China introduces tougher new visa measures for visiting Irish citizens

NEW VISA restrictions on Irish citizens travelling to China have been introduced in recent days, The Irish Timeshas learned.

A notice posted on the Chinese embassy's website on Monday announced that, as of this week, more stringent criteria will now apply to various categories of visa applicant from Ireland.

This means that Irish people travelling for a holiday in China, as well as having a valid passport and paying the standard fee, must now supply the embassy with a two-way flight ticket and evidence of hotel bookings.

Anyone travelling to China for business, or to attend a meeting or conference, must provide the original version of an invitation letter "from an authorised Chinese government department or government-authorised company", as well as two-way flight tickets and hotel booking confirmation. The website does not state whether the restrictions are temporary.

Similar notices have been posted on the websites of the Chinese embassies in the UK, France, Australia and other countries in recent days, and a Government source told The Irish Times it believed China was introducing the new restrictions on "security grounds" in advance of the Olympics, and that they would be lifted in September.

Rumours that China would tighten its visa rules have circulated for weeks, and it was reported last week that China had stopped issuing multiple-entry visas to foreigners and had slowed visa processing in Hong Kong, a major gateway for travel to the mainland.

A spokeswoman for the ministry of foreign affairs in Beijing denied that there had been a policy change, however. "China's visa policy is formulated according to China's laws and regulations and in line with international practices," said Jiang Yu. "China did not stop granting multiple entry visas to foreign visitors."

A spokeswoman for the Department of Foreign Affairs said the restrictions had been "heralded" in advance, and denied that the move was related to the diplomatic incident that followed Green Party leader John Gormley's speech to his party's conference last Sunday. The Chinese ambassador, Liu Biwei, walked out of the event after Mr Gormley criticised China's human rights record and referred to Tibet as a country.

The restrictions come amid strong international criticism of China's human rights record after its recent crackdown on anti-government riots in Tibet. A spokesman for the Chinese embassy could not be contacted last night.