling for important and urgent business and humanitarian purposes.

Towards the end of this year, following the decision of the leaders of China and Malaysia, and with the joint effort of the KL embassy and all parties, a period of facilitating exchanges between the two countries was launched.

On Nov 24, the Chinese government announced the implementation of a visa-free policy for six countries, including Malaysia, from Dec 1, 2023, to Nov 30, 2024; Malaysian holders of ordinary passports who go to China for business, tourism, and to visit relatives and friends, and transit for not more than 15 days, can enter China without a visa. (The other five countries are France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain.)

In addition, China also announced the cancellation of online appointments for foreign nationals applying for entry into China, and from Dec 11, 2023, to Dec 31, 2024, visa fees for entry into China are reduced.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian government has also announced the implementation of a 30-day visa-free entry facilitation measure for Chinese citizens from Dec 1, 2023, to Dec 31, 2024.

These bilateral policies to facilitate exchanges between the two countries have been warmly welcomed, with people from both nations responding positively.

On the first day of the implementation of the visa-free policy, 1,113 Malaysian citizens entered China visa-free, the largest number of entries among the six countries covered by the visa-free policy. The number of Chinese citizens travelling to Malaysia for tourism and business has also increased significantly.

The implementation of this mutual visa-free policy marks a historic milestone in China-Malaysia relations, and will promote practical cooperation in various fields while bringing benefits to both countries.

Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Malaysia, and the two countries will have more frequent exchanges and cooperation in the fields of tourism, commerce, culture and education.

The embassy will continue to put people’s needs first and practice diplomacy for people, focusing on people’s needs. The embassy staff will do our best to provide professional and high- quality services to Malaysian citizens and thus promote friendly exchanges and cooperation between the two countries, contributing to the enduring friendship between China and Malaysia.

HE OUYANG YUJING

Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Malaysia