POZ Community Forums
Main Forums => Living With HIV => Topic started by: stpetecoyote on August 04, 2008, 10:21:23 am
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Greetings all...it has been a while since I have posted to the forums but wanted to ask for some advice. My company is in the process of outsourcing to China (oh yes, don't even get me started) and as part of said outsourcing I am expected to travel there in the next couple of months in order to conduct some validations. I had read that they were expected to remove the travel ban on HIV+ individuals based on information last November, but have later learned that the ban is still in place and will likely remain so through the Olympics and indefinitely thereafter. Does anyone have any experience traveling to China? I have the unnerving feeling that it is going to come down to not being able to go--hence not being able to do my job---or taking my chances and putting my pills in a different bottle and attempting to go incognito and hope I don't get turned around at the gates...that's an awfully long trip to take not to be able to at least get a dose of lead and melamine.
Thanks
Kris
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Hey Kris
Yeah, unfortunately they reinstated the ban on commutable diseases for the Olympics, though many groups seem to think that it's just an extra excuse to kick undesirable people out of the country. In the past they did require everyone to fill in a form making a declaration that you have no known commutable diseases, including HIV (and many others, even mental illness, though it's obviously not an infectious), but I still haven't seen the forms again even after the reinstatement, and I do travel to China regularly from Hong Kong (2-3 times a month). And FYI I am not on meds yet.
It's kind of difficult to advise because if I say go incognito I am advising you to break the laws - so all I can say is, many many people travel to China without making any such declarations and unless it's for a long stay work visa they don't require body check and showing of medication reports. Do take into consideration that during this period they do check bags more rigorously, but I expect that they will loosen up a bit after September, including a remote but not impossible revocation of the ban.
Best of luck, Shaun
PS - if you have more questions just send me a PM
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Shaun sounds like a lawyer.
Talking about outsourcing... That's my job title. ;)
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Haha.. except for the typos Alive.. ;)
Back to stpeteoyote, I wouldn't be too worried about it. There were some decisions about traveling to the US with meds in the past - they apply here for traveling to China too.
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Thanks for the input guys...I will just be there briefly to transfer knowledge and be there to help if there are any issues...no long term trips for me...I hope! I was curious how active they were in enforcing a ban or if it was more of one of those back-ups if they wanted you out!
Thanks again
K
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Wish you the best dude. Have fun in China! ;)