CNMI anticipates resurgence of Chinese market with the resumption of visa-free entry program

Tourists stroll along the street in the district of Garapan on Saipan. Photo by Mar-Vic Cagurangan/Pacific Island Times

By Pacific Island Times News Staff

Saipan– The Marianas Visitors Authority anticipates the Chinese market to bounce back following the resumption of the Economic Vitality & Security Travel Authorization Program, or EVS-TAP, and the expected reinstatement of Hong Kong Airlines' Saipan service on Sept. 21.

“This opens the pipeline again to non-visa holders from Hong Kong and China, something we desperately need to revive our tourism economy," said

Jamika R. Taijeron, MVA's managing director.

EVS-TAP is administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and allows prescreened Chinese nationals to travel to the CNMI without a visa under specified conditions. 

“We are very excited to know that traveler applications are being processed once again through EVS-TAP following the sudden suspension in April, and processing is proceeding quite rapidly,” Taijeron said.

MVA noted that the EVP is a restricted subprogram of the Guam-CNMI visa waiver program.

Prior to the pandemic, visitor arrivals from China made up more than 40 percent of all visitors to the Marianas under the Guam-CNMI visa waiver program, as well as Annex VI under the U.S. Department of State’s “US-China Air Transport Agreement of July 9, 2007, which had provided a special carveout of flights between China and the Marianas. 

Absent these two tools, total visitor arrivals have sputtered to 126,312 this fiscal year through June, 30 percent lower than last fiscal year. 

The Hotel Association of the Northern Mariana Islands has reported 29 percent average occupancy for 2025.

The hotel association said visitor arrivals to the Marianas continued to decline in the face of fierce flight competition from the primary source market of Korea, an unfavorable currency exchange rate, and the temporary suspension of EVS-TAP applications.

“The resumption of EVS-TAP is a lifeline for our economy and the people of the commonwealth,” said Dennis Seo, HANMi's chairman.

“It will take time to rebuild arrivals through Hong Kong – where we had flights before the suspension, not to mention all the other cities in mainland China we had flights from before the pandemic.  But EVS-TAP reopens the door to that."

Seo said HANMI has also been working closely with the administration and the MVA to bring new air service to Saipan this year, including talks with Korean Air.

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