TLScontact signed a new contract with France for visa outsourcing in China and Southeast Asia earlier this year. Since then, we have launched a wave of new centre openings and refurbishments across China, for France and our other government clients in the country, to support the recovery of the Chinese travel market. The latest and most significant was the opening of a brand new centre in the capital, Beijing.
The Beijing centre opened its doors on 13 November. China is the very first market where TLScontact started operating, opening its first visa application centre for France in Beijing in 2007. The official inauguration ceremony took place on 28 November, in the presence of Mrs. Pauline Carmona, Director of the French Citizens Abroad and Consular Administration, Mr. Roderick Wols, Minister Plenipotentiary, Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Mr. Guillaume Roy, Consul General at the Embassy of France, Ms. Maria Makkouli, Deputy Consul of the Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus and Mr. Simon Yoxon-Grant, CEO of TLScontact.
The centre collects visa applications on behalf of France, as well as Cyprus and the Netherlands. It also offers a range of additional services, such as “Prime Time Weekend” appointments to visa customers on Saturdays, a premium lounge, for additional comfort and convenience, and an express courier return service, to allow customers to receive their passport directly at an address of their choice once a decision has been made on their application.
The new centre was built to the latest TLScontact design standards, developed to enhance the visa application experience. These standards include the use of warmer tones and colours, and the implementation of the “Your visa centre” concept, to create a more modern, relaxed and welcoming atmosphere for applicants.
Roll-out of 15 new visa application centres across China
Commenting on this inauguration, TLScontact CEO Simon Yoxon-Grant said, “Beijing is where it all started for TLScontact back in 2007, as it is here that we opened our very first visa application centre. It is therefore particularly important to be inaugurating this brand new centre today, marking a new beginning for our organisation in China, after a difficult period for the whole travel and visa sector. I would like to thank our team, who have worked tirelessly over the past few months to prepare the new centre, and our government clients for their support and confidence in our organisation during this important recovery phase for the Chinese travel market.”
TLScontact Country Manager for China, Wei Li, said, “We are delighted to be able to welcome Chinese visa applicants to this new centre and play our part in strengthening the connections between China and our client countries. We are proud of these new facilities and are convinced that they will not only allow us to offer an improved customer experience to applicants, but will also be the perfect showcase for the different countries that we represent, as Chinese travellers start preparing their trip.”
The Beijing inauguration follows a series of new centre openings and refurbishments in China this autumn, with more to follow in spring 2024. This reflects TLScontact’s commitment to support the recovery of the Chinese travel sector following the reopening of external borders this year, working hand in hand with its government clients. By next spring, TLScontact will once again be operating 15 visa application centres across China, able to process thousands of applications per year.