Duke Leadership Team Spring 2025 Asia Travel

Passports

Post-pandemic most airlines and border/immigration control authorities require travelers to have the following features on their travel documents:

• At least six months of validity from the date of planned return to the U.S. on your passport
• If applicable, at least six months of validity from the date of planned return to the U.S. on your US resident status document (green card or visa)
• Passports must be in good repair with no rips, tears, missing pages or missing stickers
• Passports must be signed by the traveler to be considered valid
• At least two consecutive blank “visa” pages, as labeled on each page of the passport book. Note: the final three pages of US passports issued prior to 2023 are for “Endorsements” and do not count as “Visa” pages.

If your passport and legal status documents do not have the above features present, you will need to renew them before traveling to Asia.

Please note: your original passport booklet must be remitted to the Chinese Embassy or Consulate that serves the region in which you reside.  Processing (i.e., the length of time you will be without your passport) can range anywhere from a few days to 2-weeks depending on how close your trip is and whether RUSH service is available or not.

If you would like assistance with expediting a US passport renewal or would like to pursue a second, limited validity passport (in order to travel on your primary while we seek your visa in the secondary), please email Duke's Global Travel Office (GTO) at globaltravelofc@duke.edu.

Republic of Singapore

U.S. passport holders do not need a visa to enter Singapore.  However, the Singaporean government does require submission of an electronic Arrival Card within 72 hours of your arrival.  Airlines will typically send out reminders to passengers to complete the arrival card.  However, you can do so on your own by visiting https://www.ica.gov.sg/enter-transit-depart/entering-singapore/sg-arrival-card.

People’s Republic of China

U.S. passport holders must obtain a visa to enter China.  Visa applications must be submitted through a Chinese Embassy or Consulate, and processing time is typically 5 to 7 business days when using Duke’s agents and if additional information is not requested from the applicant.

Your original passport booklet must be submitted to the Chinese Embassy or Consulate for the duration of the visa application process.

Duke’s Global Travel Office (GTO) team can process your passport for an entry visa to the PRC through any Chinese Embassy or Consulate in the United States and we suggest you remit your application/passport by no later than February 10, 2025 to ensure you have your passport returned in time for the trip.  Note: If your legal residence is outside the United States, please email GTO for assistance on how and where to apply.

The following items are required for a China Entry Visa:

1. A valid passport which does not expire before 07 September 2025.  Applicants must have at least 6-months of validity from your intended date of departure from China AND two consecutively numbered BLANK pages labeled for “Visas.”

1. Please email a color photograph or scan of your passport biographical page to GTO.
2. For non-U.S. visa applicants, if you are applying for your China visa from a country in which you do not have citizenship, you must have a legal status that is also valid for at least 6 months beyond the trip dates in that country.  E.g., if you hold Permanent Resident status in the U.S., your green card must not expire before 07 September 2025. Please email a scan or photo of your legal status to GTO as well.

2. One digital headshot in the correct specifications for China visa photos, which are strictly enforced. You can view the photo requirements online on the China Embassy Website.

1. Photos must be recent (within six months) and cannot be the same photo used for your passport booklet unless you have renewed in the preceding 3-months.
2. Please email your headshot to GTO.  We will test the digital photo in the COVA system and work with you if we need another.  Hard-copy photos are no longer required.
3. If you are, or will be, in Durham, the GTO team can arrange to meet you and take the photo.  Please email us to arrange a date/time that works for your schedule.

3. Proof of residence for the state/province you list in your visa application. The allowable forms of proof are your State-issued Driver’s License, Utility bill or Lease/Mortgage document with your name and address clearly printed.

1. Please email a PDF of your proof of residence document to GTO.
2. The residential address listed in your application and supported by the proof of evidence document must be located within the region served by either the PRC Embassy or Consulate through which you are applying. For example, residents of Durham cannot apply through the China Consulate in New York but must apply through the China Embassy in Washington DC.  To view the map of regions designated for Chinese Consulates and their Embassy, please visit the China Embassy Website.

4. Complete the Qualtrics survey online at  https://duke.is/r/evtm to provide the information needed for completing the China Online Visa Application (COVA) as well as the drafting and issuance of your DKU Invitation Letter and Letter of Financial Guarantee from Duke University.  Both letters must accompany your COVA hard-copy submission.

5. Submission of the COVA and your passport/forms for processing.

1. The GTO team will complete the China Online Visa Application (COVA) on your behalf and will send you a draft to review/edit.  Once edits are incorporated, GTO will electronically submit your COVA to the applicable Embassy or Consulate.
2. Applicant signatures on the final COVA form and an attestation to where you reside must be original.
3. GTO will send you the forms to print/sign.
4. If you are local to Durham, GTO can process the application package for you.  If not, GTO will provide you with step-by-step instructions and pre-paid FEDEX labels for the secure shipping of your passport and materials to our expediting agency in Washington D.C.