Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in New York — Local services in New York

I appreciate all the tips I read here. I would like to pay it forward. This was my application and pick up process.

There is parking at River Place Garage 640 W 42nd St. They have an early bird special if you arrive before 10am, its $20 to park until midnight. I had prebooked a spot on ParkWhiz which was more expensive than just showing up.

I arrived at 9:05am Friday morning and was done by 9:50am. When I arrived, there was already a line outside the entrance on 42nd st, about 8 people in front of me. Once you get inside, you have to go through security. The security guard will ask you why you’re here (applying, pickup, etc). There’s only space for about 6 ppl in the security room so most people will have to wait outside.

Once you get through the metal detector, you walk into the next room where people are lined up to show a staff their full application. This staff will verify if you have all your necessary documents. If you do, you’ll receive a number, you then sit and wait for your number at one of the windows. If you don’t have all your documents, you have to get out of line and make copies at the copy machines in the building. If you step out of line to make copies, you can later go to the front to get your number instead of waiting in line again. I saw ppl doing this and it seemed okay.

If you have an application for a young child, they will need proof of address. It has to be a utility bill or a lease. Other bills like a phone bill or tax bill might not be accepted. They might also ask to see the child's birth certificate. I had all the birth certificates with me just in case.

There were 3 windows open the day I went. I waited 5-10 minutes for my number to be called. If your parents were Chinese nationals but now naturalized as US citizens, make sure their Chinese name is written in characters on the first page of the application.

Once they confirm all your documents are in place, you will get a Pick-Up Slip that tells your total fees and date you can pick up. Make sure you save this slip. You pay when you come back to pick up your visa.

You will not receive an email or phone call to confirm that your visa is ready for pick up. You just come back the day listed on your pick up slip, which is typically 4 business days after. I was cautious and gave them 2 extra business days to be safe. I arrived at 11am on a Monday and there was no line. When you come back to pick up, you go through the security line again. When you walk into the next room, you walk past the line where you verify your documents. You walk straight towards the back of the room to wait at Window 9. Give your Pick Up Slip to the staff at window 9, then they give you a number. Take that number and hop into line at Window 10. Once it's your turn at Window 10, they will give you the passports w/ visa and then that is when you give payment (credit card/ money order).

Documents required: Passport Copy of passport biopage Copy of previous visa if applicable Old passport with visa if applicable Copy of birth certificate Copy of driver’s license or state ID Proof for minor children a. Copy of both parents’ passports biopage b. birth certificate c. parents utility bill or lease (as proof of residency) COVA application (there’s a cover page with a QR code and the application itself, don’t forget the cover page! You should have two documents with your photo and both documents need to be signed.) Where You Stay form Copy of marriage certificate if name was changed and shows differently on license/passport

If you were a Chinese national and now US citizen/permanent resident, you may need additional documents like 2 copies of Chinese passport biopage Copy of Naturalization Certificate Copy of Green Card Copy of both...

The intention of sharing my personal experience here and giving a one-star review to their service is not just looking for a vent to my frustrated and disappointed feeling but rather to let the Consulate General and Embassy be more aware of the following facts: They are acting as a window to displaying and unfolding Chinese culture and courtesy to the rest world. Besides all the services that they are supposed to offer, each individual working there should realize that they carry on a honorable mission and the way they conduct themselves is a reflection to China.

Two months before I planned to get my son's passport renewed, I visited their official website and went through each single word related to the process. I had some questions about the process that I couldn't find answers from the information given by the website. I tried more than 10 times to reach out to the Consulate and no one answered my calls. There were 2 of these calls being hung up on after holding on the phone for over an hour.

Then I prepared all the documents following all the directions and guidance as shown on website. I was pretty confident that there wound not be anything going wrong, given the fact that my husband and I went through the process of applying the green card for our son and it went very smoothly and successfully without the assistance of lawyers. We did make several calls to the different US governmental departments regarding my son's green card. They always picked up our calls and were very helpful. They answered each of our questions with courtesy and made us feel we were so welcomed.

My son who took one day off from the school and I walked into the Consulate building. The encounter with the officials operating the security check was very pleasant. I could not stopping assuming after I left the building that maybe there was something to do with that most security check officials are not Chinese. After we finished the security check, we started experiencing the aloofness and rudeness coming from the Chinese officials working there. We felt a little bit surprised and disappointed.

Then the worst followed, the official told us unemotionally that she needed to see the notarization about the situation that my son had a previous name. I submitted the scanned notarization to her, which we used to apply the green card for him and no one had ever seen a problem from this. She insisted that she needed to see the original one. I explained to her that the original one is in China and asked why the same documents applied competently to the process of green card doesn't work in our own consulate. She told us emotionlessly: I only know to follow the rule and if you don't have the original one then you go back to China to get it. I continued: if there is such a rule, why is it not showing in the official website? She said: we only publish the general rules. And so on.

I definitely have no clue to know how the Chinese Consulate defines the general rules. But their website is somewhat poorly organized in the comparison to the most government official websites here in US. No wonder that I saw so many people waiting in line to make copies for their documents with paying certain fee.

My hope is as follows: To the consults, instead of carrying on bureaucracy and aloofness, deliver positive information of our country to whoever comes to you for assistance by offering services with courtesy and respect. To the Consulate General: Truly serve as a home to all your own people who live, work or travel in the country where you locate, let them feel they are supported; Keep the website comprehensive and well-organized, as well as update the website accordingly in order to improve the efficiency and value the time...

The ULTIMATE guide for getting it done once without going for extra prints at the nearby Freedom News Deli store.

I got in at 8:50AM, didn’t have the online appointment so it’s first come first serve. Go through security, wait in line for 1st checkpoint for them to check your paperwork, get a ticket from them if you have all your paperwork. If you get turned back here, you need more documents before going to the ticket counter. I got out under an hour.

Its easiest if you have one city you are going to and leaving from the same city.

Here is the checklist of things you need:

1. Current Passport- make sure it’s valid, you will need to hand over your passport for a few days. Also bring a printed copy of it.

2. COVA application. Their website is like cova.mfa.gov.cn This is your bread and butter, of the paperwork. Fill it out to your exact detail. Also print this application. Things to note on application: get a Chinese visa photo copy in digital form to attach to application, fill in education, fill in work, your passport type is ORDINARY- unless you are official etc etc, for your itinerary make sure you put exact days and cities you will be visiting. Sign the confirmation form. 2b) you might need appointment: https://avas.mfa.gov.cn/ go here, choose your language, region, and then embassy or consulate in your closest region. If you can see a time available or region available then you can reserve for appointment with your application id. If the option is greyed out then no appointment necessary to visit, and on a first come first serve basis.

3. OLD passport- bring old passport and a photocopy of the old passport and photocopy of the old visa if you have one. They will hand back your old passport but they need to inspect it.

4. Utility Statement- Get a photocopy of anything that has your name and address. They will keep the form. If your ID is your only method then you need a photocopy of the ID.

5. Name changed from marriage?: Bring your marriage certificate and a photocopy of it.

6. naturalized citizen?: bring photocopies of the naturalization paper, green card, and old foreign passport.

7. Airline ticket: photocopy of the airline that has the persons name, flight number, flight date, airport. If you have multiple city then you need multiple copies if it’s not all on one flight confirmation. One copy per person name.

8. Hotel/ Stay: you need a copy per person of the reservation - include person name, hotel address, how many days, how many rooms. If you have multiple cities hotel then you need a copy per hotel. If the hotel confirmation only has the reservation persons name, then they will have you handwrite the person who reserved the stay in relation to the person submitting the visa application and how many rooms the reservation person booked. Sign for both parties after the handwritten part in front of the ticket counter ( do this handwriting very last minute as they need to see you write and sign it )

You should have a stack of paper per person per visa application. When you are done, they keep the current and old passportS. You will get a paper receipt that you pick up in a few days and you pay your fee upon pickup. Ultimately it comes down to, if you think you might need a copy of it, then you should have a copy so you don’t have to run back and forth to make last minute copies. If they don’t need it, they return it to you.

UPDATE: you pay $185 USD whether it is 3 month, 1 year or 10 year visa. You pay when you get back your passport. No negotiations.

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