Does the Chinese customs authority allow mailing an expired passport into the country?

[banjo67xxx]

Hi,

Thanks, to everyone who helped on the last question.

(We spoke to Air China who said that to fly to Beijing you only require a valid Chinese passport, and they dont care if you're an illegal immigrant in the UK. We spoke to the UKBA who said when you pass through security at Gatwick airport, they dont care if you were an illegal immigrant because you're leaving. We spoke to Beijing airport passport control who said they dont care about your immiration status in other countries, so long as you have a valid Chinese passport.)

However, when talking to the UKBA about re-entry to the UK after they return her expired passport (which they have for her mum's application), they told me that it is illegal to post a passport accross an international border. They suggested asking the Chinese consulate in London for permission to post the passport, as otherwise it might be seized by Chinese customs.

Does anyone have any experience with posting passports to China? Does it make a difference that its an expired passport (with UK Visa) rather than a current passport?

Regards,

Banjo.

[abcdefg]

I don't know about the strict legality of it, but I know it is sometimes done when an expat wants to handle a visa renewal in his home country while remaining in China.

In those cases, it should be sent by a registered carrier such as FedEx.

[roddy]

Banjo, how did this work out?

[banjo67xxx]

Hi Roddy,

 

As it was an expired passport we sent it via Fedex and declared it as "Immigration Documentation" and everything worked out ok.

 

Thanks,

Banjo.