Tourists may get 3-day visit window_美文_趣味英语-查字典英语网

Tourists may get 3-day visit window

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Beijing is considering allowing foreign tourists a 72-hour window to explore the capital without a visa.

Fu Zhenghua, the city's director of public security, has confirmed that authorities are mulling over the move, saying it would represent a crucial sign that Beijing is open to the world.

Lin Song at the public security bureau's exit-entry administration echoed that view on Sunday. "It's expected that the project will attract more tourists from abroad."

Neither the bureau nor the Beijing Tourism Development Committee, which proposed the policy, would offer more details about the visa window when contacted by China Daily.

However, experts said the policy is expected to be similar to ones already being run in Shanghai (48 hours) and South China's Hainan province (21 days for tour groups).

A tourism analyst, who did not want to be identified, told China Daily that Beijing officials had considered a project last year that would allow visitors to stay in the capital for seven days without a visa. However, the idea was shelved.

Although China has relatively tight visa restrictions, and has few visa exemption agreements with other countries, the country has gradually loosened its visa policy in recent years. Many cities worldwide have come up with visa waiver projects to attract more tourists, including Tokyo and Kuala Lumpur.

Foreigners traveling to China spent 4.7 billion yuan ($743 million) more than Chinese outbound tourists in 2008, he said. However, Chinese tourists spent 4 billion yuan more than them a year later, and the difference exceeded 24.1 billion yuan in 2011.