On 28 July the Chinese Embassy in Dhaka issued fresh guidance for Bangladeshi exhibitors and buyers attending the 140th China Import and Export Fair (Canton Fair) in October–November. Applicants will now need to submit only the official e-invitation letter issued by the fair organisers as their mandatory supporting document, alongside the standard online visa application form. The embassy warned against using ‘guaranteed visa’ agents and stressed that it has authorised no third parties to process applications. Fraudulent invitation letters or doctored documents will lead to visa refusal and could jeopardise future applications. Officials also reminded traders to fill in forms carefully to avoid delays during the peak August–September application window. The simplified requirements should shorten lead times for the thousands of Bangladeshi SMEs that rely on the Canton Fair to source Chinese machinery, electronics and textiles. Logistics providers anticipate higher demand for Dhaka–Guangzhou air freight in the run-up to the show, while travel agencies expect group-tour charters to rebound to pre-pandemic levels. Corporate mobility teams moving South-Asia-based staff into China for the event should budget for Guangzhou hotel rates that historically spike by up to 40 percent during fair periods and secure internal invitation letters early for post-fair factory visits in the Pearl River Delta.
