(CFP)

On November 30, Wuxi Shuofang Airport welcomed its first travelers from Japan under China’s new visa-free policy, who arrived on flight ZH674 from Osaka, Japan.

From November 30, 2024 to December 31, 2025, trial visa exemption will be applied for ordinary passport holders from Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Malta, Estonia, Latvia and Japan. The duration of visa-free stays has been doubled to 30 days. This marks the second time that China has expanded its unilateral visa-free policy to include more countries, resulting in an increase in visitor numbers to China.

Jiangsu Province has maintained close economic and trade ties with Japan and South Korea. Since the beginning of this year, Jiangsu has launched or resumed seven air routes to these countries, operating nearly 20 passenger and cargo routes.

This year, Jiangsu's General Station of Immigration Inspection recorded 3.562 million inbound and outbound passengers, including 35,000 foreign travelers who entered under the visa-free policy - a tenfold increase compared to the same period last year. Among these passengers, 207,000 were Japanese and South Korean nationals, representing a 76.1% year-on-year increase.

Additionally, since China implemented the visa-free entry policy for South Korea and eight other countries on November 8, more than 2,000 South Korean passengers have entered Jiangsu visa-free.