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Beijing has suspended visas for visitors from Japan and South Korea in the first retaliatory measure in recent weeks following governments’ Covid-19 entry bans on travelers from China.
The Chinese embassy in Seoul announced on Tuesday that it had stopped issuing short-term visas to South Korean travelers as Beijing vowed to impose more punitive entry requirements from China amid a wave of infections in the country.
In an announcement posted on WeChat, the embassy said it would begin issuing visas after South Korea ends its “discriminatory entry restrictions against China.”
China began restricting traffic from Japan on Tuesday, with the China Visa Center stopping processing visa applications for Japanese travelers except for individuals entering for humanitarian purposes, according to the Japan Association of Travel Agents. The Visa Center could not be reached for comment.
China has faced an out-of-control virus outbreak in recent weeks after the government suddenly overturned anti-pandemic zero-covid policies that had imposed three years of entry bans, lockdowns and a mandatory self-isolation travel ban on foreigners.
The pace of the outbreak has prompted countries including Japan, South Korea, the US, the UK, France, Italy and Spain to introduce testing requirements for Chinese nationals before they board or arrive. Japan has restricted direct flights from mainland China to four airports.
The countries have raised concerns about the threat of new strains spreading from the country, saying Beijing lacks transparency in reporting its cases and death toll.
Beijing has responded by challenging governments on entry requirements, calling such measures “political manipulation”. On Monday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin reiterated China’s threat to “take countermeasures”.
At the time of the outbreak, China maintained the strictest entry requirements for international travelers among major economies, requiring hotel quarantines of up to three weeks. Beijing eased quarantine rules this month, but arrivals still need a negative PCR test before flying, similar to restrictions imposed on travelers from China.
However, some countries have launched a charm offensive to bring Chinese tourists back to their shores after nearly three years of border and boycott travel.
A group of Thai cabinet ministers on Monday welcomed Chinese tourists to Bangkok with flowers and gift bags for the first time. Thailand relies heavily on tourism revenue, with Chinese travelers making up a third of all visitors to the country before the outbreak.
Thailand announced last week that vaccination requirements were to be confirmed before it went into effect on Monday.
In the year In 2019, 155mn Chinese traveled abroad and spent $255bn, Citi analysts predict a strong improvement in travel in the first quarter of 2023 and a rebound in tourism numbers in the second.
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