May pushes joint visa for Chinese tourists
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Home secretary Theresa May is considering a joint UK and Schengen visa application for Chinese visitors after several lobbying efforts by tourism and business bodies.
May is looking to make the process less expensive and more straightforward for Chinese tourists after continuous lobbying efforts indicate the current visa process causes the UK to miss out on more tourism spend from the country.
The British Hospitality Association (BHA) has welcomed the Home Office pledge, after leading campaigns with the UKCVA, CBI, Institute of Directors and British Chamber of Commerce.
“The BHA, together with the UKCVA and its growing number of partners, is encouraged by Theresa May’s announcement. We also note that the UK Visa’s and Immigration Service is making improvements to ensure that some 96% of all Chinese visas are approved and that there is now a seven day and five-day premium turnaround service from application to issue,” said the BHA’s chief executive Ufi Ibrahim.
“However, we will continue to campaign on this issue until further changes are made to enable Chinese as well as Russian and Indian visitor numbers to start increasing in line with other European countries,” she added.
The UK is thought to have lost GBP1.2 billion in tourism receipts from the Chinese, with France and Germany seeing more than one million Chinese tourists visit compared to 215,000 in the UK.
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