The time required for visa renewal to be completed varies due to various factors:
1、 Factors related to visa type
-Renewal of Ordinary Tourist Visa (L Visa)
-Normal situation: To renew a tourist visa within China, if the documents are complete and the situation is simple, it usually takes 3-5 working days. For example, if a tourist needs to extend their stay due to personal itinerary arrangements and provides complete itinerary, financial proof, and other materials, and there are no other special issues, the renewal can be completed within 3-5 working days.
-Complex situation: If it involves complex travel itineraries, such as multiple entry and exit records requiring verification, unclear funding sources requiring further explanation, etc., it may take 7-10 working days or even longer, and the longest may be extended to around 15 working days.
-Renewal of Business Visa (M Visa)
-Normal situation: Business visa renewal usually takes 5-7 working days. This is because when renewing a business visa, in addition to the basic materials, it is also necessary to provide an invitation letter from the Chinese company, an explanation of business activity arrangements, and other materials. The immigration department needs to review the authenticity and necessity of the business activities. For example, a foreign employee of a foreign company needs to renew their business visa to participate in subsequent business negotiations, which can be completed within 5-7 working days with standardized materials.
-Complex situation: If the business activity involves sensitive industries, large-scale project cooperation, and other complex situations, the visa renewal time may be extended to 10-15 working days. The immigration management department may need to conduct a detailed investigation of the background of business activities in conjunction with other relevant departments, such as the commerce department, security department, etc.
-Renewal of Work Visa (Z Visa)
-Normal situation: Renewal of work visa generally takes 7-10 working days. Because the renewal of a work visa involves multiple materials, including work permit certificates, labor contract renewal status, enterprise operation status, tax records of foreign employees, and other aspects of review. Taking the renewal of work visas for foreign technicians of an Internet company as an example, it can be completed within 7 to 10 working days under the normal process.
-Complex situation: If the enterprise has operational problems, changes in foreign employee positions involving changes in professional qualification certification, etc., the renewal period may be extended to 15-20 working days, and even the employment qualifications of foreign employees may need to be re evaluated.
2、 Material preparation status
-Complete and standardized materials: If the visa renewal materials provided by the applicant are complete, meet the requirements, and have no missing or incorrect information, the entire processing process will be relatively smooth, and the processing time will be within the normal time range mentioned above. For example, all materials are prepared according to the requirements of the immigration management department or consulate, with clear copies and accurate translations.
-There are issues with the materials: If the materials are incomplete, such as missing key documents, notarized proof materials, or non-standard translations, it may result in a delay in processing time. Once material issues are discovered, the applicant needs to provide additional materials. After resubmitting, the processing time will be recalculated from the supplementary materials, and each supplementary material may require an additional 1-3 working days for review.
3、 Institution and number of applicants
-Consular processing: Visa renewals can be processed at Chinese consulates abroad. If the number of applicants is small and the consulate’s internal processes are efficient, the processing time may remain relatively stable within the normal time range corresponding to the visa type. But if there is a peak period for visa applications, such as the peak season for tourism or large-scale business activities, the workload of the consulate may increase, and the visa renewal time may be extended by 1-2 times.
-Domestic immigration management department processing: When applying for visa renewal at the domestic immigration management department, it will also be affected by the number of applicants. For example, in first tier cities with a dense foreign population and a large number of visa renewal applications, if there is no advance appointment, it may be necessary to wait in line for processing. The normal processing time after processing may also be extended by 2-3 days due to the backlog of queues.
