Chinese tourists on a group tour are welcomed as they arrive at Incheon airport, west of Seoul, on Aug. 24, 2023, on a tour program organized by the state-run Korea Tourism Organization. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Aug. 25 (Korea Bizwire) — A South Korean visa application center was inaugurated in Beijing on Thursday in response to the surging interest in tourism to South Korea.
This rise in demand follows the decision by the Chinese government to permit group travel to South Korea for the first time in more than six years.
At the inauguration ceremony of the Korean Visa Application Center in Beijing’s Chaoyang District, Ambassador Chung Jae-ho expressed his genuine delight and acknowledged the challenging period that both China and South Korea endured over the last three years due to the far-reaching impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This period significantly hampered people-to-people exchanges between the two nations.
Nonetheless, Chung drew an optimistic parallel between the end of a harsh winter and the arrival of a warm spring. He underscored China’s successful containment of the pandemic, symbolizing a brighter phase ahead.
The recent authorization of group tours and the temporary removal of fingerprinting requirements for Korean visitors to China have substantially eased visa issuance hurdles, fostering an upswing in bilateral interactions.
Chinese travel patterns, which had begun their resurgence earlier in the year as China returned to a sense of normalcy, are now rapidly approaching levels seen prior to the pandemic.
This resurgence gained momentum after China’s decision to lift the ban on group travel to South Korea and other global destinations on Aug. 10.
Reflecting on the substantial dip in trips between South Korean and China due to the pandemic, which had plummeted from 10.6 million in 2019 to the 300,000s, Ambassador Chung highlighted the remarkable rebound.
During the first half of the current year, exchanges surged to 970,000 — a remarkable sevenfold increase from the corresponding period last year.
Chinese tourists on a group tour wait in line to enter a duty-free shop of Lotte Department Store in Seoul on Aug. 23, 2023, in this photo provided by the store.
The newly established Korean Visa Application Center in Beijing plays a pivotal role in receiving visa applications from Chinese citizens desiring to explore South Korea.
It also assumes responsibility for disbursing the granted visas.
While the visa issuance process is under the jurisdiction of the South Korean diplomatic missions in China, the overwhelming demand necessitated a decentralized approach through these application centers.
The operation of visa application centers across China is entrusted to HanaTour, operating under an agreement with the Ministry of Justice.
Since 2015, Hanatour has been running visa application centers in Guangzhou and Qingdao.
Subsequently, centers in Shanghai, Chengdu, and Wuhan opened in 2019. The newly unveiled Beijing center marks the sixth in China.
Based on the success of piloting visa application centers in major Chinese cities, the South Korean Embassy in China embarked on discussions with Chinese foreign affairs and immigration authorities starting in March.
This collaborative dialogue culminated in the approval of the Beijing visa application center, following China’s decision to allow its citizens to travel in groups.
South Korean diplomats are optimistic that the Beijing center will adeptly handle the increasing demand for Korean visas from Chinese nationals, which now averages around 1,500 daily.
Plans are also in motion to inaugurate an additional visa application center in Shenyang, Liaoning Province, and eventually in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province.
To accommodate Chinese applicants, the Beijing visa application center features dedicated amenities, including a waiting area, a playroom for toddlers, barrier-free facilities, a mobile application, and a specialized call center to track visa application status.
Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
