As of Sept 1, foreigners in Zhuhai who have lost their passports can apply for an urgent visa reissue, according to a new policy announced Aug 28 by the State Immigration Administration, which is attached to the Ministry of Public Security.

Moreover, foreign sailors and foreign tour group members who need documents to exit the border will be processed immediately.

The service is among five exit-entry facilitation measures just rolled out across the city. Their implementation complies with the uniform deployment of the newly formed State Immigration Administration and Guangdong Provincial Public Security Department.

It is stipulated that foreigners who have lost passports will need to have the units that invited them explain the circumstances in writing and provide air, bus, or ferry tickets with firm dates and seats when re-applying for exit visas. 

Foreigners go through customs clearance [Photo courtesy Beijing Evening News]

Foreign sailors and accompanying family members who urgently need to apply for a stay permit for leaving a port city like Zhuhai for a connecting flight can have their applications immediately accepted and approved by providing a guarantee letter from the ship's agency and air, bus, or ferry tickets with confirmed dates and seats.

His or her application can also be immediately accepted and approved when a member of a foreign tour group in urgent need of exiting the border alone provides the explanatory letter issued by the travel agency and confirmed transportation tickets.

In addition, applications by Chinese mainland residents for travel documents will be made simpler. Enterprises that engage in foreign trade and international ship transportation will also be able to follow more-convenient exit and entry declaration procedures.

The State Immigration Administration is an integration of the entry and exit management and frontier inspection departments of the Ministry of Public Security, but is still under the ministry's management.

More measures will put into effect as soon as the administration has released a total of 22 regulations to speed up reform of immigration and exit-entry administration.