Baotou ensures easier access for travel permits

A resident of Gansu province, a certain Mr Jiao, came to the Baotou Government Service Center to apply for entry and exit travel documents on April 1 – and was pleasantly shocked to find that, in the wake of a new initiative, under the guidance of staff members, he was able to complete all the required forms in just a few minutes.

Thanks to a new regulation issued recently, non-locals in Baotou don’t have to return to their household registration place to apply for travel permits.

Chinese citizens residing on the Chinese mainland will be able to apply for passports and travel permits at every exit and entry management department across the country starting April 1, according to a new regulation issued by the National Immigration Administration.

The travel permits refer to travel authorization to travel to and from Hong Kong and Macao, as well as permits to visit Taiwan for individuals and tour groups.

Citizens are no longer required to return to their household registration place to apply for exit-entry permits.

According to Jiao, his household was registered in Gansu province which is more than 1,000 kilometers away from Baotou.

Before the launch of the new rules, he could only handle the paperwork for travel permits in his hometown using identification cards, application forms and the hukou, a household registration booklet.

Going back and forth is a time-consuming and costly process. Now the application process can be handled very smoothly with only the ID card in Baotou city.

The first batch of people apply for entry and exit documents in the city of Baotou, in North China’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region, on April 1. [Photo/Baotou Daily]