Now that the U.S. government will no longer place additional blank visa pages into U.S. passports travelers will generally need to renew their passports 6 months ahead of the expiration date and in many cases while they still have a valid foreign visas inside.
The Chinese government has announced that they will allow U.S. citizens to carry their old expired or canceled passport with a valid Chinese visa along with their new valid passport as long as the vital personal data remains the same between the two passports. When renewing a U.S. passport your passport number, date of issue, and date of expiration do change whereas your name, sex, and date of birth would typically remain the same. If any changes have been made to your personal data for any reason, e.g., change of name due to marriage, you will not be able to use the valid visa in the cancelled or expired passport rather you must reapply for a new Chinese visa in the currently valid passport and Traveldocs can assist you in this process.
Carrying two passports while you travel is not for you...? You can also apply for a new visa to be issued and stamped into your new valid passport; however, the Chinese Government does not transfer the valid visa from the old passport to the new so you would receive a completely new visa. The old passport and visa must also be presented at the time of application so the original visa can be officially canceled.
What other countries also allow you to travel with a valid visa in an expired U.S. passport...? The regulations regarding visa transfers and reissue differ between countries so please contact Traveldocs for more information on the countries listed below:
Brazil - Overal the same requirements and guidelines as China, a valid Brazilian visa in an expired passport can be use along with a valid passport to travel to Brazil as long as the personal bio data has not changed.
Saudi - Overal the same requirements and guidelines as China, a valid Saudi visa in an expired passport can be use along with a valid passport to travel to Saudi as long as the personal bio data has not changed.
India - Overal the same requirements and guidelines as China, a valid Indian visa in an expired passport can be use along with a valid passport to travel to India as long as the personal bio data has not changed. The Indian Government also allows for a Valid Visa Transfer Process, you can apply for the visa too be officially transfered from one passport to the other by the Indian Embassy detailed instructions can be found HERE.