Memorandum of Understanding between the European Community and the National Tourism Administration of the People's Republic of China, on visa and related issues concerning tourist groups from the People's Republic of China (ADS) - PROTOCOL ON THE NEW MEMBER STATES - Declarations
Date: 2004-02-12
Institutions: China, European Community
Subjects: China, EU visa policy, agreement (EU), tourism

L 83/14

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

20.3.2004

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING

between the European Community and the National Tourism Administration of the People's
Republic of China, on visa and related issues concerning tourist groups from the People's Republic
of China (ADS)

THE NATIONAL TOURISM ADMINISTRATION OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

and

THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY,

hereinafter referred to as ‘the Contracting Parties’,

DESIRING to facilitate organised group travel from the People's Republic of China to the Community,

CONSCIOUS that such travel will require matters of visa and related issues to be addressed,

CONSIDERING that such travel will contribute to strengthening the tourism sectors in both China and the Community,

DETERMINED to ensure that this Memorandum of Understanding will be applied in strict conformity with the applicable
Chinese regulations and the Community's internal market disciplines,

CONSIDERING that the provisions of this Memorandum of Understanding do not apply to the United Kingdom and
Ireland, in accordance with the Protocol on the position of the United Kingdom and Ireland, and the Protocol integrating
the Schengen acquis into the framework of the European Union, annexed to the Treaty on European Union and the
Treaty establishing the European Community,

CONSIDERING that the provisions of this Memorandum of Understanding do not apply to the Kingdom of Denmark, in
accordance with the Protocol on the position of Denmark annexed to the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty
establishing the European Community,

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

SECTION I

SUBJECT AND DEFINITIONS

Article 1

Definitions

For the purpose of this Memorandum of Understanding:

(a) ‘Member State’ shall mean any Member State of the Euro-
pean Community, with the exception of the Kingdom of
Denmark, Ireland, and the United Kingdom;

(b) ‘Chinese citizen’ shall mean any person who holds the pass-

port of the People's Republic of China;

(c) ‘territory of the Community’ shall mean the territory in
which the treaty establishing the European Community is
applicable with the exception of the territory of Denmark,
of Ireland, of the United Kingdom and of the French over-
seas departments;

(d) ‘Chinese designated travel agency’, shall mean any travel
agency selected and designated by the National Tourism
Administration of the People's Republic of China (CNTA);

(f) ‘Schengen Visa’ is the uniform visa laid down in Article 10

of the Schengen Application Convention.

Article 2

Purpose and scope of application

This Memorandum of Understanding shall apply to the travel
by tourist groups of Chinese citizens at their own expenses
from China to the territory of
this
purpose, the Community shall enjoy the status of an approved
destination (ADS).

the Community. For

Such travel will be organised in accordance with the provisions
and requirements set out
in this Memorandum of Under-
standing.

Article 3

Tourist groups

(e) ‘courier’ shall mean the person entitled to submit visa appli-
cations for a tourist group to the embassies or consular
offices of Member States in China according to the proce-
dure established in Article 4 paragraph 2 of this Memor-
andum of Understanding;

Participants in Chinese tourist groups shall enter and leave the
territory of the Community as a group. They shall travel within
the territory of the Community as a group according to the
established travel programme. The minimum number of parti-
cipants in a tourist group should be no less than five.

20.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 83/15

SECTION II

VISA PROCEDURE AND READMISSION

State's embassy or consular office if the person who was
acting as its courier is no longer employed in that capacity
with that agency.

Article 4

Visa procedure

1. Chinese designated travel agencies

(a) The Chinese side shall designate travel agencies in China
which have been authorised by the CNTA to operate
outbound travel of Chinese citizens to the Member States.
The Member States' embassies and consular offices shall
accredit these designated travel agencies to act as authorised
representatives of the visa applicants. The CNTA will notify
to the Commission and the Member States' embassies and
consular offices the list of the Chinese designated travel
agencies, including their addresses, telephone numbers, fax
numbers, emails and contact persons;

(b) in case of any violation of EU and/or Chinese regulations
by a Chinese designated travel agency in operating the
outbound travel of
citizens, appropriate
the Chinese
measures against such agency in accordance with the legis-
lation in force will be taken. This includes, where appro-
priate, the withdrawal of the travel agency's designation by
China, or of
its accreditation with the Member States'
embassies or consular offices in China.

2. Couriers

(a) Each Chinese designated travel agency may appoint up to
two persons to act on its behalf and account as couriers in
the necessary visa application process for Chinese tourist
groups wishing to visit the territory of the Community. The
couriers are entitled to submit visa applications for such
groups to the embassies or consular offices of Member
States in China;

(b) they shall be authorised to enter Member States' embassies
or consular offices with a badge issued by CNTA and a
photo identity badge and certificate issued by Member
States' embassies or consular offices, to which the CNTA
shall give relevant details of the persons acting as couriers
of each travel agency. The certificate will contain at least
the name and address of the travel agency and the name of
the agent acting as courier;

3. Visa applications

(a) When lodging visa applications for a group of clients of an
accredited Chinese travel agency with the Member States'
embassies or consular offices, the travel agencies shall also
submit the following documents: a communication signed
by the representative of the said travel agency with infor-
travel costs,
mation on the planned trip, payment of
the names of the tour participants,
adequate insurance,
together with each participant's passport
and duly
completed application forms
signed by each traveller.
further documents and/or information
Where necessary,
may be requested by the Member States' embassies or
consular offices;

(b) the visa applications will be processed according to applic-
able legislation. Visas shall
in principle be granted by
Member States' embassies or consular offices in whose terri-
tory the sole or main destination of the foreseen visit is
located. Where it is impossible to determine the main desti-
length are foreseen, the
nation, or where visits of equal
Member State's embassy or consular office of the first entry
into Community territory shall be in charge of granting the
visa. Member States' embassies or consular offices may
foresee personal or telephone interviews with applicants;

(c) the visa to be issued by the Member States' embassies or
consular offices shall be a Schengen visa,
limited to a
maximum of 30 days, issued in conformity with applicable
legislation. It shall be an individual Schengen visa carrying
the reference ‘ADS’;

(d) if

the embassies or consular offices of

the Community
approve visa applications from travel agencies, other orga-
nisations or individuals that are not designated travel agen-
cies by CNTA, CNTA shall not be responsible for any
problems arising during the subsequent trip in the territory
of the Community.

Article 5

Illegal overstay and readmission

(c) in case a designated travel agency is no longer accredited
with a Member State's embassy or consular office,
the
travel agency concerned is obliged to return the badges and
certificates
to the issuing Member State's embassy or
consular office for their subsequent invalidation. Further-
more, an accredited travel agency has the obligation to
return the badge and certificate to the issuing Member

1.
Chinese designated travel agencies and the participating
Community travel agencies are required to report, without
delay, to their respective authorities, the CNTA and the compe-
tent authority of the Member State having issued the visa, any
ADS tourist missing from the group as well as any ADS tourist
not having returned to China.

L 83/16

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

20.3.2004

of

the

departments

In case of any illegal overstay of any ADS tourist, the
2.
related travel agencies of the Contracting Parties shall work
immediately with
the
competent
Contracting Parties to help sending back and receiving the
tourist, who shall be readmitted by the Government of the
People's Republic of China. Documentary evidence shall be
provided to prove his or her identity as a Chinese citizen for
the purpose of readmission. The airfare shall be borne by the
tourist. If the tourist cannot afford it, the costs associated with
his or her repatriation have to be borne by the competent
authority of the Member State concerned, which will then ask
the relevant Chinese designated travel agency to pay back the
airfare by receipt. In this case, the related Chinese travel agency
shall repay the airfare cost to the competent authority of the
Member State concerned within 30 days after the readmission
of the tourist and recover the costs from the tourist.

The Committee shall meet whenever necessary at the

4.
request of one of the Contracting Parties.

5.

The Committee shall establish its rules of procedure.

SECTION IV

FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 7

ADS arrangements of Member States

Any similar Memorandum of Understanding or arrangement
between China and a Member State shall no longer be applied
as of the entry into force of this Memorandum of Under-
standing.

SECTION III

IMPLEMENTATION AND INFORMATION EXCHANGE

Article 8

Article 6

Approved Destination Status Committee

In order to ensure the sound operation of this Memor-
1.
andum of Understanding,
shall
exchange information and data in good time, and work closely
together. In order to monitor the correct implementation of the
Memorandum of Understanding, a consultative mechanism will
be established.

the Contracting Parties

To this end,

2.
the Contracting Parties shall set up an
Approved Destination Status Committee (hereinafter referred to
as the Committee) which will, in particular, have the task:

(a) to monitor the application of this Memorandum of Under-
standing and to draft a report on the implementation of the
Memorandum of Understanding every year;

(b) to decide on implementing arrangements necessary for the

uniform execution of it;

(c) to have regular exchanges of information;

(d) to recommend amendments

to this Memorandum of

Understanding to the Contracting Parties.

3.
The Committee shall be composed of Representatives of
the Contracting Parties. The Community shall be represented
by the Commission of the European Communities. China shall
be represented by the National Tourism Administration of the
People's Republic of China.

Entry into force, duration and termination

1.
This Memorandum of Understanding shall be ratified or
approved by the Contracting Parties in accordance with their
respective procedures.

2.
This Memorandum of Understanding shall enter into
force on the first day of the second month after the date on
which the Contracting Parties notify each other that the proce-
dures referred to in the first paragraph have been completed.

3.
This Memorandum of Understanding shall remain in
force indefinitely, unless terminated in accordance with para-
graph 4 of this Article.

4.
Each Contracting Party may terminate this Memorandum
of Understanding by giving written notice to the other
Contracting Party. This Memorandum of Understanding shall
cease to apply three months after the date of such notification.

This Memorandum of Understanding may be amended by
5.
written agreement of
the Contracting Parties. Amendments
shall enter into force after the Contracting Parties have notified
each other of
their internal procedures
necessary for this purpose.

the completion of

This Memorandum of Understanding shall be legally

6.
binding on the two Contracting Parties.

20.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 83/17

Hecho en Pekín el doce de febrero de 2004, en dos ejemplares, en lengua alemana, danesa, española,
finesa, francesa, griega, inglesa, italiana, neerlandesa, portuguesa, sueca y china, siendo cada uno de estos
textos igualmente auténtico.

Udfærdiget i Beijing den tolvte februar 2004 i to eksemplarer på dansk, engelsk, finsk, fransk, græsk,
italiensk, nederlandsk, portugisisk, spansk, svensk, tysk og kinesisk, idet hver af disse tekster har samme
gyldighed.

französischer, griechischer,

Geschehen zu Peking am zwölften Februar 2004 in zwei Urschriften in dänischer, deutscher, englischer,
finnischer,
schwedischer,
spanischer und chinesischer Sprache, wobei jeder Wortlaut gleichermaßen verbindlich ist.
Έγινε στο Πεκίνο στις δώδεκα Φεβρουαρίου 2004, στην αγγλική, γαλλική, γερµανική, δανική, ελληνική, ισπανική,
ιταλική, ολλανδική, πορτογαλική, σουηδική, φινλανδική και κινεζική γλώσσα, και καθένα από τα εν λόγω κείµενα
είναι εξίσου αυθεντικό.

italienischer, niederländischer, portugiesischer,

Done at Beijing on the twelfth day of February 2004, in duplicate in the Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish,
French, German, Greek, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish and Chinese languages, each of these texts
being equally authentic.

Fait à Pékin le douze février 2004 en deux exemplaires, en langue allemande, anglaise, danoise, espagnole,
finnoise, française, grecque, italienne, néerlandaise, portugaise, suédoise et chinoise, chacun de ces textes
faisant également foi.

Fatto a Pechino addì dodici
inglese,
finlandese, francese, tedesca, greca, italiana, portoghese, spagnola, svedese e cinese, ciascuna delle quali fa
ugualmente fede.

in duplice copia nelle lingue danese, olandese,

febbraio 2004,

Gedaan te Peking, de twaalfde februari 2004, in twee exemplaren opgesteld in de Deense, de Duitse, de
Engelse, de Finse, de Franse, de Griekse, de Italiaanse, de Nederlandse, de Portugese, de Spaanse, de
Zweedse en de Chinese taal, zijnde alle teksten gelijkelijk authentiek.

Feito em Pequim, em doze de Fevereiro de 2004, em duplo exemplar nas línguas alemã, dinamarquesa,
espanhola, finlandesa, francesa, grega, inglesa, italiana, neerlandesa, portuguesa, sueca e chinesa, todos os
textos fazendo igualmente fé.

Tehty Pekingissä kahdentenatoista päivänä helmikuuta 2004 kahtena kappaleena englannin, espanjan,
ja
hollannin,
jokainen teksti on yhtä todistusvoimainen.

italian, kreikan, portugalin, ranskan, ruotsin, saksan, suomen, tanskan ja kiinan kielellä,

Utfärdat i Peking den tolfte februari 2004 i två exemplar på danska, engelska, finska, franska, grekiska,
italienska, nederländska, portugisiska, spanska, svenska, tyska och kinesiska språken, vilka alla texter är lika
giltiga.

L 83/18

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

20.3.2004

Por la Comunidad Europea

For Det Europæiske Fællesskab

Für die Europäische Gemeinschaft

Για την Ευρωπαϊκή Κοινότητα

For the European Community

Pour la Communauté européenne

Per la Comunità europea

Voor de Europese Gemeenschap

Pela Comunidade Europeia

Euroopan yhteisön puolesta

På Europeiska gemenskapens vägnar

Por la Administración Nacional de Turismo de la República Popular China

For Folkerepublikken Kinas nationale turistadministration

Für die Staatliche Tourismusverwaltung der Volksrepublik China

Για την Εθνική ∆ιοίκηση Τουρισµού της Λαϊκής ∆ηµοκρατίας της Κίνας

For the National Tourism Administration of the People's Republic of China

Par l'administration nationale du tourisme de la République populaire de Chine

Per l'amministrazione nazionale del turismo della Repubblica popolare cinese

Voor de overheidsdienst voor toerisme van de Volksrepubliek China

Pela Administração Nacional de Turismo da República Popular da China

Kiinan kansantasavallan kansallisen matkailuhallinnon puolesta

För Folkrepubliken Kinas nationella turistförvaltning

20.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 83/19

ANNEX

PROTOCOL ON THE NEW MEMBER STATES

In accordance with the Act of Accession, the Member States acceding to the European Union on 1 May
2004 (Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia, and Slovakia)
do not yet issue Schengen visas.

Therefore, by derogation from Article 4(3) of the Memorandum of Understanding, and until the Council
Decision foreseen in Article 3(2) of the Act of Accession takes effect, the Member State concerned shall
issue national visas limited to its own territory.

L 83/20

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

20.3.2004

JOINT DECLARATION ON IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS

1. Travel agencies

The Community recommends Member States and their tourism service providers to furnish to CNTA a
list of the travel agencies in their territory, including their addresses, telephone numbers, fax numbers,
emails and contact persons. These lists should be updated regularly and transmitted to CNTA.

The Contracting Parties furthermore understand that both Contracting Parties' travel agencies shall be
entitled to select their own business partners from the other Contracting Party and conclude contracts
with them. The said travel agencies are responsible for all business arrangements covering the tour such
as the tour programmes, costs, services, and payments in the tour contract with their respective busi-
ness partners.

2. Protection of Chinese tourist rights

The legitimate rights and interests of the Chinese citizens travelling to the territory of the Community
in tourist groups shall be protected by the pertinent legislations of the Community, Member States and
China. In case of violation, those regulations shall be applied to the relevant agencies.

The Community encourages the Member States and their tourism service providers to set up hotlines
for consultation and emergency assistance to Chinese tourists.

3. Tour leaders and tour guides

The Contracting Parties understand that accredited Chinese travel agencies shall appoint a tour leader or
tour leaders for each group.

The tour leader shall ensure that Chinese tourist groups travelling to the territory of the Community in
accordance with this Memorandum of Understanding enter and leave the territory of the Community as
a group. The tour leader will be required to carry copies of all tickets and passports throughout the trip.

The Contracting Parties take note that, in addition to the obligatory tour leader provided by the Chinese
travel agencies, Community travel agencies may provide tour guides for each Chinese tourist group for
the duration of the stay on the territory of the Community.

These tour guides may accompany the group from the time it enters to the time it leaves the territory
of the Community, on the conditions provided by the law applicable in each Member State, and endea-
vour to solve any problems that may arise in consultation with the Chinese tour leader.

4.

Information requirements

The Community encourages the Member States and their tourism service providers to make relevant
information available to the Chinese designated travel agencies, in particular regarding travel possibili-
ties to and within the territory of the Community, important travel services for Chinese travellers and
their prices and information which serves to protect the travellers' legitimate rights.

5. Documentary evidence

The Contracting Parties agree that documentary evidence referred to in Article 5(2) of this Memor-
andum of Understanding, shall include passports, visa applications, EU immigration control records,
travel agency documents, or photocopies thereof.

20.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 83/21

JOINT DECLARATION CONCERNING DENMARK

The Contracting Parties take note that this Memorandum of Understanding does not apply to the territory
of the Kingdom of Denmark. In such circumstances the National Tourism Administration of the People's
Republic of China and the authorities of Denmark state their willingness to conclude, without delay, an
Approved Destination Status arrangement in the same terms as this Memorandum of Understanding.

JOINT DECLARATION CONCERNING THE UNITED KINGDOM AND IRELAND

The Contracting Parties take note that this Memorandum of Understanding does not apply to the territory
of the United Kingdom and Ireland. In such circumstances it is desirable that the National Tourism Admin-
istration of the People's Republic of China and the authorities of the United Kingdom and of Ireland
conclude an Approved Destination Status arrangement in similar terms as this Memorandum of Under-
standing.

JOINT DECLARATION CONCERNING ICELAND AND NORWAY

The Contracting Parties take note of the close relationship between the European Community and Iceland
and Norway, particularly by virtue of the Agreement of 18 May 1999 concerning the association of these
countries with the implementation, application and development of the Schengen acquis. In such circum-
stances it is appropriate that the National Tourism Administration of the People's Republic of China
concludes an Approved Destination Status arrangement with Iceland and Norway in similar terms as this
Memorandum of Understanding.