It's a nightmare traveling to Beijing last Saturday.

The three of us (my daughter, my husband and a 5 year old) are traveling together, from Dallas, to Toronto, thru Vancouver to final destination Beijing. In Beijing, the chinese official found out that my 5 year old's entry visa into China had a void stamp on it and was denied entry. The stamp was done in error obviously because the 3 of us applied for the entry visa together but only hers has a faint void stamp on it. I then show them her valid Foreigner Residence of China Permit, which was recieved at the same time I applied for her entry visa, but that was not enough to enter China.

The Air Canada Agent at the Toronto Pearson Airport did check all of our passports for valid visa to China before issuing us boarding passes. So nobody knows about her visa problem until we reached Beijing.

So in Beijing Airport, the Air Canada agent together with chinese official were seeking ways to fix her visa problem, because obviously the void stamp was put on in error, as she's also carrying a valid Foreigner Residence Permit of China.

Here's when the situation turns sour, the Air Canada Agent said she must send my daughter back to Vancouver on the original flight since she does not have a valid visa entering China, or else the government will fine Air Canada 20000 ren/ 2500 USD for letting her travel without proper documents. At the same time they have placed a call to Chinese Immigration office to check what's going on with her visa, but it will take at least half an hour to get back a response.

I've asked them to wait for half an hour to get response back from Chinese Immigration and they said no, my daughter must go back on the same plane which leaves right away back to Vancouver. One adult must accompany her back to Vancouver on the original flight or else Air Canada get fined.

So the Air Canada agent was in a hurry to avoid a penalty to the airline. She asked us to pay for 2 one-way tickets from Beijing to Vancouver, costing a heafty 11984 ren / 1400 USD EACH. The Air Canada agent was in such a hurry since the plane's leaving right away, she asked my husband and daughter to board the plane first and the wife stays here and pay for the tickets plus pick up the baggage. So my daughter was send back to Vancouver to without baggage. And she's still in Vancouver today waiting for the Chinese Embassy to open up Monday morning to figure out what's going on with her visa.

I'm very upset at the way Air Canada and the Chinese officials handled the whole matter. They could have let us waited that half hour for a response back from Immigration office, or they could have let us choose to go to a closest port to fix her visa problem. We could have fly to Hong Kong which cost about 1000 ren / 120 USD each.

The Air Canada Agent is most concern to send her back on the original plane so Air Canada can avoid the penalty from Chinese government for letting her get on the plane in the first place. The Chinese official want to send her back on the same plane "as this is what the Americans will do to Chinese when Chinese enters US without a valid visa". The Chinese official seems sastisfied to finally find some American they can kick out of the country, a five year old. They will not give us anytime to rectify the problem, even though no one can explain why only her visa has a void stamp on it plus she's also carrying a proper Foreigner Residence permit in China.

Right now I'm so stressed out being separated from my daughter and husband, alone in Beijing.

I don't think I should have paid for the 2 one-way tickets, but I've signed a Visa bill already. I've wrote a complaint letter to Air Canada.

I'm not sure what else I can do to try to at least get back the 3000 USD from Air Canada on the 2 one-way tickets.

Suet, alone in Beijing