Short-stay travellers will keep skipping the fingerprint booth at eight of China’s busiest overseas visa posts after the foreign ministry quietly prolonged its biometrics waiver to 31 December 2026. According to a Fragomen alert confirmed by consular notices on 26 December, applicants lodging tourist (L), business (M/F), family-visit (Q2/S2) or short-study (X2) visas in Australia, Canada, Ireland, Macao SAR, New Zealand, the Palestinian Territories, Singapore and the United Kingdom can continue to submit passports without providing prints.
The waiver—first introduced in 2022 to clear post-pandemic backlogs—covers stays of up to 180 days and is also open to third-country nationals applying at the designated posts. Consular staff in London and Sydney estimate the exemption trims about three minutes per applicant, saving roughly 50 staff-hours a week and cutting queue times during holiday peaks.
If navigating these shifting rules feels daunting, VisaHQ’s China desk can handle the legwork—assembling forms, booking consular slots and couriering passports to waiver-eligible missions. Full-service options and pricing are available at https://www.visahq.com/china/.
![China extends fingerprint-free visa processing at eight high-volume consulates]()
Corporate mobility teams stand to benefit most. Engineers on 60-day troubleshooting trips or film crews on location shoots no longer need to fly in solely for biometrics, allowing companies to outsource submission to accredited agencies. HR leaders should update travel calendars and remind employees that Z-work, X1-long study and Q1/S1 family-reunion visas still require fingerprints.
From a risk perspective, Chinese authorities say they are comfortable relying on advance passenger information, API-driven risk scoring and post-arrival e-channel facial scans for low-risk cohorts. Nevertheless, consulates reserve the right to summon applicants if watch-list hits or prior overstays emerge.
Practical tip: carry the printed waiver confirmation when checking in—some airlines continue to request evidence that fingerprint collection has been deferred.
The waiver—first introduced in 2022 to clear post-pandemic backlogs—covers stays of up to 180 days and is also open to third-country nationals applying at the designated posts. Consular staff in London and Sydney estimate the exemption trims about three minutes per applicant, saving roughly 50 staff-hours a week and cutting queue times during holiday peaks.
If navigating these shifting rules feels daunting, VisaHQ’s China desk can handle the legwork—assembling forms, booking consular slots and couriering passports to waiver-eligible missions. Full-service options and pricing are available at https://www.visahq.com/china/.
Corporate mobility teams stand to benefit most. Engineers on 60-day troubleshooting trips or film crews on location shoots no longer need to fly in solely for biometrics, allowing companies to outsource submission to accredited agencies. HR leaders should update travel calendars and remind employees that Z-work, X1-long study and Q1/S1 family-reunion visas still require fingerprints.
From a risk perspective, Chinese authorities say they are comfortable relying on advance passenger information, API-driven risk scoring and post-arrival e-channel facial scans for low-risk cohorts. Nevertheless, consulates reserve the right to summon applicants if watch-list hits or prior overstays emerge.
Practical tip: carry the printed waiver confirmation when checking in—some airlines continue to request evidence that fingerprint collection has been deferred.
