This depends on the consulate and the timing. We can only give a vague answer at this stage unfortunately, but this is something that changes all the time, so to provide the most relevant information is very difficult online.

Best thing to do here is to speak to your consulate or, better still to avoid potential phone queues, speak to an LTL Student Advisor who should be able to provide you with all the answers you need.

This depends on where you live.

To make things easier, we will pre-pay the fees and when you arrive we will confirm the cost and you can pay us when you come to China.

One to three working days is a rough guideline. Again though, this depends on where you live.

Again, it can vary by destination.

Some consulates offer a 24 express service, others take perhaps a week.

The best thing we can say is APPLY EARLY.

Give yourself time and you will have no problems or stress awaiting your visa.

Generally you cannot apply more than 3 months before travelling to China so although we advise to apply early, don’t go overboard and go too early!

For example, if you travel on August 1st, mark down early May as the time get the ball rolling.

Upon booking, we can sort this out within 1 working day.

Of course, this isn’t the case with every booking. We have busy seasons where it will take a few days but if you are on a tight schedule we can always get you sorted quicker.

NOTE – remember time difference. If you live in Europe and make a booking at 6pm after you finished work/studying, we’ll most likely be asleep. Likewise if you are in the US and send us an email in the early morning, we’ll probably have finished at the office already. Likewise take note of Chinese Holidays also.

In a nutshell, your visa will be for a duration, not set dates.

For example 180 days. You will be allowed to remain in China for that duration after entering the country.

A number of Chinese embassies have outsourced the first steps of the student visa application process to private companies that run visa application centers.

This means that you actually might not go to the embassy to apply for your visa.

Instead you will go to a visa application center, who will check your documents and then pass them on to the embassy.

Unfortunately again, this is really difficult to answer because it completely varies from country to country.

We can put you in touch with a former student from your country to check, or asking your embassy directly is generally a good way to get your answer.

If you come across a reliable, well-reviewed agency we would always recommend using them.

Be careful though, unreliable agencies can cause headaches. Stick to one that has a strong online profile and has been recommended. We can help with this also depending on your location.

Chinese embassies are in general very unreliable at communicating what exactly is needed at the moment to apply for a visa.

Therefore, an experienced Chinese visa agency should be quite helpful, as they will know what the current situation is and can advise you in advance which additional documents might be required and how to get them.

Citizens of Japan, Singapore and Mongolia can receive a 15 day visa on arrival.

Most other nationalities must have a visa. If you do not have a visa, you will be turned away at the airport and not allowed to enter China.

Yes you will.

Airbnb or private landlords sometimes are not accepted so for that reason an accommodation confirmation will be included in your list of documents that LTL will provide.

No, we only provide support for LTL students.

Chinese authorities only issue study visas for students who learn Mandarin full time.

To classify as a full time Chinese language student, you will have to take at least 10 hours of individual or 20 hours of group classes per week.

Yes, you do not have to have a student visa to study Chinese in China.

You take responsibility for this, we guide you through the process.

The actual act of going to embassies, consulates, centers and making sure you apply for your visa in time etc is down to you. Any questions along the way, we’ll do our best to  help you.