Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, in Nov. 2014. (Photo : www.ctvnews.ca)
Canadians visiting China for business, tourism or family visits can now have multiple-entry visas with 10-year validity period as a result of an agreement signed by China and Canada that took effect on March 9.
The Chinese government, however, clarified that the validity period should not exceed the applicant's passport validity, and a tourist or visitor can stay only for 180 days.
Reuters reported that many people welcomed the development, including the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada (APF Canada), who said that the new deal will help improve ties between people of the two countries.
"This will help build Canada's bridges with Asia, and the new MEV (multiple-entry visas) helps us do that," Stewart Beck, APF Canada President and CEO, said in a statement released to the media.
Under the new agreement, Canadians who are on business travel and visiting the country for the first time will be given single-entry visas, which will be upgraded to multiple-entry visas after subsequent visits, with longer periods of time.
On the side of Canada, the country has extended 10-year visas to Chinese citizens as early as 2012.
In an article on the Globe and Mail, Luo Zhaohui, China's ambassador to Canada, said that China has issued 230,000 visas to Canadian citizens in 2014. At least 80 percent of them were for family visit, business, and tourism purposes.
Last year, nearly 472,000 Chinese citizens visited Canada, while more than 667,000 Canadians came to China, the Chinese ambassador said.
China is also Canada's second-largest partner in trade.
