Canadian passport holders can journey to China visa-free beginning this week

Canadian passport holders can journey to China visa-free beginning Tuesday till the top of 2026, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Affairs Ministry introduced Sunday — marking one other step in Canada’s thawing relationship with the Chinese authorities.

In an announcement posted to the Chinese ministry’s website, the spokesperson mentioned Canadian passport holders will likely be “exempted from visa to enter China and stay for up to 30 days for business, tourism, family/friends visit, exchange and transit purposes.”

“The policy will be effective until December 31, 2026,” the spokesperson mentioned. The coverage additionally applies to U.Okay. passport holders.

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand confirmed the policy on social media and mentioned the change is making “travel easier, supporting business exchanges, and strengthening people-to-people ties between our countries.”

The concept of Canadian visa-free journey to China was first talked about in January after Prime Minister Mark Carney visited Beijing and met President Xi Jinping.

A statement from Carney’s office on the time talked about that the prime minister “welcomed [the president’s] commitment to introducing visa-free access for Canadians travelling to China.”

That go to finally led to Canada placing a cope with the Chinese authorities to permit tens of hundreds of Chinese electrical automobiles into Canada in trade for a break on tariffs for Canadian agricultural merchandise, akin to canola seeds.

For most Canadian vacationers, getting into China at the moment requires a prolonged utility course of and roughly $140 in charges. China has dropped visa necessities for different Western nations lately because it tries to spice up tourism following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Beijing maintained a visa for Canadians and restricted what number of Chinese tourism teams may go to Canada throughout a years-long diplomatic spat.