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Shanghai gets a new visa-free policy

Updated: 2016-02-06

( chinadaily.com.cn )

When a flight from London landed at Shanghai's Pudong International Airport, at 10:00 am on Jan 30, one of its passengers was a Swedish tourist who was among the first batch of visitors to enjoy a new 6-day visa-free visit to Shanghai, and who received a souvenir and a bouquet of flowers from the immigration officers.

The woman, whose first name was Emma,praised the new policy and said she was quite excited about her six-day stay and told a Pudong Times reporter that she's originally only planned to stay several hours in transit. But after finding out that the policy would change as of Jan 30, she decided to change her ticket and visit friends in the city. She said they planned to visit the Yuyuan Garden, the Old City Temple, and experience Spring Festival in China.

The new policy covers 51 countries and allows any tourist with a ticket going on to a third country, to enter Shanghai and nearby Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. They can arrive at any of the following: Shanghai's Pudong and Hongqiao airports, the Shanghai Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal, Shanghai Railway Station, Nanjing's Lukou International Airport, and Hangzhou's Xiaoshan International Airport.

By the end of 2015, Shanghai reported more than 100,000 foreign visitors coming the old 72-hour visa-free visit, and the new visa-free policy is expected to cause a large increase in the numbers. To make things more convenient for them, border authorities have set up a special passageway in the above ports and have improved facilities, such as electronic screens, and other signs and have spread the word to affected airlines, cruise companies and travel agencies.

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