APEC Business Travel Card

The most useful card in my wallet is the APEC Business Travel card. This card allows me to go through the “fast lane" at immigration in 18 countries and gives me short term business visitor entry with a once only application. The card is renewable every 3 years.

About the scheme

The APEC Business Travel Card Scheme is an APEC initiative.

The Scheme was developed in response to the need of business people to gain streamlined business visitor entry to the economies of the Asia-Pacific region to:

· explore business opportunities

· attend meetings

· conduct trade and investment activities.

Benefits for cardholders

The APEC Business Travel Card cuts through the red tape of business travel. Through a single application form, the card allows accredited business people to obtain multiple short-term business visitor entry to participating economies.

This saves cardholders time and effort involved in applying for individual visas or entry permits.

Participating economies

There are 18 APEC economies currently participating in the APEC Business Travel Card scheme:

Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Hong Kong (China), Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, People's Republic of China, The Philippines, Malaysia, Peru, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Vietnam

Please Note: There is no economy code required for the United States as the card only allows for access to the fast-track air-crew lanes. Cardholders will still need to present valid passports and visas if required by existing United States law.