LPHYS'15.    Visa Support:

All foreign citizens must obtain a visa before entry into China. Chinese Embassies and Consulates General issue entry visas to the foreign citizens abroad. Many authorised local travel agencies in your country can assist with visa application and delivering the issued visa back to you. You can find the detailed information on how to apply for an entry visa to China on the websites of the Embassy or Consulate General of China in your country as well as on many sites of travel agencies. Just search for "Visa to China" to get more information.

When applying for a visa, you should show the purpose of your visit to China by choosing a visa category. The Chinese government allows people coming to the country for attending scientific conferences to apply for a single-entry Tourist visa (category L: tourism). To obtain a Tourist visa (L) from a Chinese visa office in your country you should present:

Visa application requirements may vary from country to country. You can get more detailed information by contacting a local Chinese visa authorised agent in your country.

In the uncommon case when you need to apply for a Tourist visa (L) before you book your air ticket, you might request an Invitation Letter from our local partner travel agency in Shanghai, Shanghai China International Travel Service Co, Ltd. (SCITS). In order to obtain your Invitation Letter please send your request to Ms. Olga Vasilyeva via your LPHYS' Participant Personal Page. Just click on "Request Invitation Letter" and choose "Tourist Visa Form" on the upper left of the page. The invitation letter will be sent to your email address in PDF which is allowed by the visa authorities. This additional service can be provided by SCITS only after you registered for the Workshop and booked your hotel reservation through this agency.

In case you wish to apply for your Tourist visa before booking your air ticket and making a hotel reservation by yourself (without assistance from SCITS) you can do it through any authorised Chinese travel agency of your choice. In this case, you should ask the chosen agency to provide an Invitation letter for you, if needed.

Please notice however, that an advanced air ticket booking and a hotel reservation proof would allow you to apply for your visa without asking any travel agency for invitation.

Some LPHYS'15 participants might need to obtain a Business visa (Category F: exchange and conference visits) due to various requirements by their employment or grant funds. In this case, one should request an Invitation Letter from our host organisation, Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM), by sending your request to Ms. Hongxiang Lin via your LPHYS' Participant Personal Page. Just select the appropriate link on the upper left of the page. The Invitation Letter can be provided only after you register for the Workshop.

Please be aware that obtaining a Business visa (F) can take a much longer time and might require some additional documents.

In both above cases, when requesting an Invitation Letter online via your LPHYS' Participant Personal Page, you will be asked to enter the following information:

Please remember that the validity of a single-entry visa is 3 months, counted from the date of issue. It is recommended to start your application between 1 and 2 months (at least 2 weeks) prior to your planned arrival in China. If you apply too late, you may have not enough time to receive your visa. If you apply too early, it may become invalid before your departure.

Please consult Embassy/Consulate General of China or local visa authorised agent for additional information.