A staff member reminds foreigners to fill in an arrival card at Qingdao Liuting International Airport in Qingdao, East China's Shandong Province on March 5. Photo: Xinhua

Some European citizens that have valid Chinese residence permits are allowed to apply for a new visa to re-enter China, in a move that aims to facilitate exchanges after the prevention and control of COVID-19 in the country, according to a notice published on the website of the embassy of China in the Kingdom of Denmark on Monday.

Foreign nationals from a list of 36 countries including Spain, Greece, Hungary, Italy, the UK and Latvia, who hold valid residence permits such as work permits, permits for family reunion and personal matters, can apply for visas at any Chinese embassy or consulate in their home countries free of charge, according to the notice. They need to respect and comply with the epidemic prevention regulations of the local governments when entering China, said the notice.

The re-entry policy provides convenience to foreign citizens who are eager to re-enter China, especially those who wish to resume business cooperation, Anastasija Puzankova, a Lativan citizen living in Shanghai, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

China temporarily suspended the entry of foreign citizens holding visas or residence permits on March 28 due to the rapid spread of COVID-19 around the world. Foreign nationals who wished to enter China for necessary economic, trade, scientific and technological activities as well as emergency humanitarian reasons were previously able to apply for visas, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Immigration Administration.

Risks of a second wave of COVID-19 in countries in Europe and the Middle East will still pose a threat in the coming autumn and winter months, Zhang Wenhong, a prominent Chinese infectious disease expert, previously said, according to media reports. However, firm restrictions have been imposed around the country, such as at the relevant entry ports, to curb the spread of the virus. 

The Chinese mainland reported 44 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, 31 of which came from overseas. All of the 13 domestically transmitted cases were reported in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, according to the China health commission on Tuesday.