Leaving China and then coming back...from Taiwan

[nazreal]

Hello,

Sorry if this has been covered before...

I'm studying in Beijing at the moment and come January next year I'm planning on visiting some friends in Taiwan. Thing is I have a single entry visa at the moment which runs out in January anyway so I'm trying to time it well.

The thing is, if I'm in Taiwan, how do I go about renewing my visa to go back into Beijing as I've heard you can't renew it in Taiwan....should I be planning a couple of nights in HK?? And will it take long and cost....? If it makes any difference at all, I hold a British passport...

On a different note, since I'm extending my study to July 2011 can I apply for a visa with my current passport which runs out in Feb 2012? That's a 6 month difference so I'm hoping it'll be ok.....

Advice would be lovely - thanks!

[jbradfor]

You might want to read this thread. It's more about Z-visa, but it might answer some of your questions about HK.

[Lu]

I've heard you can't renew it in Taiwan

This is correct, in any case. Taiwan is not a country, especially not in China's eyes, hence there is no Chinese embassy in Taiwan where you could apply for a visa. The HK option is probably the best one (I heard it can be done in one day, look for information elsewhere on the forums for that). Another solution would be going through an agent in Taiwan, but this would be more cumbersome and take longer.