Starting from September 2, relevant departments of public
security will issue foreign students in China with a Foreigner
Residency Permit with a time limit equal to their actual study
period instead of previous regulations of having their residence
permits renewed each year, according to the Ministry of Public
Security.
Meanwhile, foreign students who need to leave China during their
study period, temporarily, will be issued with multiple-entry visas
which have the same time limit as their residency permit. Their
relatives in China who apply as a companion to their study can have
their visa extended for six months by showing official letters of
agreement from the universities they are studying at. Their visa
can be extended many times as long as it is within the valid date
of their residency permit.
In light of these regulations in China, foreign students who
plan to study in China for over six months need to enter China with
an 'X' visa and apply for a Foreigner Residency Permit at the local
Exit-Entry Management Office of Public Security Departments within
30 days after arriving in China. Previously, foreign students
studying in China for over one year were usually granted a
one-year-long residency permit and had to renew it each year.
According to Zhang Yindi, vice director of the Exit-Entry
Administration of the Ministry of Public Security, due to more and
more frequent international exchange of Chinese universities,
increasing foreign students come to China to study language and
culture. "Under such circumstances, we should provide further
convenience for the exit-entry and residence of foreign students in
order to enhance cultural exchanges between China and other
countries, attracting more foreign students to study in China and
enable them to have more time to focus on their studies," said
Zhang.
It is reported that, with the further development of China's
opening-up policy, the number of foreigners studying in China has
increased annually. There were 43,065 foreign students studying in
China last year. Of them, 40,568 studied in universities and 2,479
studied in primary and middle schools.
(China.org.cn by Wang Qian, September 3, 2003)
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