My Experience of Applying for a Hong Kong and Macau Travel Permit in Chengdu

I am from a small city in Sichuan province and work in Chengdu. Recently, I planned to visit Hong Kong, so I needed to prepare a Hong Kong and Macau travel permit and visa in advance. As far as I know, the travel permit can be applied for in a different city, so I made an appointment for the application of the travel permit through the "Immigration Office" mini-program. I have successfully obtained the permit, and in this article, I would like to share my real experience as a reference for those who need it. However, please note that policies may vary over time and in different regions, so please refer to the actual situation.

Appointment

Search for the mini-program "Immigration Office" on Alipay or WeChat, and click on "Appointment Application".

You will be required to enter your name, ID card number, and other information, and then choose a nearby service point for the appointment. Please note the following:

• It is recommended to make an appointment at least one week in advance to avoid a large number of applicants and difficulties in getting an appointment.
• When selecting the type of document, choose both "Hong Kong and Macau Travel Permit" and "Visa".
• For the type of visa, I chose "Personal Travel" with a validity of one year or two entries within a year.
• Choose between pick-up or delivery. I chose pick-up, but delivery may require an additional fee.

On the appointment day, go to the designated service point for the application. Remember to bring your ID card, but you don't need to bring a passport photo. Also, avoid wearing white or blue clothes as the background is white or blue.

Application Process

The process in Chengdu is as follows, but it may vary in different regions, so please refer to the actual situation.

First, take a photo at the self-service machine. You can choose a photo with a white background or a blue background. I chose a white background as it matches the background of the travel permit better, while the blue background may look a bit abrupt. I made an appointment in the morning, and there were really a lot of people, so I had to wait for more than half an hour to take the photo.

After taking the photo, go to the service counter and inform the staff that you have made an appointment and completed the photo-taking. Show them your ID card and appointment record, and they will help you check in. After checking in, wait for your number to be called at the service window for the application process.

During the application process, they asked me if I didn't plan to go to Macau. I said no, so they only processed the visa for Hong Kong and did not process the Macau visa. They also took my fingerprints and printed a receipt, which is important to keep.

With the receipt, go to the self-service machine to scan the QR code and make the payment. The processing fee is 75 yuan, and payment can be made through WeChat, Alipay, or bank cards.

Other Notes

If your original household registration is not in the local area (not in Chengdu), but you have transferred your household registration to the local area (Chengdu), the staff may ask you to provide the following documents:

• Property ownership certificate (which can be printed at their self-service machine)
• Social security payment records. In Chengdu, you can use the "Tianfu Citizen Cloud" app to check and export the records, and then have them printed outside.

If you have the above situation, it is recommended to print the social security payment records in advance to avoid any delays.

Collection of the Travel Permit

It usually takes around 3 days, but it may take up to 2 weeks. During this period, you can continue to check the progress through the "Immigration Office" mini-program. The status may include:

• Under review
• In production
• Ready for collection
• No relevant data

If you see that the status is "In production" and then changes to "No relevant data" after a period of time, don't panic. This is because they have a centralized production center, and the document has been produced but has not yet been distributed to the service points. Once the service point receives it, the status will be updated to "Ready for collection".

When the status is "Ready for collection", bring your ID card and the receipt (as a backup) to the self-service machine at the service point to collect the travel permit. If you have chosen the delivery service, wait for the courier to contact you.

The Hong Kong and Macau travel permit looks similar to the ID card and has the following appearance.

Timeline

• Appointment: 08-29
• Application: 09-05
• Collection: 09-13

Conclusion

If you plan to visit Hong Kong, it is recommended to apply for the Hong Kong and Macau travel permit and visa at least one month in advance to avoid delays caused by a large number of applicants. The above is my real experience of applying for the travel permit in Chengdu. Please note that the process may vary in different regions, so please refer to the actual situation.