The China visa from Pakistan
China
The short answer. A Pakistani passport needs a visa for China, and it is applied for through the Chinese mission in Pakistan with documents and biometrics, not filled in online and printed. Most Chinese applications from this office are business rather than tourism, and in a business file the invitation from the Chinese side is the document the case rests on.
China is the trading partner, and that shows in who walks through the door asking about it. For every family going to see the Great Wall there are several traders going to Guangzhou, Yiwu or a factory in Shenzhen.
The invitation is the application
A Chinese business file is built around an invitation from the Chinese side. Not an email saying "come and visit". A proper invitation letter from the company or the trade fair, naming you, your passport number, what you are coming for and the dates.
Around it:
- Your own company's papers. Registration, what it does, how long it has
been doing it, and the relationship with the Chinese company if there is a
history. Prior invoices or shipping documents are worth more than anything
you can write.
- A letter from your company confirming your position, that it is paying,
and that you are expected back.
- Bank statements, in your own name and the company's.
- Flights and hotels for the whole stay.
A tourist file replaces the invitation with a full itinerary and confirmed hotel bookings for every night, which is the part people under-prepare because they have not decided the route yet.
The trade fairs set the calendar
The Canton Fair in Guangzhou is the one that moves the most Pakistani applications, and it runs in phases in spring and autumn. Yiwu runs on its own rhythm. When a fair is on, the appointment calendar and the flights go first and the paperwork is the easy part.
If a fair is why you are going, come to us when the registration is confirmed, not when the rest of the trip is planned.
Biometrics, and the passport
Fingerprints are taken in person at the application centre. The passport is submitted and held while the application is decided, which matters if you have another visa application running in parallel: you cannot hand the same passport to two missions in the same fortnight. We sequence them for you.
Is there an online China visa for Pakistanis?
No. This is a mission application with documents, fingerprints and the passport handed in. Websites that offer a Chinese e-visa for a Pakistani passport are either describing another nationality or selling you a form-filling service for something that still has to be submitted in person.
What if I do not have an invitation yet?
Then the business route is not ready. We can look at whether a tourist application fits what you are actually doing, but we will not dress a business trip as tourism. Officers read a lot of these, a textile exporter booked into a tour itinerary does not read as a tourist, and the refusal costs you the fee and sits in your record.
Can I go for the Canton Fair and also visit a factory?
Yes, and say so in the file. One invitation from the fair and one from the factory are stronger together than either alone, because together they explain the whole trip rather than half of it.
How far ahead should I apply?
Six to eight weeks normally, and earlier around the fairs. Start the day your invitation arrives. The invitation is the slowest part of a Chinese file, and it is usually waiting on somebody in another country and another time zone.
Before you pay anything
Chinese requirements, the appointment arrangements and the documents asked of Pakistani applicants change, and they have changed several times. We confirm the current list with the mission before every submission rather than trusting any list, including this one.
Send us the passports, your company's papers and your invitation if you have one. We will tell you what your file needs and how long to allow.