Types and functions of visas

Visa: refers to the procedure that the sovereign organs of a country endorse and seal passports or other travel documents held by domestic or foreign citizens to show that they are allowed to enter, leave or transit. It can also be said that it is an endorsement certificate issued to them.

Function: Visa is a measure taken by a sovereign country to safeguard its sovereignty, dignity, security and interests. Visa is an important means for a sovereign country to implement entry and exit management. If citizens of a country want to travel, settle down, do business or study in other countries, they must have their own passports or travel documents. Another necessary condition is to obtain visas to other countries. Otherwise, it is impossible to make a trip.

Two. Visa type:

According to the nature of entry and exit, visas are generally divided into six categories: exit visas, entry visas, entry visas, re-entry visas and transit visas. Some countries (regions) classify visas issued by applicants as diplomatic visas, official visas, immigrant visas, non-immigrant visas, courtesy visas, tourist visas, work visas, study visas, business visas and family visas.

At present, visas in most countries in the world are divided into diplomatic visas, official visas and ordinary visas. There are four kinds of visas in China: diplomatic visa, courtesy visa, official visa and ordinary visa.

Introduction of several visa introduction types

Immigrant visa and non-immigrant visa

According to the applicant's entry purpose, visas can be divided into immigrant visas and non-immigrant visas. Obtaining an immigrant visa means that the applicant has obtained the permanent residence in the country where he goes, and after living for a certain period of time, he can become a legal citizen of that country. Non-immigrant visas can be divided into business, labor, study abroad, tourism, medical care and other categories.

Anti-visa

It means that the inviter completes the visa approval certificate for the visitor in the exit-entry administration department of the destination country, and then submits it together with the applicant's passport, application form and other materials to embassies and consulates in China. With the approval materials, embassies and consulates in China can issue a visa on the applicant's passport without consulting relevant domestic departments. Generally speaking, getting a countersignature means that entry is approved, and there is no need to wait too long after the passport is sent to the country's embassy in China. At present, most countries that implement counter-signing are in Asia, such as Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia.

Port visa

It refers to applying for a visa (also called visa on arrival) at the port of entry of the destination country. Generally speaking, to apply for a port visa, the inviter needs to apply to the entry-exit administration department of the host country in advance, and after approval, a copy of the approval certificate will be sent to the visitors. The latter left the country with this card and obtained a visa when arriving at the port of the destination country.

At present, the countries that issue port visas to foreign citizens are mainly some countries in West Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Oceania.

A separate paper visa

A separate paper visa is also a form of visa. Generally speaking, a visa is usually signed or labeled on the inside of a passport, while a separate paper visa is endorsed on a special paper outside the passport. Its function is the same as the visa endorsed on the passport, but it must be used at the same time as the passport.

Mutual permission and visa exemption

With the continuous development of international relations and tourism in various countries, visa exemption has been developed to facilitate friendly exchanges between citizens of various countries. According to the agreement signed by the foreign ministries of the two countries, citizens of the two countries can freely enter and leave each other's territory with valid passports without visas. Visa exemption can be divided into complete visa exemption and partial visa exemption.

transit visa

When citizens of a country travel internationally, they often have to go through one or two countries before they finally reach their destination. At this time, it is necessary to obtain not only the entry permit of the country, but also the transit permit of the country, which is the so-called transit visa. The regulations on transit visas vary from country to country. Many countries stipulate that all foreigners who enter a third country through the country need to apply for a visa regardless of the length of their stay. According to international practice, if there are no special restrictions, citizens of a country should be issued with transit visas as long as they hold valid passports, entry visas or joint air tickets.