Uruguayan Foreign Minister Mario Lubetkin announced Thursday that Uruguay will waive visa requirements for Chinese citizens holding ordinary passports, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Friday.

China and Uruguay raising the level of facilitation for personnel exchanges will help enhance mutual understanding between the two peoples and promote exchanges and cooperation, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Friday following the announcement.

Chinese experts said that the move reflects continuing steady momentum of ties between the two countries, a positive response of China's earlier visa-free policy to the countries in the broader geographical context of the Latin-American region, and a growing recognition of China passport in the region.

At the instruction of President Yamandu Orsi, Uruguayan Foreign Minister Mario Lubetkin announced on Thursday during the farewell event for Chinese Ambassador Huang Yazhong the start of a process to allow Chinese citizens to enter Uruguay without a visa, according to a post by Cancillería Uruguay, the country's foreign ministry, on X platform.

The measure will especially benefit growing tourism from that part of the world, and comes in reciprocity to the step taken by Chinese authorities at the beginning of 2025, which will help significantly boost this sector that is highly important to the country's economic development, according to the post.

The move came after Chinese Foreign Ministry announced last year starting June 1, 2025, China's visa-free policy will benefit nationals of Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru and Uruguay, with the trial period lasting until May 31, 2026.

The news about Uruguay's visa-free policy for Chinese citizens quickly drew attention from local media, with outlets including Uruguayan television Subrayado, La Diaria and Montevideo Portal reporting on the Uruguayan Foreign Ministry's announcement.

According to Montevideo Portal, the measure aims to especially promote the growth of Chinese tourism and strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries.

At the bilateral level, the reciprocal visa-free arrangements are an important part of the China-Uruguay comprehensive strategic partnership. They reflect the continuing momentum of China-Uruguay ties and will help facilitate investment and trade between the two countries. More broadly, they represent a positive response to China's visa-free policy for five Latin American countries, Wang Youming, Director of the Institute of Developing Countries at the China Institute of International Studies in Beijing, told the Global Times on Friday.

According to Xinhua, the Brazilian government also announced that Brazil will implement a visa-free entry policy for Chinese citizens holding valid ordinary passports, starting May 11, 2026.

Recent high-level interactions have also underscored the steady momentum in China-Uruguay relations. On May 28, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Mario Lubetkin in New York. Earlier this year, in February, President Yamandú Orsi paid a state visit to China. During his visit, China called for strengthening the alignment of development strategies, and deepening cooperation in areas such as economy and trade, finance, agriculture and animal husbandry, infrastructure construction, and information and communications technology, according to an earlier report by Xinhua in February.

According to a release from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the biggest features of China-Uruguay relations have been maturity, stability and predictability.

China is not only Uruguay's largest trading partner, but also a major trading partner of Latin America and the largest trading partner of many South American countries.

Wang Youming said that China's vast consumer market, especially its demand for agricultural and livestock products, matches the export needs of many Latin American countries, including Uruguay, where beef exports play an important role in driving the economy.

The visa-free move is an important step in implementing the consensus and cooperation measures reached by the two sides, especially after the Uruguayan president's visit to China earlier this year. More than boosting tourism, the policy will also benefit business exchanges, trade and investment facilitation between the two countries, Wang said.

Jiang Shixue, a professor at the Center for Latin American Studies at Shanghai University, told the Global Times on Friday that China-Uruguay trade shows a complementary pattern, as the two countries' trade structure reflects their respective comparative advantages. Uruguay mainly exports primary products and raw materials while China mainly exports manufactured goods such as mobile phones and air conditioners.

According to statistics from China's General Administration of Customs, bilateral trade between China and Uruguay reached $7.19 billion in 2025, with China's exports standing at $3.68 billion and imports at $3.51 billion.

Located in southeastern South America, Uruguay sits on the eastern banks of the Uruguay River and the Río de la Plata, bordering Brazil to the north, Argentina to the west and the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast. Its vast grasslands, long coastline, unhurried pace of life and rich cultural heritage together shape the distinctive charm of this South American country, according to media reports, citing Xinhua.

Data from Chinese online travel platform Qunar showed that as of Friday morning, searches for flights from China to Uruguay had risen significantly, with searches for Montevideo, Uruguay's capital and the most popular local destination for Chinese travelers this year, surging dozens of times compared with the previous week. Qunar's research institute said that as Brazil has already implemented a visa-free policy for Chinese citizens, travelers can now combine Uruguay and Brazil in one trip and visit multiple South American countries with lower costs.

The visa-free move also reflects the growing recognition of Chinese passports among Latin American countries, as well as China's rising international standing and the continued improvement of China-Latin America relations, Jiang said.

Data from another online travel platform Tongcheng Travel also pointed to rising interest in Uruguay after the announcement. The platform said the expansion of visa-free destinations is helping stimulate demand for long-haul outbound travel, while the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America could further boost "match-watching plus South America tour" itineraries, making visa-free South American destinations more attractive to Chinese travelers.

Official data from platforms including the China Consular Affairs website show that at present, 62 countries and regions allow visa-free entry for Chinese citizens, 37 offer visas on arrival, and 49 allow entry with e-visas. After removing overlaps, the total reaches 123 countries and regions, accounting for about 64 percent of the 193 UN member states.

As of April 2026, research by Henley & Partners showed that China's ordinary passport had a Henley Passport Index score of 82 and ranked 55th among 101 places globally, its highest level in recent years.

The visa-free move can also be viewed in a broader regional context, Wang said, noting that Uruguay is an important member of Mercosur and has long supported closer trade arrangements with China, including efforts to advance China-Uruguay free trade cooperation and broader China-Mercosur economic engagement.