China is considering adding the UK to its visa-free waiver policy, putting Britain on the same footing as much of Europe.
Chinese President Xi Jinping confirmed he was ready to “actively consider” UK citizens being able to enter his nation without prior approval following a summit with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
Sir Keir confirmed the pair had discussed “when that could start” when asked by broadcasters about the changes, having said the pair had made “really good progress” on a range of issues.
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It marks the first prime ministerial visit to China since Theresa May in 2018.
Currently, British citizens need a visa to enter the People’s Republic of China.
In recent years, dozens of countries have been added to China’s visa-free entry policy.
The list of almost 50 nations includes France, Germany, Italy, Spain, New Zealand, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Brazil, Argentina, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Oman.
This policy allows people to stay in China for no more than 30 days without a visa, and is applicable for travellers attending for business, tourism, visiting family or friends and exchanges, according to the Chinese Embassy to the UK’s website.
Following Mr Xi and Sir Keir’s meeting, a readout was released from the Chinese side.
A translation read: “Both sides should strengthen people-to-people exchanges and further facilitate personnel exchanges.
“[Xi] welcomed visits to China by the British government, parliament, and various local groups to enhance their comprehensive, objective, and accurate understanding of China.
“China is willing to actively consider implementing unilateral visa-free entry for the UK.”
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Sir Keir addressed the issue when talking about other areas of discussion, including illegal migration and trade.
He said: “We made some really good progress on tariffs for whisky, on visa-free travel to China and on information exchange and cooperation on irregular migration, focusing particularly on small boats and engine parts.
“So a very good constructive meeting with real outcomes and that’s very much in our national interest.”
Asked by broadcasters for more information, the prime minister said: “We’ve agreed that, on tariffs for whisky, we’re looking at how they’re to be reduced, what the timeframe is; visa-free travel, how far, how much and when that can start.
“And on the information exchange on small boats, the cooperation that we need.”
Sir Keir mentioned restricting the trade in the engines used to power small boats across the Channel.
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As well as the positives, Sir Keir confirmed he raised issues such as the detention of British citizen Jimmy Lai in Hong Kong and the treatment of Uyghurs with President Xi.
“Part of the rationale for engagement is to make sure that we can both seize the opportunities that are available, which is what we’ve done, but also have a mature discussion about issues that we disagree on,” Sir Keir said.
