China issues 18.6m travel visas to HK, Macau, Taiwan in 2 months

Visa issuance grew 27.5 per cent between July 1 and August 29.

China.- The National Immigration Administration of China has reported a 27.5 per cent increase in visa issuance for Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwa between July 1 and August 29, Immigration authorities issued 18.6m travel visas and related documents to people heading to these destinations. The number of passports issued to Chinese nationals increased by 7.1 per cent, reaching 3.42m,.

There was a 19.9 per cent rise in travellers passing border inspections during the summer holiday period, with an average of nearly 1.4 million people crossing borders daily. For the first half of the year, China issued a total of 42.8m travel visas for visits to Macau, Hong Kong and Taiwan, an increase of 1,509 per cent over the previous year to reach 96.5 per cent of 2019 levels.

During the same period, Macau received over 11.64 million inbound tourists. The MGTO has been carrying out promotional campaigns in markets further afield, attending trade shows and events in Portugal, Bangkok and Seoul.