This was reflected immediately after the new rules were announced in the rapid increase in online searches, as reported by the state media on Tuesday. Travel platform Tongcheng promptly saw an 850 percent increase in searches for air travel and 10 times as many searches for visa requirements.
At the same time, interest in entering mainland China via Hong Kong has increased, according to the South China Morning Post. Booking platform Trip.com saw a more than 500 percent increase in searches just minutes after the announcement.
Downgraded to category B
The National Health Commission in Beijing announced that the handling of the corona virus was downgraded from the currently strictest category A to the less strict category B. The reason given was that the disease had become less virulent and was gradually developing into a common respiratory infection.
When entering the country, a five-day quarantine in a state-monitored facility and three more days of isolation at home are currently mandatory. This rule was preceded by much stricter regulations – in the meantime, a quarantine of 21 days was required after entering the People’s Republic.
A negative test upon entry is sufficient
Travelers to China will still have to undergo a PCR test 48 hours before departure and present the negative result. Further tests after arrival should be omitted. In addition, arrangements for foreigners entering China for work and business purposes will be improved and visa requirements will be facilitated, it said.
However, some details remained unclear: the government did not communicate when it would issue tourist visas again. The announcement said only that the government would “further optimize” the opportunities for foreigners to apply for visas for business trips, study visits or family reunions, without giving any details.
Abrupt departure from zero Covid policy
China announced an abrupt end to its zero-Covid policy on December 7 after almost three years of lockdowns, mass testing and other strict measures. The lifting of the entry quarantine is now a further relaxation. The about-face in the coronavirus policy was justified by the fact that the infections with the new Omikron variants were no longer so difficult.
But experts saw the reason above all in the fact that the strict measures could no longer be maintained in view of the explosive spread. The restrictions also increasingly burdened the second-largest economy – the announcement sent positive signals to the Asian stock exchanges, and investors are counting on the return of Chinese tourists.
Virus is spreading rapidly
Despite this, the virus is currently spreading rapidly in China. According to officially unconfirmed internal estimates, 248 million people or 18 percent of the population were infected with the corona virus in the first three weeks of December alone. Hospitals are overcrowded and many crematoria can no longer cremate the corpses quickly enough.
The Health Commission said on Monday that it wanted to further increase the vaccination rate among older people and encourage people at high risk of serious illness to receive a second dose of vaccine. The vaccination rate among the vulnerable elderly population is relatively low in China. According to government data, only 57.9 percent of adults have received a booster shot, compared to just 42.3 percent of people over 80
Japan requires Chinese travelers to be tested
There was a quick reaction from Japan to the soon-to-be lifted travel hurdles for Chinese: The country will require travelers from China to have a negative CoV test because the virus is currently spreading so quickly in the country, as reported by the Japanese news agency FNN . The government hopes to introduce the measure as early as this week, it said.
