A little before the official opening hour of 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, a long queue of about 50 people had formed before the Exit-Entry Administration Center of the Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau.

This was the first day of Shanghai's "passport on demand" policy, which means citizens can get a passport when they apply for one. What they have to show when filing an application are only personal identification documents.

As the gate opened, the waiting people rushed to the second floor, where all the 11 entry-exit handling windows were open. Application forms are available free at the office entrance, as well as at 100 postal offices in the city and via a security bureau website.

Cheng Xinmin, a man from Luwan District intending to visit a relative in the United States, found he only needed to write down his name, ID card number and his address and give the reason for his overseas trip. Five minutes after he submitted the application form, Cheng received his receipt, which told him to claim his passport on September 10 or entrust an express delivery company tosend it to his home.

By 9:20, more than 20 people had received their receipts.

Yang Naiguang, deputy chief of the Exit-Entry Administration, said passport applications would only become more convenient in the future.

Shanghai is the first of China's big cities to adopt this simplified procedure. The practice is due to spread to all large and medium-sized Chinese cities by 2005.

A Shanghai analyst said the change in issuing passports was dramatic. In the past, an application had to be processed by a series of departments before the passport was issued.

"I have a strong feeling that Chinese people are enjoying more freedom and China is becoming more open to the outside world," said the analyst.

(People's Daily September 3, 2002)