Vis-a-vis visas, europe plays catch-up

Schengen nations are opening dozens of visa centers in China's smaller cities this year, following last fall's policies requiring biometric data that make applying thornier for those outside the few main megalopolises. Xu Lin looks at how the need for Chinese fingerprints has expanded the EU's visa-center footprint in the country.

Yin Rui is happy he won't have to travel to Beijing from his home in Henan province's Xinyang city to get his Schengen visa to visit Spain this year.

That's because the Spanish embassy in Beijing recently announced it'll open 12 new visa-application centers in such second-tier cities as Jiangsu province's capital, Nanjing; Liaoning province's capital, Shenyang; and Hubei province's capital, Wuhan, which is a 45-minute, 91.5 yuan ($14) high-speed train ride from Yin's city.