Types Articles 3, 4, 5 and 8 of the ''Passport Law of the People's Republic of China'', which went into effect in 2007, declares three types of passports issued in China: •
Ordinary passports () are issued to citizens who intend to go abroad for non-official purposes, such as taking up residence in other countries, visiting relatives, studying, working, travelling or engaging in business activities. They are issued by the Exit & Entry Administration of the
Ministry of Public Security (MPS), the foreign missions of the People's Republic of China, or other missions overseas authorized to do so by the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs. •
Diplomatic passports () are issued to
diplomats,
consuls and their spouses or children who are minor, as well as to diplomatic couriers. They are issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). •
Service passports () are issued to employees who are dispatched by the Chinese government to work for Chinese foreign missions, the United Nations or its special commissions, or other international organizations, as well as their spouses or minor children. They are issued by the MFA, foreign missions of the People's Republic of China, other missions overseas authorized by the MFA, or the Foreign Affairs Offices under the governments of provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government and cities divided into districts authorized by the MFA. • A special variation of the service passport, called the Passport for Public Affairs (), is issued to public servants who "lead divisions or equivalents" of county or state-owned companies, and employees of state-controlled companies. The passports for
Macau and
Hong Kong SARs are issued and regulated by the governments of these regions, and are therefore not covered by this law. In July 2011 the Chinese government began to issue biometric diplomatic passports, service passports and passports for public affairs. The launch date of biometric ordinary passports was May 15, 2012. File:Chinese Diplomatic passport 2021 version.jpg|Diplomatic e-passport File:Chinese Service passport 2023 version.jpg|Service e-passport File:Chinese Public Affairs passport 2023 version.jpg|Public Affairs e-passport File:中华人民共和国护照.jpg|Ordinary e-passport
Passport for public affairs A different passport for public affairs () was issued until 2006. Unlike the current version, it was classified as a variation of ordinary passport. The abuse of the use of document resulted in its subsequent cancellation. Unlike other passports, it was issued by the provincial or municipal Foreign Affairs Offices, rather than the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Ministry of Public Security. Chinese ordinary passport for public affairs was used at the end of the 1980s and the 1990s. The passport information was written by hand, and these ordinary passports were usually valid for 2 or 5 years. In 1996, 77% of persons exiting China held a passport for public affairs. The rate had dropped to 39% by 2002. The reason for the high rate of usage was because the passport for public affairs offered more visa-free countries, such as Russia, than the ordinary passport. and they must be surrendered by the individual within one month of returning to China.
Validity The passport previously had an across-the-board 5-year period of validity. Since 2007, ordinary passports are valid for 10 years for bearers above 16 years of age, and for 5 years for bearers below 16 years of age, and diplomatic or service passports are valid for 4 years. According to the 2006 ''Passport Law of the People's Republic of China,'' renewal of previously issued passports ended on January 1, 2007. However, passports renewed before 2007 remained valid until expiry.
Format The newest version of the regular Chinese passport is the biometric version, which replaced its predecessors "Form 92", "Form 97-1" and "Form 97-2", but Form "97-2" passport is still being issued for single group tourism to Russia in some Sino-Russia border cities and valid for only 3 months or after returning to China.) • Bearer's signature • Machine Readable Code
Languages All information is printed in
Simplified Chinese and
English, except for the "Attentions" page, which is only printed in Simplified Chinese.
Passport Note • In Simplified Chinese: • In English: • In French (1982 version only):
Inner pages In the biometric version, selected natural landmarks and famous sights from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan are printed on the inner pages. Each page also features a transparent watermark depicting another landmark from the same region. File:PRC E-Passport Page 26 under black light.jpg|Transparent pattern on page 26 under black light File:Chinese epassport page 43 (Province of Taiwan).jpg|Xinjiang and Taiwan on page 42 and 43 File:Hongkong and Macau SAR.jpg|Hong Kong and Macau on page 44 and 45 File:Page 24 and 25.jpg|Page 24 and 25: Great wall and Map of China (including Taiwan and the
nine-dash line)
Last page The last page has the notes for the passport. For e-passport, inside the backcover, a caution for the biometric chip is written in both Chinese and English: This passport contains sensitive electronics. For best performance, please do not bend, perforate or expose to extreme temperatures or excess moisture. DO NOT STAMP HERE ==Fee and processing time==