Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

The time I was turned away from China

techcrunch.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

71–80 of 117 posts

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#71

Post by sandworm101 »

refurb wrote: post #58
sandworm101 wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not just china. A few years back I flew from Vancouver to the RSA convention in SF. I was so put off by the hotel that had been booked for me that I didn't check in. That night I got a call on my cellphone from ICE as I had not checked in at the hotel I had listed on my entrance form. Nothing came of it. But they do check on these things.

How did they get your car home number? They typically don't ask for it on customs forms.

Not sure. I think they called the first hotel. I come in and out of the US all the time for work and was once a student there. I assume they have some sort of immigration file on me that probably has various contact details.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#72

Post by ajdlinux »

PakG1 wrote: post #53
AdamJacobMuller wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> This rule is clearly explained on the back of the immigration declaration form Is this in English/other languages, or just in Mandarin? The only part of this story that I find particularly egregious is the part where he was made to sign a form that was only in Mandarin.

Mandarin is the local rule of law language. All contracts I've ever signed that were dual language say that if any conflicts arise, the Chinese language contract will be the one used to settle the dispute. This is reasonable. You would not have immigration officers in the US telling people to sign documents written in Chinese, would you? For one thing, local officials would be unable to process those papers efficient…

Australian immigration and customs officials will supply translations of the main forms for all the major European and Asian languages that travellers tend to speak and interpreters for cases where they're considering refusing clearance or cancelling a visa. I would expect most Western countries would have the ability to do that.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#73

Post by cperciva »

Taniwha wrote: post #56
cperciva wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're not the only person I've heard say that they avoid the TPAC route because they want to avoid the USA. But I've heard people complain that as much as they'd prefer to avoid the USA the flight schedules are far more convenient. Have you tried the ANZ AKL-YVR connecting to ACA YVR-Europe flights? Canada is far happier about transiting passengers than the USA is. (And if you've tried it and didn't like it, I'm cur…

I don't avoid the US if I need to go there, after all I lived there for 20 years, half my adult life, it's home as much as NZ (and I'm currently near the end of a NZ->US->HK->CN->HK->CN->HK->NZ trip) - getting in is the problem, the process is as I said elsewhere a bit scary, once you are there it's generally a nice place to be I haven't tried Vancouver, maybe next time - I do prefer long flights that are overnight s…

AKL-YVR-LHR is an overnight (13 hours, 8PM-noon, same day) TPAC followed by an overnight (9.5 hours, 6PM-11:30AM, next day) TATL. So it certainly fits your preference for having long overnight flights.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#74

Post by gumby »

desdiv wrote: post #7

>The reason, as it was explained to me, was that in 2015 I had broken Chinese law when I failed to present myself to authorities in Beijing when I had visited and stayed at an Airbnb residence on two different trips. Unbeknownst to me at the time — and something that was not communicated by Airbnb — foreigners are required to register at a local police station, but in most cases the hotels where they stay handle this…

France and Germany have the same rules for residents and for visitors France and some parts of Germany (e.g. Bayern last time I was there) require it. In the us for the past 15 years or so my ID has always been copied/scanned when staying in a hotel.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#75

Post by justinmoh »

beilabs wrote: post #20

Nothing to do with increased security for the 19th Congress. Nothing to do with being a journalist. Everything to do with not presenting yourself at the Chinese police station. Source: Lived in China for years, was forced to write an apology to China for not presenting myself after moving to a new city 2 months later (had a work visa); my communist party member landlord smoothed things over with local police. Obvious…

Congratulations, you know “guanxi”. Lmao

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#76

Post by ioro »

Afforess wrote: post #8

Traveler does not follow the rules, abuses a Transit visa to cover non-transity-things, and is surprised when he is punished. He might not have been familiar with the exact rules governing travel, but it is fairly clear from his account that he was abusing the system, and aware of it. > I had been waiting in line to take advantage of the city’s 144-hour ‘transit’ visa which allows travelers with an onward flight to s…

While it's generally not a good idea to try the visa on arrival option when you can't get a normal visa, the transit visa isn't just for transit as such.

"To accelerate the strategy of “Development Driven by Innovation”, sanctioned by the State Council, as of January 30, various ports of entry in Shanghai [...] are to implement a 144-hour visa-exemption transit policy [...] First and foremost, the length of time for visa-exemption stay is extended considerably. With the previous 72 hours doubled, foreign passengers would have ample time to conduct short-term activities such as businesses, sightseeing, visits and exhibitions while in Shanghai."

http://www.sh-immigration.gov.cn/listPageEn.aspx?lx=40&id=44...

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#78

Post by selectodude »

Taniwha wrote: post #56
cperciva wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're not the only person I've heard say that they avoid the TPAC route because they want to avoid the USA. But I've heard people complain that as much as they'd prefer to avoid the USA the flight schedules are far more convenient. Have you tried the ANZ AKL-YVR connecting to ACA YVR-Europe flights? Canada is far happier about transiting passengers than the USA is. (And if you've tried it and didn't like it, I'm cur…

I don't avoid the US if I need to go there, after all I lived there for 20 years, half my adult life, it's home as much as NZ (and I'm currently near the end of a NZ->US->HK->CN->HK->CN->HK->NZ trip) - getting in is the problem, the process is as I said elsewhere a bit scary, once you are there it's generally a nice place to be I haven't tried Vancouver, maybe next time - I do prefer long flights that are overnight s…

Emirates has an AKL-DXB flight now that works pretty well.

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#79

Post by bzbarsky »

Taniwha wrote: post #3
hartator wrote: post #2

I feel it’s kind of shady in the first place to use a transit visa to cover tech events. Do this in the US, it’ll be worst.

The US is just weird, only country i know of that doesn't allow transit. Anywhere else you get off your plane, pass thru security and get back on your outgoing flight. The US seems too cheap to build outgoing immigration booths, and therefore doesn't have real international departure terminals like anywhere else on the planet. I means you can't transit the US without getting a visa

> The US seems too cheap to build outgoing immigration booths

Alternately, it's none of the US government's business when people leave the country. It's always struck me as really weird that other countries make you effectively ask for permission to leave...

Re: The time I was turned away from China

#80

Post by barry-cotter »

ekianjo wrote: post #30
desdiv wrote: post #7

>The reason, as it was explained to me, was that in 2015 I had broken Chinese law when I failed to present myself to authorities in Beijing when I had visited and stayed at an Airbnb residence on two different trips. Unbeknownst to me at the time — and something that was not communicated by Airbnb — foreigners are required to register at a local police station, but in most cases the hotels where they stay handle this…

> democratic countries like Japan To be fair, Japan has only existed as a functioning democracy for a very, very short time, and it still keeps a number of aspects from its previous past as a feudal/centrally governed country.

Japan has been a functioning democracy for longer than any state outside of Western Europe or the Western European settler colonies. It had a functioning but fragile democracy from shortly after the beginning of the Meiji period until it ended after the Great Depression. That places it on company with Germany and Italy.

Could you expand on the aspects you think are remnantis of its past? The Imperial Family and Household are not mentioned in the constitution and there’s no aristocracy. I’m sure it’s dominated by Tokyo and the national government but it seems unlikely to be more centralised than England, or the U.K., tout court.

Post reply on HN