中国签证是中国签证机关发给外国公民入、出或过境中国的许可证明。中国签证机关根据外国人的身份、来华目的，并参照护照种类，分别发给外交签证、礼遇签证、公务签证或普通签证。以下着重介绍普通签证的有关情况以及申办普通签证的程序。

普通签证分为八个类别，分别用八个汉语拼音字母（D、Z、X、F、L、G、C、J-1、J-2）作代码。

D字签证：发给来中国定居的人员。申请D字签证，须持有定居身份确认表。定居身份确认表由申请人或者委托其在中国的亲属向申请定居地的市、县公安局出入境管理部门申请领取。

Z字签证：发给来中国任职或就业的人员及其随行家属。申请Z字签证，须提供《中华人民共和国外国人就业许可证书》（就业许可证书由中国聘雇单位向各省、市劳动部门申请办理）和被授权单位的签证通知函电。

X字签证：发给来中国留学、进修、实习六个月以上的人员。申请X字签证，须有接受单位或者主管部门的证明，即《外国留学人员来华申请表》（JW201表或JW202表）、《录取通知书》和《外国人体格检查记录》。

F字签证：发给应邀来中国访问、考察、讲学、经商、进行科技文化交流及短期进修、实习等活动不超过六个月的人员。申请F字签证，须提供中国邀请单位的邀请信或被授权单位的签证通知函电。

L字签证：发给来中国旅游、探亲或因其他私人事务入境的人员。申请L字签证，来华旅游的，原则上须提供有足够来华旅费的证明，必要时须提供离开中国后前往国家（地区）的飞机票、车票或者船票；来华探亲的，有些须有国内亲属的邀请信。

G字签证：发给经中国过境的人员。申请G字签证，须持有前往国家（地区）的有效签证和联程客票；

C字签证：发给执行乘务、航空、航运任务的国际列车乘务员，国际航空器机组人员及国际航行船舶的海员及其随行家属。申请C字签证，按双方协议或中方规定提供有关证明。

J-1字签证：发给来中国常驻的外国记者。

J-2字签证：发给临时来中国采访的外国记者。申请J-1、J-2字签证，须有国内主管部门的证明。

申请上述各类签证除提供上述有关申请文件外，还须回答被询问的有关情况并履行下列手续（协议另有规定者除外）：

提供有效护照或者能够代替护照的证件；

填写签证申请表一份，交本人近期二寸正面免冠半身照片一张；

交纳签证费。

中国的签证机关，在境外是中国驻外国大使馆、总领事馆、签证办事处、驻香港特派员公署领事部或外交部授权的其他驻外机构。外国人入境或过境中国，应向中国的上述签证机关申请办理签证。有关申请签证的具体手续可就近向中国签证机关咨询。

The Chinese visa is the Chinese visa institution issues the foreign citizen to enter, or transits China's permission proof. The Chinese visa institution according to foreigner's status, comes the Chinese goal, and the reference passport type, issues the diplomatic visa, the courteous reception visa, official business visa or the ordinary visa separately. Below introduces the ordinary visa emphatically the related situation as well as the application ordinary visa procedure. The ordinary visa divides into eight categories, uses eight Chinese phonetic alphabet (D, Z, X, F, L, G, C, J-1, J-2) to make the code separately.

D character visa: Issues personnel which China settles down. Applies for the D character visa, must have settles down the status confirmation table. Settles down the status to confirm the table or entrusts it by the applicant to settle down the place city in China's relative to the application, the county police station entering and/or leaving country control section application receives.

Z character visa: Issues China to be in office or the employment personnel and its accompanies the family member. Applies for the Z character visa, must provide "People's Republic of China Foreigner To get employed Permission Certificate" (employment permission certificate unit by China to various provinces, city labor
department application handles) and is been authorized the unit the visa notice letters and telegrams.

X character visa: Issues China to study abroad, to take advanced courses, practises above six months personnel. Applies for X character visa, must have accepts the unit or department responsible for the work's proof, namely "Foreign country Person who study abroad Comes the Chinese Request form" (the JW201 table or the JW202 table), "Admission notice" and "Foreigner Medical examination Record".

F character visa: Issues comes China to visit, the inspection, the lecture on invitation, does business, carries on the science and technology cultural exchange and the short-term takes advanced courses the personnel which, activity and so on practice does not surpass for six month-long. Applies for the F character visa, must provide China
to invite the unit the invitation letter or is been authorized the unit the visa notice letters and telegrams.

L character visa: Issues China the traveling, visiting relatives or the personnel which because other personal business enters a country. Applies for the L character visa, comes China to travel, in principle must provide has enough comes the Chinese travel expense the proof, after when the necessity must provide leaves China goes to the country (area) the plane ticket, the ticket or the passage ticket; Comes China to visit relatives, some must have the domestic relative's invitation letter.

G character visa: Issues personnel which transits after China. Applies for the G character visa, must have goes to the country (area) the effective visa and the joint regulation passenger ticket;

C character visa: Issues the execution while the service, the aviation, the shipping duty international train train attendant, the international aircraft aircraft crews and the international navigation ships seaman and its ccompanies the family member. Applies for the C character visa, according to the bilateral agreement or the Chinese government stipulated provides the related proof.

J-1 character visa: Issues China resident foreign reporter.

J-2 character visa: Issues comes foreign reporter temporarily which China interviews. Applies for J-1, the J-2 character visa, must have the domestic department responsible for the work the proof.

Applies for the above each kind of visa besides to provide the above related application document, still needs the reply the related situation which inquired and fulfills the following procedure (agreement to have stipulation to be an exception in addition):

Provides the effective passport or can replace the passport the credential;

Fills in visa request form, will hand over myself in the near future two inches frontage to remove one's hat half-length picture;

Pays the permit fee.

China's visa institution, in beyond the border is China in the foreign embassy, the general consulate, the visa office, other which or Ministry of Foreign Affairs is authorized in Hong Kong special representative government office consul is stationed abroad the organization. The foreigner enters a country or transits China, should handle the visa to China's above visa institution application. The related application visa concrete procedure may nearby consult to the Chinese visa institution.