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China student visa from Pakistan: the embassy's X1 documents, financial proof and processing time

Unofficial summary · Sources checked

If you are applying in Pakistan for a Chinese student visa, the Embassy of the PRC in Pakistan states on its Instruction of Chinese Visa Application (page dated 28 April 2025) that an X1 applicant — a person intending to study in China for more than 180 days — must submit three things: a printout of the Confirmation Form for Study in China (Form JW201 or Form JW202) submitted online, a photocopy of the admission letter from a university or school in China, and evidence of a scholarship or a proof of financial resources of US$2,500 per academic year or the equivalent in Pakistan rupees, with the financial supporter's bank statement closing balance enough to cover the student's whole study years in China. The same instruction's X2 row has an empty characterized-documents cell, so it lists no X2-specific document; the page says its common documents are generally required for all types of visa. On processing, the embassy's Visa Processing Time and Fee page (also dated 28 April 2025) says it generally needs 4 working days after receiving the passport and provides no urgent or extra-urgent service, and ordinary Pakistani passport holders are exempt from paying all types of visa fees.

Everything below about documents, fees and processing time is that one mission's statement as of the page date shown, not a rule for other Chinese embassies or consulates. This article uses the embassy's own pages and the national Regulations; it is an unofficial reference and not legal advice.

What X1 and X2 mean on this page

The embassy's table describes X1 as issued to individuals intending to study in China for more than 180 days, and X2 as issued to individuals intending to study in China for a short time period of less than or equal to 180 days (Instruction of Chinese Visa Application, 28 April 2025). For the general choice between the two, see X1 or X2.

The national rule behind the X1 and X2 lists

The Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Administration of the Entry and Exit of Foreigners (State Council Decree No. 637), Article 7(11), are the baseline: to apply for the X1 visa the applicant shall submit the admission notice issued by the admission institution and the certification documents provided by the competent authority; to apply for the X2 visa the applicant shall submit such certification documents as the admission notice issued by the admission institution (Regulations, Article 7(11); English text published by the National Immigration Administration, page dated 10 March 2021). The embassy's X1 row lists the documents that mission asks for, while the X2 row's characterized-documents cell is empty; the Regulations, Article 7(11), still require X2 certification documents such as the admission notice. The JW201/JW202 printout, the US$2,500 financial proof and the two notes below are not named in Article 7(11).

The X1 document list on the embassy page

The embassy asks an X1 applicant for the following (Instruction of Chinese Visa Application, X1 row, 28 April 2025):

  1. A printout of the Confirmation Form for Study in China (Form JW201 or Form JW202) submitted online. See JW201 vs JW202 form for the difference between the two forms.
  2. A photocopy of the admission letter from a university or school in China.
  3. Evidence of scholarship issuance, or a proof of financial resources amounting to US$2,500 per academic year or the equivalent in Pakistan rupees, where the closing balance of the financial supporter's bank statement should be enough to cover the student's whole study years in China.

The page adds two starred notes to the X1 row (Instruction of Chinese Visa Application, X1 row, 28 April 2025):

  • If a student holding a valid study residence permit exits China and fails to return to China before the study residence permit expires, the student should provide both the original and the photocopy of a formal letter written by the university or school to prove that the student is continuing the study in China.
  • Individuals planning to have one year of medical internship and to participate in the Examination for the Qualifications for Doctors in China, or intending to attend primary and secondary school in China, are required to present relevant supporting documents.

For the permit that X1 holders apply for after entering China, see residence permit for study after arrival.

The X2 row: the characterized-documents cell is empty

The embassy's X2 row carries the description "Issued to individuals intending to study in China for a short time period of less than or equal to 180 days," but the characterized-documents cell next to it is empty on the page dated 28 April 2025: the instruction lists no X2-specific document (Instruction of Chinese Visa Application, X2 row). The page says its common documents are "generally required for all types of visa"; they are printed in the first (C) row of the table and include a passport valid for more than 6 months with at least one blank visa page, a copy of the passport personal information page, and a police character/clearance certificate for applicants aged 10 and above. The Regulations, Article 7(11), still require an X2 applicant to submit certification documents such as the admission notice; beyond the common documents, the embassy page does not say what document an X2 applicant in Pakistan must submit.

Financial proof: the US$2,500 figure

The requirement is evidence of scholarship issuance or, where there is no scholarship, a proof of financial resources of US$2,500 per academic year or the equivalent in Pakistan rupees, with the supporter's closing balance covering the whole study years (Instruction of Chinese Visa Application, X1 row, 28 April 2025). The page does not state how the rupee equivalent is calculated; it says only "equivalent Pakistan Rupees." This amount is the embassy's own requirement.

Processing time and how to collect the visa

The embassy states the following on its Visa Processing Time and Fee page (28 April 2025, Part 1):

  • It generally needs 4 working days to process the application after receiving the passport, and does not provide urgent or extra-urgent service.
  • The applicant may collect the visa at the visa application service centre entrusted by the embassy, according to the pickup time on the pick-up form issued by that centre.
  • Processing time may vary from case to case for reasons such as document supplementation or an embassy interview; the embassy makes the final decision based on the application itself.
  • If an application is returned and the applicant reapplies, the reapplication is treated as a new application and the processing time is recalculated from the date the new application is forwarded to the embassy.

Fees

The fee page dated 28 April 2025 lists fees by passport and number of entries; it has no X1 or X2 line. Holders of diplomatic and official passports from every country (except the United States), as well as ordinary passports from Pakistan, are exempt from paying all types of visa fees (Visa Processing Time and Fee, 28 April 2025). The other printed rupee amounts are:

Passport or circumstance Fee
Ordinary passport from Pakistan; diplomatic and official passports from every country except the United States Exempt from all types of visa fees
US passport holders 39,400/- PKR (US journalist visa fee: 46,700/- PKR)
Canadian passport holders 15,200/- PKR
Third-country passport holders, single entry 7,200/- PKR
Third-country passport holders, double entry 10,800/- PKR
Third-country passport holders, six months multiple entry 14,400/- PKR
Third-country passport holders, one year and more, multiple entry 21,600/- PKR
Passport holders of other special countries Subject to actual practice

Fingerprints

The embassy notice dated 24 December 2025 states that, to further facilitate visa application, fingerprint collection is exempted from 17 December 2025 until 31 December 2026 for eligible applicants who apply for short-term visas with a stay period of 180 days or less. It also states that, in accordance with relevant regulations, applicants for D, J1, Q1, S1, X1 and Z visas — the categories that require the application of a residence permit after entering China — still require fingerprint collection. X1 therefore still requires fingerprints at this mission; the notice does not name X2, and it keeps X1 among the categories that must give them.

Questions people ask

Does the embassy list any document for the X2 student visa?

Not specifically. The X2 row's characterized-documents cell is empty on the Instruction of Chinese Visa Application dated 28 April 2025, although the page says its common documents are generally required for all types of visa. The Regulations, Article 7(11), however, still require an X2 applicant to submit certification documents such as the admission notice from the admitting institution.

How long does the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan take to process a student visa?

It states that it generally needs 4 working days to process the application after receiving the passport, and that it does not provide urgent or extra-urgent service (Visa Processing Time and Fee, 28 April 2025). The page adds that processing time may vary case by case, for example because of document supplementation or an embassy interview.

Do Pakistani passport holders pay a visa fee for a Chinese student visa?

No fee is payable for ordinary passports from Pakistan: the fee page dated 28 April 2025 exempts ordinary Pakistani passports, and diplomatic and official passports from every country except the United States, from all types of visa fees. For other passports the fee page prints the rupee amounts in the table above, by passport and number of entries, with no X1 or X2 line.

Do X1 applicants still need to give fingerprints?

Yes. The embassy notice dated 24 December 2025 exempts fingerprint collection for eligible short-term visa applicants with a stay of 180 days or less from 17 December 2025 to 31 December 2026, but it states that applicants for X1 — among D, J1, Q1, S1, X1 and Z — still require fingerprint collection because those categories require a residence permit after entering China.

Sources

Checked 11 October 2026

This page is an unofficial summary, is not legal or immigration advice, is not published by the bodies named, and the official text and the instructions of the visa office or exit–entry office handling your case prevail if they differ.

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