Only Nepal has direct international flight to Lhasa as well as overland port for tourists to enter Tibet, so each year there are many tourists enter Tibet from Nepal by air or road. In our opinion, it’s easier to get Chinese visa from Nepal. What follows you will see some simple and easy facts and steps concerning how to obtain the Chinese visa in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Fact 1: It’s ineffectual to obtain a Chinese tourists visa in your home country or any other 3rd country; the Chinese Group Visa issued by the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu is the only valid document for you to enter Tibet from Kathmandu, Nepal.
Fact 2: Tibet tour operator will send a Chinese Visa Invitation Letter to the visa agent in Kathmandu that helps you to get the visa into Tibet. To get this letter, all you have to do is to send your Tibet tour operator the scan copy of your passport, 15 days in advance.
Fact 3: You cannot apply for the Chinese Group Visa by yourself at the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu. It will be your visa agent (or a travel company) in Kathmandu who will help you to apply for the visa; you even do not have to show up at the Embassy.
Fact 4: You will also have to meet the visa agent in Kathmandu to fill the visa application form, make sure to bring a passport-size photocopy of yourself. The visa agent can submit the visa application form from Monday till Friday (10 AM-2PM), but the visa can only be issued on each Monday, Wednesday and Friday which are known as group visa working days.
Fact 5: Chinese group visa (Tibet visa) fee depends on your nationality and also how soon you need it (how many working days it takes); what follows in the table is the group visa fee standard charged by the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu.
| Nationality & Urgency | Americans | Non-Americans |
| Normal (3 visa working days) | USD 140 | USD 50 |
| Urgent ( 2 visa working days) | USD 155 | USD 65 |
| Top Urgent (1 visa working days) | USD 175 | USD 85 |
Note that the above fee in the table is the price charged by the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu only, the visa agent in Kathmandu generally charges an amount of visa application service fee at about USD 20 per person.
Check out how to get Chinese Group Visa from Kathmandu, Nepal within 5 steps (with picture illustration).
Step one:
Send the scan copy of your passport by email to your Tibet tour operator; this has to be done at least 15 days before the trip starts.
Step two:
Your Tibet tour operator will go to Tibet Tourism Bureau to get the visa invitation letter for you; it takes about 3-5 working days. And then the letter will be sent by email to the visa agent in Kathmandu.
Step three:
You have to visit the visa agent in Kathmandu in person with a passport-size photocopy of yourself and fill out the Chinese Group Visa form. At the same time, you have to give your real passport to the visa agent and pay the visa application fee.
Step four:
The visa agent in Kathmandu will submit the group visa application form for you; this can be done between 10 AM till 2 PM from Monday till Friday;
Step five:
The visa agent can pick up the visa for you only on each visa-working-day (Monday, Wednesday and Friday), at about 4 PM; you can meet them same day after 4 PM to get your Chinese Group Visa (known as Tibet visa) and passport back. That is to say, you’d better arrange to start your Tibet tour next day on each Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
