Application for visa-free transit hits monthly high in Xiamen

Travelers from South Korea apply for visa-free transit service. [Photo/sunnews.cn]

Roughly 100 foreign travelers applied for visa-free transit services at the Gaoqi station of the Xiamen General Station of Exit and Entry Frontier Inspection in March, local media reported.

It was the largest number of applicants in a single month since the implementation of 72-hour and 144-hour visa-free transits in the city in 2015 and early 2019 respectively.

As of March 29, Gaoqi station had issued 144-hour visa-free transits for roughly 200 foreign travelers since the policy's implementation on Jan 1.

South Korean travelers take up approximately one third of the total applicants. More than 80 percent of the applicants stayed in the city for two to three days and then headed for Europe, the United States, and Australia.

According to a policeman at the Gaoqi station, visa-free transit applications in March were not just for travelers flying to and from Hong Kong, Seoul and Sydney. For example, on March 11, a visa-free transit was issued to a traveler from Russia.

The policeman said that as the 144-visa-free transit service becomes better known and there is more convenient transit between airport and seaport in Xiamen, an increasing number of foreign travelers are expected to take advantage of the service.