No advantage to having a visa.

I went to the Chinese consulate in LA earlier this week. After waiting a good two hours I was told I wasn't allowed to renew my visa as my visa still had more than six months' validity in it, and that I could still travel with it until it expires. When my visa has less than six months' validity left, I can return to the consulate to renew.

Yes, I suspected this after reading Item #4 on Compensation Arrangements for the Use-Suspension of 10-year Multi-Entry Visa due to the COVID-19
"The Chinese Embassy and Consulates-General in the U.S. will no longer accept same category visa applications with 10-year multi-entry visas still valid for more than six months."

FYI, regarding my original question, my mom called, waited on hold for over an hour and spoke to someone on the phone and they confirmed. Also, she had sent an email written in chinese (before calling) and got a response within a day. I wrote an email days ago, in english, and still have not gotten any response.

This is a bit of a tangent, but i'm reminded (and, maybe we discussed the story here within the past 12 months?) of the lady who, presumably with efficiency in mind, removed her visa from her expiring pp and affixed it to a blank page in her new pp; this actually earned her short stint in detention.

My takeaways from that episode were: 1. even though the stickers give off a 1980s vibe and the consulate websites are high school caliber, the overall system is pretty well thought out, and 2. rules or procedures that seem benign to us aren't a laughing matter.

To expand on #1, everyone I know who has been penalized for stepping out of bounds has remarked to me that they were surprised by how detailed their files were. But, they also said the resolutions were clearly articulated and didn't strike them as arbitrary (a common criticism about legal systems in developing countries).

Isn't it illegal in most countries to modify your passport? I've never felt that anything involving once's passport is a laughing matter. Nothing in the process from application to entering a country makes it seem like it is. I also don't find it surprising the contrives have detailed records on the foreigners that enter their country. Maybe the general public feels differently.

The reduced cost for visa fees has been continued on into 2025. Note these prices exclude any fee levied to process a visa application.

Notice on Extension of Visa-Fee Reduction

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...d4a8681a97.png

I like the fee for Serbians the most! :)

So my 10 year visa will expire later this year, and I am debating getting a new one.
The new TWOV rules permitting travel between zones is good enough for me, doing trips like
XXX-SHA- Zhejiang Province-XMN-YYY. The only time I can see requiring a visa are for stays over
10 days, and I have only done that twice in over 40 years.
The reason I am dithering is wondering that if I forego a visa for a few years, then decide
that I do need one - will the few years without one make it difficult/impossible to get a new 10 year visa?
Will I be subjected again to single visit/6 month/1 year visas as I was long ago?

I realize that this is speculation only, but I would like to hear some other's views.

USA? Doubt it. Unless there's something politically changes; but even then, they'd also have to cancel all 'current' visas.
Personally I'd still go with a 10-year visa though now. Always good to have, and relatively cheap/year.

Get the ten-year visa!

First, something unexpected can always happen that'll push you over ten days.

Second, and as another post here today reminds, with TWOV you're always at risk of an unpleasant experience at check-in.

I want a 1 year visa but dont want to work
 

I dont wanna work or study, what options do I have to stay in china for more than 90 days?

What's your nationality? Do you qualify for Q1 or Q2? Do you have any companies in mind that would be willing to sponsor a work permit?

German. What is Q1,2? guess i dtn have it
no companies in mind. How would I know...

Q1 is a family reunion visa (that needs to be converted to an RP). Q2 is a short term visa for visiting family in China, but "short term" = 180 days, which is better than the default for most L, M, and F visas.

If you don't have Chinese ancestry and/or family in China, Q visas probably aren't an option, though.

Depending on where you are planning on living in China, leaving/returning every 30/60/90 days might not be all that taxing.

it shold be very taxing, bc u have to reapply for a new tourist visa every 3 months. That's too crazy