Frequently asked questions
What is a Tibet Travel Permit?
The Tibet Travel Permit (also being called as Tibet Visa) is a kind of independent document issued by Tibet Tourism Bureau (TTP). It contains two pages: the first page will list the full name of the travel agency you commissioned, your tour group number, detailed Tibet tour dates, and your traveling places in Tibet; the second page is the Travel Group List including travelers’ names, age, passport numbers, sex, nationality and profession of each member.
According to the law of the Republic of China, foreign tourists need to have a Tibet Travel Permit when they want to enter Lhasa or any other places in the Tibetan Autonomous Region. It can only be applied by your commissioned Tibet travel operator. You need to take the original Tibet Travel Permit to board a flight to Tibet successfully; a copy of TTP is necessary when you board a train to Tibet. What’s more, if you choose the overland tour to Tibet, you also need to take your Tibet Travel Permit.
Who Needs to Get a Tibet Travel Permit and Who is not Necessary to Get One?
- Tibet Travel Permit for the Ordinary International Tourists
- In order to protect Tibet’s unique ethnic traditions, cultural and natural heritage, ecological environment, and improve the service capacity and traffic condition, the National Tourism Administration claims that ordinary international tourists from the west and south Asian countries, have to get a Tibet Travel Permit before entering Tibet.
Tourists from the Nordic countries, such as Norwegian and Denmark now are available to get a Tibet Travel Permit. But for Bhutan citizen and Indian pilgrims, they can only seek help from Pilgrim Center (non-government) in Tibet to get a Tibet Travel Permit. We don’t have the authority to help them apply for a TTP. Except for Bhutan citizens and Indian pilgrims, we can offer help for the application of the Tibet Travel Permit under any kind of situation.
We can’t receive diplomats, journalists, and government officials to Tibet.
- Tibet Travel Permit for Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan Residents
- Citizens from Hong Kong and Macau don’t need to get a Tibet Travel Permit to enter Tibet. They can use their HK/Macau SAR Passport and Home Return Permit instead of a TTP.
Taiwan citizens need to get a Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents and Tibet Travel Permit to enter Tibet. Overseas Chinese or Chinese immigrants without a Chinese passport still need to get a China Travel Visa and Tibet Travel Permit to enter Tibet.
Note: Nowadays, with the change of the policy, Taiwan citizens are not allowed to enter Tibet. If you are from Taiwan and obtain an American, Canada or any other country’s passport, you can be treated as an ordinary foreign tourist to Tibet.
- TTP for Indian Citizens
- Ordinary Indian tourists will be treated as other international tourists. For Indian pilgrims who travel to Tibet for a religious purpose, only Pilgrims Center and Foreign Affairs Office of TRA have the authority to arrange their tour to Tibet and help them apply for a TTP.
- Travel to Tibet from Nepal
- If you choose to enter Tibet from Nepal, you need to get a Group Tourists Visa and Tibet Travel Permit.
We can guarantee your Tibet Travel Permit and choose the suitable Tibet tour for you whatever the departure city in China or in Nepal.
What do you need to do to get a Tibet Travel Permit?
In the first step, you need to obtain a China Visa to guarantee you can enter China. You can get it from a Chinese Embassy in your home country or in Hong Kong. There are many kinds of Chinese Visa, and for most of the international tourists to China, an travel visa (L visa) is enough. We can provide help during the process of your China Visa application, such as the travel invitation letter.
Then you need to email a copy of your passport and China Visa at least 20 days before you depart to Tibet. We will help you to apply for your TTP. Normally, it takes 8-9 working days to obtain a Tibet Travel Permit from Tibet Tourism Bureau. And once we obtain, we will deliver it to your address in China, such as your hotel in China.
With your China visa and your Tibet Travel Permit, you can board a flight to Lhasa. If you choose to get to Tibet by train, you just need to take a copy of your Tibet Travel Permit unless you board the train from Chongqing, Xián and Lanzhou. In the 3 cities, your original Tibet Travel Permit is required before boarding the train to Tibet.
How Much does a Tibet Travel Permit cost?
As long as you book our trip to Tibet, we offer free service on the application of Tibet Visa and guarantee to deliver it before you go to Tibet.
