The Chinese Foreign Ministry announced Sunday that Canadian tourists and businesspeople will be allowed to travel to China without visas, for stays of up to 30 days, beginning this Tuesday and lasting through the end of 2026.
Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand confirmed the policy in a post on social media platform X, describing visa-free travel as a commitment China made to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney during his visit to Beijing in January.
“This will take effect on February 17, making travel easier, supporting business exchanges, and strengthening people-to-people ties between our countries,” Anand said.
“For most Canadian tourists, entering China currently requires a lengthy application process and roughly $140 in fees. China has dropped visa requirements for other Western nations in recent years as it tries to boost tourism following the COVID-19 pandemic,” noted CBC News.
Travel was also complicated by limits imposed by both sides during their long diplomatic freeze, which began when Canada arrested Huawei executive and Chinese Communist Party royalty Meng Wanzhou in 2018.
Meng was supposed to face financial crimes charges in the United States, but China brought enormous pressure to bear against Canada to prevent her extradition, including taking several Canadians hostage.
Meng was released in 2021 after the U.S. dropped the charges, but tensions remained high between Canada and China, due also in part to Chinese meddling in Canadian politics. Even though Canadian intelligence continues to rate China as one of the nation’s greatest security threats, Carney signed major trade deals with the Communist tyranny in September, in his desperation to realign his country away from the United States.
China has been using visa-free travel as a way to restore business travel and tourism after the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic, and as a sweetener for trade negotiations. A similar arrangement was made with the United Kingdom last month. About 50 countries in total currently have visa-free travel arrangements with China.
The BBC noted on Sunday that “Downing Street’s push to reset relations with Beijing overlooks human rights and national security concerns,” and similar concerns have dogged Carney’s effort to bring Canada into China’s long and deep shadow, especially since Carney pontificated at such length about “values” at the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting last month.
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