China travel to resume as Beijing drops Covid restrictions

China has ended quarantine for travellers arriving from overseas and dropped limits on international flights as the country abandons the "zero-Covid" policy that kept its borders closed for most of the past three years.

From Sunday, 8 January, inbound travellers will no longer have to quarantine or take a Covid test on arrival.

Instead, as the Chinese government continues to reverse some of the world's strictest pandemic measures, travellers will only need to undergo a PCR test 48 hours before they set off.

Until now, people arriving in China had to spend five days in quarantine in a government facility, followed by three days of isolation in their own accommodation.

The Chinese government has also scrapped limits on the number and capacity of international flights, which previously were not allowed to arrive more than 75 percent full.

It will resume processing visa applications by foreign nationals who want to work, study or visit family in China, though it is unclear when tourists will be permitted to return.

The border between mainland China and Hong Kong, which was crossed by tens of thousands of people each day before it was effectively shut in early 2020, also reopened on Sunday.

Chinese travellers will once more be able to head to other countries too, as authorities begin issuing and renewing passports again.

Outbound restrictions

But Chinese residents considering a trip abroad for the first time since the start of the pandemic may find themselves facing restrictions on the other side, as a surge in coronavirus infections prompts several countries to introduce compulsory testing for travellers from China.

Cases have spiked since the Chinese government began abruptly reversing its hard-line policy on controlling Covid-19 last month, following widespread protests.

More than a dozen countries, including France, India and the United States, are now insisting that all travellers from China provide negative Covid tests before arrival.

The European Union "strongly" recommended this week that all member states do the same.

Chinese authorities have complained that such measures are discriminatory and lack a scientific basis.

Tourism boon

The global tourism industry has been eagerly awaiting the return of Chinese visitors, who were some of the world's top spenders on international travel before the pandemic.

France typically received some 2 million Chinese tourists each year, who spent around €4 billion between them.

While travellers from China are unlikely to return right away, French tourism operators are already gearing up to welcome them back for the high season from spring to summer.

Flights between the two countries are set to go from six per week currently to eight from February, newspaper Le Monde reports – though this remains far below the roughly 100 flights that used to take off every week pre-pandemic.

Hope for Chinese diaspora

The changes in China's travel rules, which were announced late last month, will also make it easier for Chinese nationals living abroad to return, in many cases for the first time in at least three years.

Many in France's Chinese community are "overjoyed" at the prospect of seeing friends and relatives again, according to one Chinese shop owner in Paris who spoke to RFI this week.

Another business owner dealing in textiles told RFI's Aram Mbengue that the reopening would help people like him who rely on buying stock from China.

"Whatever happens, we'll definitely go back," he said. "But then there's the economic factor – plane tickets aren't cheap at the moment, especially with the lunar new year coming at the end of the month."

The weeks around Chinese new year, which falls on 22 January, are usually a peak travel period, when millions of people return home to celebrate with family.

China's Ministry of Transportation on Friday urged people to scale back on trips and gatherings in order to reduce the risk of further outbreaks.

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