For applicants preparing to apply or in the process of applying, approval will be confused by concepts such as "passport", "green card", "permanent residence status", "PR", "visa", "citizen", "nationality" and so on. For the new contacts, the total score is not clear about the relationship between these people, think that the "green card" is the country's citizens, but not so.
So what exactly do these guys mean? Passport: a passport is a special "travel document", usually issued by an official organ of a country to its citizens. One government usually does not issue passports to citizens of other countries, such as the Chinese government, which does not issue a Chinese passport to Americans. But there are exceptions, such as the reality of the film "flee Tehran," in which the Canadian government issued "real" Canadian passports to American citizens to help them leave. Visa: a visa is a permit to enter or leave another country legally. Whether your purpose is to travel, visit relatives, work, study abroad or emigrate, you must first obtain a visa from the other country to enter the country legally. Of course, each country has a different type of visa for visitors for different purposes, such as 600 visas for visitors to travel or family visits in Australia, and 462 visas for migrant tourists. You need to apply for a visa in advance in order to enter the country legally.
We also hear sometimes that a certain country is visa-free to China, but does it go to live and work in that country without a visa? The answer, of course, is no. Visa-free is generally only for travel, and tourist visas are not allowed to work and study in the country, and there are certain restrictions on stay time.
Landing tag
The so-called visa on arrival is also a visa, which means that the applicant does not need to obtain a visa from the country of entry in advance, but when he arrives at the airport, port and other customs offices with a passport, he will issue a short-term valid visa on the spot and be allowed to enter the country. It is important to note that visa on arrival usually has certain restrictions. For example, it is mandatory to enter from a designated city, to travel with a group, to have a return ticket, to carry a certain amount of cash with you, and so on. The requirements of each country are different. Please know clearly before you leave. At the same time, sometimes the visa on arrival provided unilaterally to Chinese citizens by some countries may not be approved by the Chinese customs, which means that although some countries give Chinese citizens visa on arrival treatment, when the domestic customs passes through the customs, the visa on arrival may not be approved by the Chinese customs. It may still be considered by customs officials not to be released without a valid visa, so it is necessary to consult with the relevant policy in advance.
Green card, permanent residence status, PR: second, green card, permanent residence status, PR (Permanent Resident) is one thing, in fact, is also one of a variety of visas, holding such a visa, that means that your country's residents (note is not a citizen), They can legally live and work permanently in the country and enjoy almost all the benefits of the country (Australia's residents and citizens are exactly the same, except without the right to vote and stand for election). So why would a permanent residence or PR be called a green card? That's because, many years ago, the United States granted permanent residents a green visa, so the Chinese are used to calling permanent residency a "green card."
In addition, the so-called permanent residence status, is not lifelong, most immigrant countries permanent residence status is valid, expiration of the need to renew. In Australia, for example, a permanent residence visa is valid for five years and needs to be renewed every five years (if you have lived in Australia all the time, it doesn't matter if you don't leave the country). As long as you live in Australia for more than two years or more in these five years, you can renew your signature, which is also known as the immigration prison. If you haven't lived for 2 years in five years, you need to provide evidence that you have a close relationship with Australia, or your permanent status will be cancelled. So get a permanent friend must pay attention, do not because of this lost permanent status, then remorse is beyond reach. In addition, it is important to note that with Australia's permanent residence status, your nationality is still China, your nationality is still a Chinese citizen, and you are still holding a Chinese passport, so you do not enjoy visa-free treatment for Australian citizens from other countries. When you need to get in and out of other countries other than Australia, you still need to apply for a visa according to Chinese nationality (of course, if you have permanent Australian status, it will be much less difficult to apply for visas in most of the developed countries of the world). The only exception is New Zealand, where permanent residence is free to travel to and from New Zealand without a visa.
Citizen, nationality: so, what is a citizen? A citizen is a nationality. In general, you are a citizen of whatever country your passport is. (many countries support dual citizenship, which means that dual nationals will have more than two passports.) Permanent residence status is a visa that may be cancelled (for example, if a crime is committed in Australia and a term of imprisonment is more than one year, the permanent residence visa will be cancelled), but nationality cannot be cancelled (but not absolutely). Western countries have precedents for abolishing the nationality of some dual-nationality criminals. Permanent residents meet certain conditions and may apply for citizenship, that is, to acquire the nationality of the country. Australia, for example, requires a legal visa to stay in Australia for at least four consecutive years, including at least one year with an Australian permanent resident visa, after meeting the time requirements. Permanent resident visa holders can apply for naturalization tests at any state or Australian embassy or consulate, and can obtain Australian citizenship after passing.
And after acquiring Australian citizenship, because China currently does not support dual nationality, it means that you must renounce Chinese nationality, your identity card and passport will be revoked, and you will no longer be Chinese legally. From now on, it is necessary to apply for visas in and out of China, and many immigrants, as well as a large number of relatives and friends in China, need to return home frequently. This will inevitably bring inconvenience to their lives. Therefore, many immigrants have chosen not to apply for Australian nationality to retain Chinese nationality. This is also a matter of dissent.
