UnionPay International announced today that the Chinese Embassy in New Zealand now accepts multiple UnionPay payment methods. Chinese citizens can now pay consular service charges in the embassy via UnionPay cards, UnionPay QR code payment, as well as UnionPay contactless payment, QuickPass. So far, UnionPay cards and the UnionPay app are accepted by Chinese embassies and consulates in 29 countries and regions.

Chinese embassies and consulates overseas provide Chinese citizens with services including passport and travel permit processing, as well as document notarization. Chinese embassies and consulates in countries like Russia, Australia, Malaysia and Switzerland have accepted the UnionPay card to pay for the aforementioned services. In addition, users of the UnionPay app can make payments by scanning QR code at the Chinese Embassies in Japan and Singapore, as well as the Chinese Consulates in San Francisco, USA. Chinese Visa Application Service Centers in Australia and South Korea now are ready to accept UnionPay cards issued outside mainland China, which brings convenience to UnionPay cardholders applying for Chinese visa too.

China has been the second largest tourist source country and the major international student source country of New Zealand. Meanwhile, an increasing number of New Zealand citizens visit or study in China. With this new cooperation, a large number of tourists and Chineses live in New Zealand can pay for consular service charges at the New Zealand Embassy via the payment method that they are familiar with. UnionPay payment improves efficiency and cardholder experience since there’s no need for currency conversion, cash withdrawal or change. Ms. Hu, a Chinese tourist applying for travel permit since her passport was lost, made the payment by scanning the UnionPay QR code. “This is quite friendly for tourists whom have no local bankcards,” she commented.

In New Zealand, UnionPay is accepted at more than 60,000 merchants and about 80% of the local ATMs. About 22,000 POS terminals support UnionPay mobile QuickPass, covering sectors of retail, transportation, etc. In addition, users of the UnionPay app can scan QR codes to pay at merchants such as Aotea Gifts, Aelia Duty Free, and DFS. Previously, UnionPay International also partnered with the New Zealand Immigration Service to launch express service for UnionPay Platinum Cardholders. These cardholders do not need to submit financial certificates to apply for the New Zealand visa.