China Tourist Visa for Pakistan

According to the Chinese missions in Pakistan:

1. The L visa is for tourism, and Pakistani applicants should apply as part of a group of at least five people.
2. The group is organised through a travel agency authorised by China. The key document is an Invitation Letter for Tourist Group, issued by the duly authorised tourism office in China. This is usually the local Culture and Tourism Bureau, acting on the request of the Chinese travel agency hosting the group.
3. A general hotel booking or a self-made itinerary does not replace that group invitation for an L visa.

If you are not travelling with an organised tour, the embassy lists other visa types for other purposes: an F visa for non-commercial exchanges, an M visa for business, and Q2 or S2 visas for visiting relatives. Each of these needs an invitation of its own. Choose the category that matches your real purpose. The embassy lists a mismatch between your stated purpose and the visa type as a common reason for refusal.

The missions divide Pakistan into consular districts based on permanent residence:

1. Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and other districts — Mission handling your visa: Chinese Embassy, Islamabad
2. Punjab (except Rawalpindi) — Mission handling your visa: Chinese Embassy, Islamabad, on behalf of the Consulate General in Lahore, which currently does not accept visa applications
3. Sindh and Balochistan — Mission handling your visa: Consulate General of China, Karachi

Since May 2019, the missions have authorised Gerry's Chinese Visa Application Service Center to accept applications. You submit at the Gerry's office in Islamabad, Karachi or Lahore that matches your permanent residence. The embassy lists the Islamabad office at Gerry's Building, Park Road (next to Punjab Cash & Carry) and the Lahore office at 20 Ex-American Centre Building, Queen's Road. Both are open 9:00–15:00, Monday to Friday, excluding holidays.

1. Embassy (Islamabad) district, including Punjab applicants: complete the online form and upload all documents at bio.visaforchina.cn. Gerry's and the embassy first review the uploads online and send back files with obvious gaps. Take your passport and originals to Gerry's only after you receive the "Online Visa Approved" email.
2. Karachi district: complete the form on COVA (cova.mfa.gov.cn) or on the Gerry's website. Print the whole form, sign the confirmation page and the last page by hand, then submit everything at Gerry's.

In both cases, the names, date of birth and passport number must match your passport exactly. List five years of work history. Any field marked "not applicable" needs a reason. On COVA, a submitted form cannot be edited, so you would have to start a new one.

These are the common documents listed for all visa types, on top of the L-visa group invitation:

1. Passport valid for more than six months, with at least one blank visa page, plus a copy of the data page.
2. Copy of your CNIC, front and back.
3. Police character or clearance certificate for everyone aged 10 and above, covering the period "since birth till now". The embassy asks for it to be apostilled by Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs if it has no verifiable QR code. Karachi says it must be apostilled.
4. Name-change certificate, apostilled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, if your name differs from an earlier passport.
5. Photo: a recent 2-inch colour digital photo on a white background, meeting the visaforchina photo rules.

For non-group visits, such as F or M visas, the missions also ask for a personal bank statement for the last six months. The closing balance must cover your stay at no less than US $100 per day or the equivalent in rupees.

1. Processing: the embassy and the Karachi consulate each say they generally need 4 working days to process an application once Gerry's forwards it, and that no express service is offered. Supplementary documents or an interview can add time. A returned and resubmitted file counts as a new application.
2. Visa fee: the embassy's visa instructions (updated June 2024) say Pakistani ordinary passport holders are exempted from visa fees. Gerry's charges its own service fee, so check the current amount with the centre. If the embassy's fee notice changes, the new notice applies.

China collects ten fingerprints from visa applicants at Gerry's. Exemptions include children under 14, people over 70, and people whose fingerprints were taken for a Chinese visa with the same passport at the same location within the past five years. A temporary exemption for single and double-entry applicants ran from 2 September 2024 to 31 December 2025. Check whether any new exemption has been announced before your appointment.

The missions list these common reasons:

1. dishonest information or fake or altered documents
2. wrong or incomplete details on the form, including an incorrect inviter name or a phone number that cannot be reached
3. an invitation missing the dates, the signature of the legal representative, or a genuine seal (Chinese organisation seals must be circular)
4. a purpose that does not match the visa type
5. not enough money for the stay

Under Chinese exit-entry law, the missions are not required to give reasons for a refusal. Keep flights and hotels flexible until the visa is issued. The embassy says applicants bear any losses from refusals or delays.