In a surprise weekend notice dated 11 January, the Consulate-General of Greece in Guangzhou announced that it will once again accept short-stay (C-type) Schengen visa applications starting 12 January, but only for travellers whose outbound flights to Greece depart on or before 31 March 2026.
The move partially reverses the closure of Greece’s 15 mainland visa application centres on 1 January, which had forced would-be visitors to apply directly through the embassy in Beijing or the consulates in Shanghai and Hong Kong. Under the new protocol, applicants residing in seven southern provinces—including Guangdong, Fujian and Yunnan—must email scanned documents to the consulate to secure an appointment, then present originals on the day of interview.
For applicants who prefer professional assistance, VisaHQ’s China platform (https://www.visahq.com/china/) can pre-screen documents, book appointments and arrange secure shipping, offering a streamlined alternative for travellers in Guangdong and neighbouring provinces grappling with the consulate’s new email-first procedure.
![Greek Consulate in Guangzhou reopens Schengen visa slots for trips departing before March]()
For mobility managers, the change shortens lead times for MICE groups heading to Greece for spring trade shows such as Posidonia 2026. However, capacity is capped and the consulate stresses that it will reject files mentioning onward Schengen travel. Travellers bound for multi-country itineraries must still lodge applications in Beijing or via external providers in Hong Kong.
Service vendors expect pent-up demand: data from Trip.com show search volumes for “Athens flights” by users in South China jumped 320 percent in the 24 hours following the notice. Airlines such as Juneyao and Aegean, which codeshare on Shanghai-Athens services, are monitoring load factors with an eye to adding seasonal frequencies.
Advisory: corporates should lock in visa appointments immediately, ensure itineraries begin and end in Greece, and budget extra time for postal return of passports, as the Guangzhou consulate does not offer courier hand-back.
The move partially reverses the closure of Greece’s 15 mainland visa application centres on 1 January, which had forced would-be visitors to apply directly through the embassy in Beijing or the consulates in Shanghai and Hong Kong. Under the new protocol, applicants residing in seven southern provinces—including Guangdong, Fujian and Yunnan—must email scanned documents to the consulate to secure an appointment, then present originals on the day of interview.
For applicants who prefer professional assistance, VisaHQ’s China platform (https://www.visahq.com/china/) can pre-screen documents, book appointments and arrange secure shipping, offering a streamlined alternative for travellers in Guangdong and neighbouring provinces grappling with the consulate’s new email-first procedure.
For mobility managers, the change shortens lead times for MICE groups heading to Greece for spring trade shows such as Posidonia 2026. However, capacity is capped and the consulate stresses that it will reject files mentioning onward Schengen travel. Travellers bound for multi-country itineraries must still lodge applications in Beijing or via external providers in Hong Kong.
Service vendors expect pent-up demand: data from Trip.com show search volumes for “Athens flights” by users in South China jumped 320 percent in the 24 hours following the notice. Airlines such as Juneyao and Aegean, which codeshare on Shanghai-Athens services, are monitoring load factors with an eye to adding seasonal frequencies.
Advisory: corporates should lock in visa appointments immediately, ensure itineraries begin and end in Greece, and budget extra time for postal return of passports, as the Guangzhou consulate does not offer courier hand-back.
