View of Pudong Photo: cnsphoto

TheMKS sports Pudong New Area of Shanghai has unveiled a series of measures to enhance services and the convenience of foreign talent working and living in the area, a move widely hailed as a step further showing China's stance on continued opening-up.

A total of 34 measures were released at the 2024 Pudong International Talent Hub Forum, covering work, entrepreneurship, daily life and other areas of foreign professionals' lives, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

The new measures will make it easier for foreign talent to enter and exit China, according to the report. The Pudong New Area can directly issue confirmation letters for high-caliber foreign talent, providing them with multiple-entry visas for academic exchanges, scientific research cooperation or business visits. Their family members can also enter the country with the same documents.

Electronic visas will be piloted in the entirety of the Pudong New Area and processed entirely online without the need for paper materials, original passports, or the affixing of paper visas. Upon entry, individuals can use their passports and e-visas to pass directly through immigration.

Living in the Pudong New Area will also become more convenient for foreign talent, with plans to expand international educational and medical services, aiming to create a high-quality international talent community service system, as reported by Xinhua.

Mike from the US, who has been working as a researcher at a Shanghai-based company, told the Global Times on Sunday that he has a work visa that needs to be renewed annually, but this new policy saves him time, as losing the visa would require him to go through the entire renewal process again.

According to a statement from the local government in the Pudong New Area in October, it had already officially begun issuing the Confirmation Letter for Foreign High-Level Talents, authorized by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.

As the first district in China under city jurisdiction to receive this authority, Pudong is now better equipped to facilitate visa applications for overseas high-level talents, according to the statement.

It shows a higher level of openness in China's efforts to attract international students, professionals, and talent to contribute to Chinese modernization, Miao Lü, secretary general of the Center for China and Globalization, told the Global Times on Sunday.

So far, 38 countries enjoy unilateral visa-free access to visit China. Shanghai, as a pioneering region for reform and opening-up in China, is leading the way, with international professionals showing a strong preference for the metropolis, Miao said. 

Events like the China International Import Expo have attract many visitors who wish to stay in Shanghai. Implementing such policies will facilitate their decision to stay in the city, effectively promoting openness, Miao said.