After Hong Kong returned to China in 1997 and Macau returned to China in 1999, many foreigners choose to apply for China Visas in Hong Kong and Macau because it is much easier to apply for China Visas in the two places than in their home countries.
But the situation changed because too many foreigners are applying for China Visas in Hong Kong and Macau during the Olympics. Now, passport holders of 33 countries can not apply for China Visa in Hong Kong and Macau any more. The 33 countries are (listed alphabetically) Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Congo, Egypt, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan, Libya, Malaysia, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkey and Uzbekistan.
Other countries’ passport holders can still apply for China Visas in Hong Kong and Macau but the China Visa situation may change at any moment. We suggest our customers enquire Chinese embassies in their home countries before they go to Hong Kong or Macau to apply for China Visas.