Biometric visas have been widely used around the world in recent years. The Canadian government will start to collect the ten fingerprints of all visa applicants in China on December 31st, 2018. In accordance with diplomatic principle of reciprocity, on behalf of the Chinese Consulate General in Calgary, the Chinese Visa Application Service Center in Calgary will collect the ten fingerprints of all visa applicants from January 1st, 2019. Please be noted that fingerprints are not required for:
1. Children under 14 years old and seniors over 70 years old;
2. Applicants who are Heads of State or Government and their accompanying family members;
3. Applicants who are eligible for diplomatic, service, or courtesy visas;
4. Applicants who are assigned as members of diplomatic or consular mission or international organization in China and their accompanying spouses, parents or minor children;
5. Applicants who have applied for a Chinese visa in the past 5 years with the same passport at the same Chinese Visa Application Service Center, and have successfully got his or her fingerprints collected;
6. Applicants who suffer from ten-finger mutilation or whose ten fingerprints are impossible to be collected.
Please note that all visa applicants should have their fingerprints collected in person at the Chinese Visa Application Service Center. Visitors to China are responsible for all the consequences in case of entry rejection due to forged or substituted fingerprints.
In order to ensure the service efficiency of Chinese visa application, all applicants are required to fill in the application forms online and make appointments at the official website of the Chinese Visa Application Service Center (www.visaforchina.org) as early as possible well ahead of their travel schedules. Applications without appointments or application forms not completed online will not be accepted from February 1st, 2019.