The 135th China Import and Export Fair (also known as the Canton Fair) was held in Guangzhou from April 15 to May 5. Merchants from all over the world gathered in Guangzhou, and the trade negotiations were hot.
From inspecting goods to purchasing and placing an order, payment is a key part. Previously, the reporter's investigation and interview found that there are many difficulties for foreigners to pay in China, and the state has successively introduced policies and measures to dredge the payment blockage.
What is the payment experience of foreigners in China today? Let's take a look at the Canton Fair site first.
01 Mobile payment is not familiar with arrangement!
"When you go out, you can have a machine in hand." In recent years, mobile payment has become rapidly popular in China, and the penetration rate of mobile payment in China has reached 86%, ranking first in the world.
Walking into the Canton Fair site, you will find that there will basically be a QR code for payment on the merchant booth. The most common payment methods for foreigners are bank cards and cash, but some foreign buyers also try to use mobile payment.
The payment problems reported by some foreign buyers are mainly concentrated in three aspects:
First, I am not familiar with mobile payment and am worried about the operation process.
According to the Chinese and English payment guidelines released by the People's Bank of China in March, foreign visitors to China usually only need four steps to use mobile payment:
- Download the App;
- Register or log in with a mobile phone number (you can use a foreign mobile phone number, you need to be able to receive verification SMS);
- Bind a bank card in the App (you can bind an overseas bank card);
- Scan the QR code to pay.
In addition, users of some overseas e-wallets can directly use their existing wallets to make payments without the need to download other apps.
Taking the Canton Fair as an example, starting from the entry into Guangzhou, there is a payment service desk for overseas guests at Baiyun International Airport in a conspicuous position to guide inbound personnel to open electronic payment on the spot.
There are more details in the service to be optimized, such as the provision of multilingual translation services. On March 18, Alipay App piloted the launch of multi-language translation services, adding French, German, Spanish, Malay, Arabic, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Turkish, Indonesian, Korean, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese and other languages on top of the original Chinese and English, and the translation service can be applied to scenarios such as taxis, hotel reservations, attraction tickets, bus rides, and exchange rate inquiries in Alipay App.
The relevant person in charge of Alipay said that in the future, it will focus on high-frequency scenarios used by overseas tourists in China, introduce more exclusive services for foreign users, and expand service coverage to access more card associations and overseas e-wallets.
Malaysian merchant Yulan can use Malaysian e-wallets smoothly in China, "I tried it today and found that I can really use the Touch'nGoeWallet on my mobile phone directly to take the subway, take a taxi, take a taxi in Guangzhou, and also get a transportation coupon!"
The second is the limit, some foreign friends spend more than a certain amount and can't pay the bill.
At present, Alipay and WeChat foreign card payment have both increased and optimized the transaction limit for foreigners, with the single transaction limit raised from US$1,000 to US$5,000, and the annual cumulative transaction limit increased from US$10,000 to US$50,000.
Jennifer, an international student from El Salvador, said that she recently spent more than 10,000 yuan to buy gifts for her family members who are about to travel to China, and the increase in the single transaction limit of mobile payment has made it more convenient for her to make large transactions in China.
The third is the issue of real-name authentication, and some foreigners are worried about the security of personal information.
Previously, a person from abroad who came to China said, "Authentication is required when using mobile payment, and I don't want to disclose too much personal privacy information in the process." ”
According to the payment guidelines issued by the People's Bank of China, "transactions below a certain amount are exempt from the collection of identity information".
According to regulatory guidance, Alipay is currently piloting, and overseas users can have a certain amount of payment without identity authentication, and authentication is required only if it is exceeded. For authentication, it supports the authentication of six types of documents for foreigners, including: passport, Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents, Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents, Residence Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents, Residence Permit for Taiwan Residents, and Permanent Residence ID Card for Foreigners.
Zhang Qingsong, Deputy Governor of the People's Bank of China, said, "We are also very concerned about the protection of personal information, and we will strictly require relevant institutions to implement the Personal Information Protection Law of the People's Republic of China and other laws and regulations to effectively protect the security of personal information." ”
02 Accustomed to cash, bank card arrangement!
Many overseas buyers are accustomed to paying by bank card or cash. Respect the payment habits of inbound personnel, and relevant institutions focus on improving the bank card acceptance environment and optimizing the cash use environment.
For example, we have added POS machines that accept foreign bank cards to improve the lack of foreign card acceptance coverage.
At the press conference of the 135th China Import and Export Fair (Canton Fair) held by the State Council Information Office on April 1, Tan Ping, deputy mayor of Guangzhou, said that Guangzhou has added more than 6,000 wild card POS machines in important places such as ports, hotels, and exhibition halls. According to statistics, at present, the proportion of foreign card merchants that can be accepted in key foreign-related areas in Guangzhou has reached 65%.
Josh and his family from the United States have been to Guangzhou for a few days, and for him, who is accustomed to card payment, the payment experience of this "trip to Guangzhou" is very smooth, "hotels, restaurants, and street shops, etc., can be paid directly with foreign bank cards, which is so convenient!"
Wang Pengbo, chief analyst of Broadcom Consulting, said: "For merchants, the most important thing is to reduce the cost of use, and domestic bank cards, if there are some subsidies, merchants will be more active." In addition, it is necessary to actively publicize that the more foreign people come to China who use foreign card POS machines, and after the income of merchants increases, it will be easier to deploy machines and tools, forming a positive cycle. ”
For example, the increase in foreign currency exchange facilities and the introduction of "coin purse" services.
At present, ATMs of key banks such as industry, agriculture, China, construction and communications all support overseas bank card cash withdrawals, and more than 60,000 bank outlets and nearly 2,300 foreign currency exchange facilities across the country also support foreign currency exchange.
In addition, commercial banks have also launched a cash service called "coin purse", which is a bag with 200 yuan, 300 yuan, 500 yuan and other amounts of change, on the one hand, it is convenient for cash use, and on the other hand, it is also convenient for change.
Yan Fang, head of the Payment and Settlement Department of the People's Bank of China, said that the People's Bank of China has cooperated with the Ministry of Transport and other departments to promote the use of "coin purses" in industries such as taxis.
A taxi driver in Guangzhou said: "Although most people scan the QR code to pay, many foreigners and the elderly are still used to using cash, and it is great to have a 'coin purse' service to facilitate change." ”
03Provide multiple payment methods
With the continuous expansion of China's visa-free "circle of friends", more and more foreigners are coming to China for tourism, work, study, etc.
According to the latest data released by the National Immigration Administration on April 18, in the first quarter of this year, the number of foreigners coming to China increased by more than three times compared with the same period in 2023, with a total of 466,000 foreigner visa certificates issued, an increase of 118.8% year-on-year, and 1.988 million visa-free foreigners, an increase of 266.1% year-on-year.
The "May Day" holiday is approaching, and it will usher in the peak of inbound passenger flow. On some travel platforms, inbound travel orders for the May Day holiday in Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing and other cities increased by more than 100% year-on-year.
In order to further improve the convenience of foreigners paying in China, the state has successively introduced relevant policies and measures. For example, in March this year, the General Office of the State Council issued the "Opinions on Further Optimizing Payment Services and Improving Payment Convenience", mentioning that it will effectively improve the bank card acceptance environment, continue to optimize the cash use environment, and further enhance the convenience of mobile payment, so as to promote the parallel development and complementarity of mobile payment, bank cards, cash and other payment methods.
Since the second half of last year, the People's Bank of China, together with relevant parties, has launched a series of measures, including the solution of "large-value card swiping, small-amount code scanning, and cash pocketing", continuously deepening the construction of payment service scenarios, continuously improving the inclusiveness of payment services, and striving to improve the multi-level and diversified payment service system.
Yan Fang, head of the Payment and Settlement Department of the People's Bank of China, said: "If foreign friends like to use mobile payment, they can use Alipay, WeChat and other overseas bank cards to bind their overseas bank cards, and they can scan code payment in China; if they are accustomed to paying with bank cards, they can use foreign cards to pay in some key cities, key areas, large business districts, airports and hotels." ”
In addition, the People's Bank of China is also continuing to optimize account services, and products and services such as digital yuan and UnionPay QuickPass "Travel Card" also provide diversified payment options.
Due to the obvious differences in payment habits between China and foreign countries, many industry insiders believe that it is also important to promote the mainland's advanced mobile payment methods overseas while continuously optimizing the payment environment.
Jin Li, vice president of Southern University of Science and Technology, suggested that the promotion of China's mobile payment methods overseas should be strengthened, so that overseas tourists can know how to travel in China more conveniently in advance, such as strengthening pre-departure publicity at overseas embassies and consulates, setting up public welfare reminder signs in conspicuous positions at ports of entry, so that tourists can get the mobile payment information in China at the first time of entry, and provide paper version of the guide.
On the basis of a series of facilitation measures launched by the central bank and other departments, Jin Li believes that bank cards such as Visa and MasterCard are mainstream payment methods in Europe and the United States, and they have been using them for decades and are very adaptable. He suggested that through one-click access, install an app that can be used in China and connect to the long-term credit card payment system abroad.
The issue of foreigners' payment in China involves many fields such as finance, cultural tourism, transportation, and foreign affairs, and it takes the joint efforts of all parties to break through the payment blockage.
Breaking through payment blockages and improving the convenience of foreigners' payment in China will not only attract more foreign tourists to China, allow more Chinese businesses to do global business at their doorstep, promote consumption and economic growth, but also help further strengthen Sino-foreign exchanges and promote China's high-level opening up.
Source: CCTV News