Boring airport question

[Zichao]

*delurks*

I'm not sure whether this counts as a visa question, as it's more about avoiding them if anything I'm trying to organise a connecting flight at Beijing Airport and it's a real headache. I've already booked my Beijing-Paris flight for the 26th November, but the week prior to that I'll be in Tokyo. If possible I'd like to get straight off the Tokyo plane and onto the Paris one, without passing Chinese customs as this would mean having to fork out for a new visa (I have a current Chinese visa but it's single entry). Does this seem organisable to you seasoned international travellers? Specifically:

1. Normally transit passengers don't need a visa, but the Beijing Airport site seems to imply that I would. Eh?

2. The Paris flight leaves from Terminal 3 whereas most Tokyo flights seem to arrive at Terminal 2. Will I still be ok or will this screw up my plans? (Been to Beijing Airport before but I can't remember the geography of it.)

[James Johnston]

You don't give your nationality. While in this case I don't think it's an issue, it is usually very important for visa questions.

The Chinese embassy in the US says that you can transit without a visa if you have an onward international flight within 24 hours.

This discussion from another forum (see from posts 20 onwards) gives details of the actual process. If you take proof of your onward flight through immigration you get a stamp which allows you a 24 hour stay. You are not supposed to leave the airport, but you can go to a different terminal to check in with your connecting airline.

[adrianlondon]

I'll be transiting (on a UK passport) in a few weeks' time as I'm flying from London to Hong Kong, via Beijing. As long as you have an onward ticket (ideally an onward boarding pass) for a flight within 24 hours you won't need a visa.

On the way back I'm stopping in Beijing for a few days so will need a visa, but I'll get that in HK as it's cheaper than the UK now that it's compulsory to pay a "visa service company" an additional £35 for processing.

[skylee]

can you check in your luggage from japan through to paris (eg same carrier for the 2 flights)? if not i would imagine you would have to get thru immigration, get back your luggage and check in again. this was what i had to do when i flew Virgin+BA and KLM+Aliteria.

[roddy]

A possible problem is that you already have a visa, and they may be of the opinion that you should use it. You never, as far as I know, get two Chinese visas at the same time. I have no idea what will actually happen, but I wouldn't be surprised if you just get told to use the tourist visa, or it gets canceled when you get the transit stamp.

Let us know how you get on. For reference, Terminal 2 and 3 are a 10 minute free shuttle bus apart. 3's the one with the Burger King in

[adrianlondon]

That was another reason I thought I'd save getting my visa until I got to HK. I didn't want them stamping my visa while I transit and wasting/ruining it. However, as I transit completely in T3 I'm assuming I won't go near immigration anyway.

[Zichao]

Ah, yes, I forgot the luggage. That's a bind. Frankly given the net worth of my possessions it might work out cheaper just to chuck it off the end of a dock in Yokohama than to actually get the damn visa.

Thanks for the answers!