(Yicai Global) Dec. 28 -- Online searches for visa services surged after China said it will resume accepting applications for passports for the purpose of travel abroad on Jan. 8, 2023.

The number of searches related to foreign visa services on travel agency Trip.Com Group's online platform rose by eight times as of yesterday noon from a day ago, the Shanghai-based firm revealed. The volume of visa inquiries grew by 150 percent.

Meanwhile, visa inquiries on Tongcheng Travel, also known as LY.Com, soared to a three-year peak yesterday, up by 15 times from Dec. 26, according to the travel agency.

The National Immigration Administration announced online yesterday that next month, it will restart reviewing passport applications for tourism and visits to see friends and family members abroad due to the implementation of new measures to prevent and control Covid-19 outbreaks. 

The announcement comes on the heels of other policy shifts to overcome the economic impact of the pandemic and to ease travel. On Dec. 26, China said it will scrap the country's multi-year policy of mandatory quarantine for people arriving in the country, effective from Jan. 8. 

People’s confidence in traveling and tourism is getting better, Tongcheng researcher Zhang Mingyang said, adding that the first big group of travelers should be inbound, involving Chinese people abroad visiting their families in China during the upcoming Spring Festival in late January. The outbound travel market could enter recovery from the Labor Day holiday in early May, Zhang predicted.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi