On December 1st, the new version of the People's Republic of China Foreign Permanent Resident ID Card was officially issued and put into use. According to the Guangzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau, a total of five foreigners received the new version of the permanent resident card in Guangzhou on the day.
On the morning of December 1st, inside the Reception Hall of the Division of Exit and Entry Administration of the Guangzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau, a Pakistani national who teaches at a university in Guangdong, happily showed the new permanent resident card. He said, "I'm very happy! From now on, whether it's taking the high-speed rail or staying in a hotel, I can just swipe my 'ID card' and travel freely. It will make my work and life in China more efficient and convenient."
The new version of the permanent resident card, also called as "five-star card",has increased the number of digits in the ID number from 15 to 18, with one number assigned to each individual for life. The coding rules of the embedded chip are closer to those of Chinese resident identity cards, allowing for faster machine-readable recognition. Advanced anti-counterfeiting technology has been adopted to enhance personal information protection and data security.
According to statistics from the National Immigration Administration, on the first day, a total of 50 foreigners who obtained permanent residency qualifications in China received the first batch of new "five-star cards" for foreign permanent residents. They come from over 20 countries, including the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, Sweden, Singapore, and South Korea. All of them have made outstanding contributions to China's economic and social development in various fields such as economy, education, technology, culture, and healthcare.