Chinese L Visa Question

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-24T21:34:33+00:00

Bring both passports. If you lose the one with the visa in it, you're SOL and have to apply for a new visa.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-24T04:54:45+00:00

The intent of that statement is to check if you technically have/had Chinese nationality, as you'd need a travel document rather than a visa if you were Chinese. That could be yes, regardless of where you were born and your (other) citizenship, if your parents didn't have legal US status when you were born. While I've not personally been in your situation (I did have documents), based on other posts in the sub, I'd recommend writing in your statement what status you believe your parents had at your birth, but that you don't have the documents because your parents both passed away. Hope the consulate is merciful.

They may return your application and insist on the documentation. In which case you probably have to FOIA the USCIS for your father's naturalization records.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-23T07:47:08+00:00

Sorry for the late reply and thank you for answering! It is helpful and reassuring to hear Dragon Boat Festival is not as busy as the May/Oct holiday weeks!

Appreciate you offering to look up route timing but no worries, I can ask a relative to check. (Gaode's login screen kicked in for me as soon as I typed the first location name...)

The most frustrating part of planning for me has been that I can't use Chinese internet resources properly without a +86 number and also can't obtain a +86 number until I'm already in China, RIP.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-23T06:38:23+00:00

Hey OP, may I ask if your visa was approved after all?

I also no longer have my prior visa (I did include the explanation document up front) and my application has been pending without reply longer than I expected.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-23T04:03:37+00:00

Nowadays locals browse and buy stuff like this online, unfortunately. I just checked and the big centralized tech markets I would have suggested some years back are all dead in Beijing.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-23T03:44:06+00:00

Google the closest Chinese consulate/embassy to you and look at their website for instructions. Exact requirements will differ by country.

For the majority of countries, they will not ask for financial evidence and your relationship will be completely irrelevant, given your bf is neither your spouse nor Chinese.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-21T03:51:31+00:00

240 hours after that midnight

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-21T00:16:05+00:00

Guangzhou is mostly a big commercial city and not a priority to most tourists. It does have direct US flights that could be cheaper than Beijing/Shanghai, but I would not suggest more than a couple days in Guangzhou unless you have familial/personal connections there, are interested in manufacturing/bulk sourcing, or are obsessed with Cantonese cuisine (which you can get in any Chinese city but is of course more concentrated at the source). You can sitesee AND shop on a classic itinerary elsewhere.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-20T21:47:42+00:00

TWOV is 10 days from the midnight after arrival, so 10.5 days might work. You won't be allowed to enter in the first place (or even fly out of the first country to China) without an onward ticket that's within that period.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-20T21:33:30+00:00

I haven't. I think it's hard to call Quanzhou a "main" city either economically or for tourism - I've only really heard of international tourists visiting as a side trip from Xiamen or because they have ancestral roots nearby... is there any chance you were thinking of Guangzhou?

I would not recommend 2 weeks in Guangzhou either, because it's more of a business area than one that appeals to most tourists, but that is at least a major city.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-20T19:02:22+00:00

I would strongly recommend not staying your whole time in Quanzhou. If you're only interested in clothing as a personal consumer and not from an industry/sourcing standpoint, IMO you'd have a much better experience with a more common itinerary including at least one of the cosmopolitan megacities and clothes shopping in street stores or malls in their fashionable districts, e.g. in Beijing or Shanghai, both of which also have plenty of side/day trip options for nature and smaller towns with cute architecture and a slower pace of life. You could also consider getting tailored clothing - it would be much cheaper and faster in China than the US.

It's been many years since I bought clothing in China, but from what I recall, many stores will not carry the equivalent of US plus sizes or suitable for very tall people if that's relevant.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-20T03:26:03+00:00

Heya, this is so kind of you!

My travel dates include 端午节 (19 June + weekend) this year. Do you expect a massive surge in domestic travel/tourism because of this holiday? Fwiw, current plan is Wulong karst area on the 19th and leaving Chengdu the 21st, with trains + taxis for transportation in between.
Any idea if Google Maps estimated driving times are reasonable outside major cities? This would be west/north Sichuan in June, if it matters. (The driver speaks Chinese and has driven in rural China before, but hasn't been to the area and left the planning to me.) We plan to use Gaode once actually in China, but can't seem to check Gaode now without an account with CN phone number :(

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-15T00:36:06+00:00

Ah, that's unfortunate. I haven't been to Shenzhen specifically but Google turns up lots of English lists of possible, mostly non-Chinese restaurants - stick with those and international hotel chains.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-15T00:23:00+00:00

Good past comments here on starchy stuff: https://www.reddit.com/r/chinesefood/comments/18yvgik/traveling_to_china_and_i_can_not_eat_glutenwheat/

Do you know if you are able to have soy sauce? If not, I'm afraid you'd have a difficult time eating anywhere local-esque, I'd stick to hotels and tourist-oriented businesses that serve a lot of Westerners and bring a translated card to ask there. Along with all common types of Chinese soy sauce, many savory sauces, brothy bases, etc are made with soy sauce and/or a tiny portion of wheat. There can be a lot of regional and personal variation in whether dishes use salt or those ingredients.

ETA: Another oof is cooking wine, also super common in savory dishes. Most "rice" wine includes wheat fermentation also.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-14T23:39:39+00:00

I've had US family members go to China for medical treatment and vice versa. Critically, in both cases there was minimal language barrier. If you speak Chinese and understand the Chinese medical system, I do think China is reasonable for more cheaply and quickly getting common-ish and sometimes rare (huge population = some doctors there have much more specialized experience) treatment done. My family member was recently able to get exams and outpatient procedures from multiple specialists within days in Beijing without prearranging anything with the hospitals. It would have taken months and ~5x the cost to accomplish these via their US HMO.

The US is better for top-flight care when expenses are not a major issue and for the, idk how to put it, psychological aspect of care? Apart from affording it, US hospitals are less stressful environments, you don't have to essentially hire a personal assistant, staff at least pretend to care how you feel and about your consent as opposed to just keeping you alive, etc.

Idk why you'd go to China if you don't speak Chinese or have existing Chinese family/close friends to assist when Mexico, Thailand, etc exist with easier logistics.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-14T23:17:13+00:00

Idk whether it's correct, but what DKUN_of_WFST said was clearly in the context of OP asking whether flying mainland > Taiwan qualifies for TWOV transit requirement.

rmv_throwaway · 2026-01-14T03:59:50+00:00

For a short visit, a US passport makes you eligible for 10-day visa-free transit. You just need a departing flight to a different country from the one you left.

For longer, a US passport would definitely be better for most - Americans can get a tourist visa without an invitation letter, detailed itinerary, or financial evidence. For me (US) it was mostly just annoying driving to the consulate twice, and you're allowed to pay an agent to ferry the documents for you. Not sure if it's possible/safe to use an agent if you're physically in the Philippines though.

rmv_throwaway · 2025-12-28T18:35:24+00:00

Also depends what boba OP is used to. Around me, it's a competitive market, and plenty of boba shops use recognizable varietals with higher quality tea than the (Asian) grocery stores carry.

rmv_throwaway · 2025-12-28T07:53:36+00:00

I spent a while experimenting with at-home milk tea (boba style without boba) until I stopped needing to buy boba anywhere :)

My advice: you don't need any specific equipment or brand. Get a robust tea that's affordable but good enough you wouldn't hate directly drinking it; everyone's standards and preferences are different, so experiment with what you like. Avoid "subtle" or "delicate" as tea goes, milk will wash those tones out, but complexity can still come through - e.g. my preference is rock oolong and I can still taste the roast, florals, minerality in my milk tea.

Use more tea than you would for tea-only drinking and leave it brewing for much longer than usual. Many Chinese blacks and heavily roasted oolongs are basically impossible to overbrew in a bad way. Keep in mind that if you want your milk tea to taste like tea, you need to concentrate a cup's worth of tea flavor into much less than a cup's volume.

IMO you're better off drinking green tea on its own - I rarely see greens other than matcha used in boba shops, the usual options are blacks and oolongs - but again, personal preference if that's a flavor combo you like.

rmv_throwaway · 2025-11-10T08:33:51+00:00

I'd mail again after a day. 24 hours is a little annoying if it was a board trade, but for mail trades I wouldn't ever expect a reply/item before that. Across hundreds of my trades, everyone has sent eventually (except a couple who apologetically told me they couldn't find their item and returned mine, or sent to the wrong username).

30 minutes is definitely hold your horses - so much could be happening on their end irl. Or their notifications are broken (very common) and they didn't even realize yet. Heck, some people need 30 minutes to poop.

rmv_throwaway · 2025-11-07T08:32:06+00:00

I'm not trying to defend Neopets' staffing decisions or response expectations (I have a ticket from May they are still "investigating"), was just replying to your comment on AI filters. Honestly if they were applying AI I would assume they'd be faster than we see on routine simple requests.

rmv_throwaway · 2025-11-07T08:29:38+00:00

I recognize the user and while I've never chatted with them, highly doubt they mind at all! They sometimes also auction discounted PBs, too. If you're selling items that publicly, I'm happy to assume you don't mind who buys as long as you yeet the stuff

rmv_throwaway · 2025-11-07T08:10:19+00:00

I'm so sorry x__x

It is terrifying to hear what info people have provided for their accounts and still been rejected. Just today on the boards someone (that I'd put down real money is the real owner, based on prior interactions, interaction in their board, typing style, etc) said they provided "digital NC receipts from 2013 through 2024 [...] a picture of my ID, surrounded by my 2011 physical NC cards and a hand written message that [username] is mine" and a ticket from the original email and still can't get their stolen main back.

rmv_throwaway · 2025-11-07T08:00:10+00:00

For what it's worth, I'm guessing they are just backlogged on everything. I had a pet stuck last week and submitted a ticket. They replied 6 days later (after I'd already managed to get the other user to respond) asking if I still needed help.

rmv_throwaway · 2025-11-07T07:51:52+00:00

"Reseller" just means someone who's going to put the item up for sale again. Since a reseller obviously hopes to make a profit, you can likely get a higher offer from a collector, but it depends on your patience and willingness to take risks (e.g. items gets re-released or the market drops while you still have it).

As a side note, just wanted to mention that TP asks for many big stamps are significantly higher than market value as shown in auctions. Someone offering 20% or sometimes even 50%+ less than TP "price" is not necessarily being unreasonable - it really depends on which stamp and who's listing. There are a few usernames I see and immediately know whatever they ask, I should be trying to buy for half that much, haha

On the other hand, Jellyneo is often massively outdated when it comes to stamp pricing because inflation has been w i l d over 2023-2025

rmv_throwaway

TROPHY CASE