China has asked Japan to provide visa exemptions for Chinese nationals who hold diplomatic and official passports, an arrangement Tokyo currently offers to dozens of countries on a reciprocal basis, sources familiar with the bilateral relationship said Tuesday.
Beijing has made the request as a condition to revive its pre-COVID unilateral practice of exempting visa requirements for Japanese short-term visitors, they said. The latest move was believed to be a concession as China had previously demanded equal visa-free treatment from Japan for Chinese short-term visitors.
Between 2003 and 2020, China allowed Japanese nationals to visit the country visa-free for up to 15 days, while Japan requires all Chinese visitors to obtain visas regardless of length of stay.
Tokyo asks Chinese visa applicants to prove certain income levels as it remains cautious that a visa exemption could lead to an increase in the number of Chinese overstaying their visas and undermine the public interest.
A senior Communist Party official told the Japanese side earlier this month in the Chinese capital that despite the unilateral visa exemption Beijing had implemented for all Japanese nationals before the pandemic, Tokyo did not even provide preferential treatment to diplomatic and official passport holders.
Adding China to the list of countries whose senior officials and diplomats enjoy Japan's visa-free arrangement is "an option" for Tokyo, the Communist Party official said, urging the neighboring country to "make efforts" to realize that, according to the sources.
However, a Japanese government source said it is "not easy" to fulfill China's request, given caution among conservatives.
At the same time, the Communist Party official also said Beijing welcomes many Japanese visitors, indicating China's willingness to resume the visa-free scheme for short-term stayers if conditions are met, the sources added. Many Japanese companies operating in China have called for the resumption of the measure.
Japan currently gives visa-free treatment for diplomatic and official passport holders -- either or both -- to some 60 countries.
At present, Tokyo exempts visas for short-term visitors from 70 countries and regions, including South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Indonesia, the United States, Britain and Brazil.
After abandoning its stringent antivirus measures in January 2023, China resumed unilateral visa-free arrangements for short-term visitors from Brunei and Singapore last July. In December, China and Singapore said they plan to implement mutual visa exemption arrangements in early 2024.
Also in December, Beijing implemented a visa-free entry policy for nationals of France, Germany, Italy, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Spain staying in China for up to 15 days, with the measure taken on a trial basis until November 2024.
Last week, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said during his European tour that Beijing will also unilaterally include Ireland and Switzerland in its visa-free policy.
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