THE ROUGH GUIDE to - Parallels Plesk Panel

Chinese embassies
Australia Wau.china-embassy.org/eng
Canada Wwww.chinaembassycanada.org
India Wwww.chinaembassy.org.in
Republic of Ireland Wie.china-embassy.org/eng
Laos Echinaemb_la@mfa.gov.com
New Zealand Wwww.chinaembassy.org.nz
Russia Wwww.chinaembassy.ru
South Africa Wwww.chinese-embassy.org.au.za
UK Wwww.chinese-embassy.org.uk
US Wwww.china-embassy.org
Vietnam Wwww.fmprc.gov.cn/eng
Visa extensions
Once in China, a first extension to a tourist
visa, valid for a month, is easy to obtain;
most Europeans pay ¥160 for this,
Americans a little more. To apply for an
extension, go to the “Aliens Entry Exit
Department” of the PSB at 2 Andingmen
Dong Dajie, 300m east of Yonghe Gong
subway stop (Mon–Fri 8am–4.30pm;
T010/84015292). The staff will keep your
passport for three working days; note that
you can’t change money, or even book into
a new hotel, while they’ve got it. Subsequent
applications for extensions will be refused
unless you have a good reason to stay, such
as illness. They’ll reluctantly give you a
couple of extra days if you have a flight out
of the country booked; otherwise, you’ll be
brusquely ordered to leave the country.
Don’t; simply go to Chengde (see p.114),
where the friendlier PSB office will grant
month-long second extensions on the spot.
Don’t overstay your visa even for a few
hours – the fine is ¥500 per day, and if
you’re caught at the airport with an out-ofdate
visa the hassle that will follow may
mean you’ll miss your flight.
Customs allowances
You’re allowed to import into China up to
four hundred cigarettes, two litres of alcohol,
twenty fluid ounces (590ml) of perfume and
up to fifty grams of gold or silver. You can’t
take in more than ¥6000, and foreign
currency in excess of US$5000 or the equivalent
must be declared. It’s illegal to import
printed or filmed matter critical of the
country, but confiscation is rare in practice.
Export restrictions apply on any items
over 100 years old that you might buy in
China. Taking these items out of the country
requires an export form, available from the
Friendship Store (see p.144); ask at the
information counter for a form, take along
the item and your receipt, and approval is
given on the spot. You needn’t be unduly
concerned about the process – the
“antiques” you commonly see for sale are all
fakes anyway.
Embassies in Beijing
Most embassies are either around Sanlitun,
in the northeast, or in the Jianguomenwai
compound, north of and parallel to
Jianguomenwai Dajie. You can get passportsize
photos for visas from an annex just
inside the front entrance of the Friendship
Store. Visa departments usually open for a
few hours every weekday morning (phone
for exact times and to see what you’ll need
to take). During the application process they
might take your passport for as long as a
week; remember that you can’t change
money or your accommodation without it.
Australia 21 Dongzhimenwai Dajie, Sanlitun
T010/51404111.
Azerbaijan 7-2-5-1 Tayuan Building
T010/65324614.
Canada 19 Dongzhimenwai Dajie, Sanlitun
T010/51394000.
France 3 Dong San Jie, Sanlitun T010/85328080.
Germany 17 Dongzhimenwai Dajie, Sanlitun
T010/85329000.
India 1 Ritan Dong Lu, Sanlitun T010/65321908.
Ireland 3 Ritan Dong Lu, Sanlitun T010/65322691.
Italy 2 Dong’er Jie, Sanlitun T010/85327600.
Japan 7 Ritan Lu, Jianguomenwai
T010/65322361.
Kazakhstan 9 Dong Liu Jie, Sanlitun
T010/65326183.
Kyrgyzstan 2-4-1 Tayuan Building
T010/65326458.
Laos 11 Dongsi Jie, Sanlitun T010/65321224.
Mongolia 2 Xiushui Bei Jie, Jianguomenwai
T010/65321203.
Myanmar (Burma) 6 Dongzhimenwai Dajie,
Sanlitun T010/65321425.
New Zealand 1 Ritan Dong’er Jie, Sanlitun
T010/65327000.
North Korea Ritan Bei Lu, Jianguomenwai
T010/65321186.
BASICS |
Travel essentials
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