Understanding the Chinese e-Passport

New biometric passports have been issued by the Chinese government to its citizens since 15 May 2012. This new style of passport is known as an e-passport, with each passport number beginning with the prefix “e”. Compared to the traditional style of passport, the e-passport has a number of features designed to make it easier to use and more secure against possible fraud, including:

 

 

The map in the e-passport became a source of disagreement between China and several of its neighboring countries, including India, the Philippines and Vietnam. These countries claim that the map included land or maritime areas that fall within their own country’s exclusive territorial jurisdiction. As a result, these countries have placed some restrictions on visa applications and endorsements for e-passports. Indian consulates are not accepting visa applications filed outside China by e-passport holders. Philippine authorities decline to endorse visas onto the e-passport, preferring instead to issue the holder a separate visa document; the Vietnamese consulate in Beijing takes the same approach. However, the Vietnamese consulate in Shanghai endorses visas onto the e-passport. Thus, current practice differs from one consulate to another.

 

 

Chinese e-passport holders should be generally cautioned that if they apply for visas from outside of China, they may be asked to return to the country to apply. Alternatively, they may be issued a separate visa document instead of having the usual visa label stamped on their e-passports. However, the e-passport is still a valid travel document for travelling to these countries and is generally accepted elsewhere.

 

 

Applications for e-passports can be made at the local Public Security Bureau in China. If an e-passport is lost or has expired whilst outside China, the holder can apply at a Chinese embassy or consulate to obtain a temporary travel document to enable their return to China in order to obtain a new e-passport.