The Embassy is open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. We are closed on the following American and Chinese holidays:

2010 Official American and Chinese holidays

January 1                   Friday                New Year’s Day*** January  18                Monday             Martin Luther Jr.’s Birthday*
February 13-17          Sat-Wed           Chinese (Lunar) New Year**
February 15               Monday             President’s Day*
April 5                        Monday             Tomb Sweeping Day**
May 1-3                      Sat-Mon            International Labor Day**
May 31                       Monday             Memorial Day**
June 16                      Wednesday       Dragon Boat Festival**
July 5                          Monday             Independence Day*
September 6              Monday              Labor Day*
September 22            Wednesday       Mid-Autumn Festival**
October 1-5                Fri-Tuesday       Chinese National Day**
October 11                 Monday             Columbus Day*
November 11              Thursday           Veteran’s Day*
November 25              Thursday           Thanksgiving Day*
December 24              Friday                Christmas Day*
December 31              Friday                New Year’s Day (2011)*

*     American Holidays
**   Chinese Holidays
*** Chinese and American Holidays

The following is a direct quote from the website of the US Consulate in Shenyang:

The Consulate is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. We are closed on the following American and Chinese holidays:

Date	Weekday	Holiday	Nation
January 1	Friday	New Year’s Day	US & China
January 18	Monday	Martin Luther King, Jr’s Birthday	US
February 13-17	Sat-Wed	Lunar New Year	China
February 15	Monday	Presidents’ Day	US
April 5	Monday	Tomb Sweeping Day	China
May 1-3	Sat-Mon	International Labor Day	China
May 31	Monday	Memorial Day	US
June 16	Wednesday	Dragon Boat Festival	China
July 5	Monday	Independence Day	US
September 6	Monday	Labor Day	US
September 22	Wednesday	Mid-Autumn Festival	China
October 1-5	Fri-Tue	Chinese National Day	China
October 11	Monday	Columbus Day	US
November 11	Thursday	Veterans’ Day	US
November 25	Thursday	Thanksgiving Day	US
December 24	Friday	Christmas Day

Information imparted below is quoted from the website of the US Consulate in Wuhan:

Holidays for 2010

***    January 1                Friday                   New Year’s Day
*        January 18              Monday                Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday
**      February 13-17       Sat-Wed              Chinese (Lunar) New Year
*        February 15            Monday                President’s Day
**      April 5                     Monday                Tomb Sweeping Day
**      May 1-3                  Sat-Mon                International Labor Day
*        May 31                   Monday                 Memorial Day
**      June 16                  Wednesday           Dragon Boat Festival
*        July 5                      Monday                 Independence Day
*        September 6          Monday                  Labor Day
**      September 22        Wednesday           Mid-Autumn Festival
**      October 1-5            Fri-Tuesday           Chinese National Day
*        October 11             Monday                 Columbus Day
*        November 11         Thursday                Veterans’ Day
*        November 25         Thursday                Thanksgiving Day
*        December 24         Friday                     Christmas Day

*     American Holidays
**   Chinese Holidays
*** Chinese and American Holidays

Finally, below is the holiday closing schedule of the US Consulate in Chengdu as quoted from the US Consulate’ official website:

The Consulate is open from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Monday through Friday. We are CLOSED on the following American and Chinese holidays:

DATE	EVENT
January 1 Friday	New Year’s Day***
January 18 Monday	Martin Luther King, Jr.’ Birthday*
February 13-17 Sat-Wed	Chinese Lunar New Year**
February 15 Monday	President’s Day*
April 5 Monday	Tomb Sweeping Day**
May 1-3 Sat-Mon	International Labor Day**
May 31 Monday	Memorial Day*
June 16 Wednesday	Dragon Boat Festival**
July 5 Monday	Independence Day*
September 6 Monday	Labor Day*
September 22 Wednesday	Mid-Autumn Festival**
October 1-5 Fri-Tuesday	Chinese National Day**
October 11 Monday	Columbus Day*
November 11 Thursday	Veterans’ Day*
November 25 Thursday	Thanksgiving Day*
December 24 Friday	Christmas Day*
December 31 Friday	New Year’s Day (2011)*

*      American Holiday
**    Chinese Holiday—Chinese Government offices will be closed
***  Chinese and American Holidays

Those seeking visas overseas such as an Immigrant visa or a K1 visa are wise to contact the relevant Post in order to ascertain the protocols for visa interview. Those seeking assistance from an American Citizen Services (ACS) section of a US Post overseas are prudent to contact the Post prior to arrival as many Posts allow appointments for matters before the ACS unit.

For information regarding attorney assistance with Consular Processing in Bangkok, Thailand please see: US Embassy Thailand.

The U.S. Embassy in Beijing, along with four U.S. consulates general across China, is opening on Saturdays over the next few weeks to accommodate thousands of Chinese travelers seeking visas to visit the United States.

Trade, commerce, people-to-people exchanges, and tourism between China and the United States have grown dramatically over the past couple years. In 2009, U.S. consulates in China issued more than 487,000 visas to Chinese travelers. Sixty-six percent of these visas were for business and tourism. Growth in 2010 has been even more dramatic. China’s 2010 visa load is up 28 percent over the same period last year.

“We’re excited about the extraordinary growth in visa demand in China and what it means for our countries’ deepening economic and interpersonal relationship,” said Janice Jacobs, Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs. “We expect this trend to continue and are actively increasing staffing in our Embassy and consulates. We also introduced new technologies to improve our efficiency while providing more convenient procedures for applicants.”

“While we’re pleased about increased Chinese interest in traveling to the United States, we are not pleased by the increased wait times for a visa appointment,” observed U.S. Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman, Jr. “We applaud the efforts of our Consular staff and the Bureau of Consular Affairs to think creatively and boost resources to help clear the backlog. I witnessed our team’s dedication when I visited the Consular Section last week.”

This author applauds the efforts of the US Embassies and Consulates in China. The attitude taken toward the backlog of pending applications in China is similar to the attitude taken by the US Embassy in Bangkok regarding the backlog arising from recent unrest in the city. In Thailand, this author is pleased to have been witness to the exceptionally diligent efforts of the Consular Officers and support staff at the US Consulate in Bangkok as they cleared a rather large caseload which arose as a result of the extended closure of the Post due to the protests that broke out in the district in which the Post is located.

Although the US Immigration process can be rather cumbersome, it is nice to see that officers in the Department of State are taking active measures to creatively and efficiently deal with what could be viewed by others as an overwhelming work load.