The APEC Business Travel Card is a travel document issued to business travellers who are citizens of APEC participating economies. Valid for three years, the card eliminates the need for its holder to possess a visa when visiting other APEC participating economies as long as pre-clearance has been obtained during the application process.
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Most APEC economies are full participating economies in the APEC Business Travel Card: Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, China, Hong Kong (China), Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia,[1] Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand and Vietnam.[2]
Citizens of these economies can apply for a Card at their national government, upon which moment their names are circulated amongst the other participating economies which give entry pre-clearance when all conditions are met. After this moment, the card can be used for visa-free entry.
Two economies are transitional members: United States and Canada. Citizens/Nationals of these economies can not apply for the Card, and the appropriate visa still have to be obtained in advance. Expedited border crossing and visa-application however is possible.
The card is issued in creditcard form, is machine-readable and has the following fields:
Apart from the name of the member economy, no national signs are present on the card. On the back of the card, the member economies for which clearance has been approved are shown. The Machine-readable strip starts with "CP", followed by the abbreviation of the issuing economy. The abbreviations are in conformation with the 3-letter ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 country codes. Even although Taiwan is a member economy under the name Chinese Taipei, the abbreviation TWN is used here.
The card should in general be used in connection with a passport and has the following advantages:[3]
As a full participating member of the scheme, Australian citizens who are frequent bona fide business travellers can apply for a card through the Department of Immigration and Citizenship by post for AUS200. Foreign holders of the card can visit Australia visa-free for 90 days, and special fast-track lanes are available for them at Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney airports.
Although not a full participant of the scheme, card holders are able to use special service lanes at major international airports upon arrival in Canada, but are still subject to the regular entry/visa requirements.[4]
All Hong Kong permanent residents who are bona fide frequent business travellers are able to apply for the card through the Immigration Department upon submission of form ID900, regardless of whether they are Chinese citizens, as long as they have never committed a criminal offence and have never been denied entry into another APEC participating economy. The card costs HKD427.[5]
As a full participant of the scheme, foreign residents who hold an APEC Business Travel Card can enter Hong Kong visa-free for 60 days and are entitled to use special fast-track or resident counters.
New Zealand citizens can apply for an ABTC if they travel frequently on business and are of a good character through Immigration New Zealand for NZD150.
As a full participant of the scheme, foreign cardholders can enter New Zealand visa-free for up to 90 days.
Although not a full participant in the scheme, card holders can use special fast-track lanes for aircrew at international airports in the United States, but they are still subject to regular entry/visa requirements.
Legislation was passed in November 2011 to authorize the issue of ABTCs to US travellers.[6] Implementation is currently underway.[7]
Tarjeta de viaje de Negocios ABTC]]