China will start reissuing all categories of visas to foreigners from Wednesday, dropping the final cross-border control measure it imposed three years ago to guard against the spread of COVID-19.
The move, which comes after authorities last month declared victory over a recent surge in the virus, is expected to help rekindle a $25.61 trillion economy that last year suffered one of its slowest rates of growth in nearly half a century.
China was the fifth most popular overseas destination for Australians in 2019 before the pandemic with 608,000 travellers, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Areas in China that required no visas prior to the pandemic will revert to visa-free entry, the foreign ministry said on Tuesday. This will include the southern tourist island of Hainan and cruise ships passing through Shanghai port.
Visa-free entry to the southern manufacturing hub of Guangdong for foreigners from Hong Kong and Macau will also resume.
The ministry also said foreigners holding visas issued before March 28, 2020, that were still within their validity dates would also be able to enter China.
China, which withdrew its advisory to citizens against foreign travel in January, also added another 40 countries to its list for which group tours are allowed, bringing the total number of countries to 60.
The list, however, still excludes Japan, South Korea, Australia and the United States.
Late last year, several countries imposed additional restrictions on Chinese travellers amid fears they could be carrying new COVID-19 variants that may have arisen during China's post-opening wave.
China hit back at the entry restrictions enforced by Australia and other countries, saying any COVID-19 control measures needed to be "proportionate" and "science-based".
The additional restrictions, including those imposed by Australia, have since been lifted.
In 2022, just 115.7 million cross-border trips were made in and out of China, with foreigners accounting for about 4.5 million.
By contrast, China logged 670 million overall trips in 2019 before the arrival of COVID, with foreigners accounting for 97.7 million.
Beijing abandoned its draconian zero-COVID policies in December, and in January cancelled quarantine requirements for incoming travellers.
New Premier Li Qiang said on Monday that China took less than two months to achieve a "smooth transition" in its response to COVID-19 and that the country's strategies and measures had been completely correct.
ABC/Reuters
