The Short Answer
COVA — the China Online Visa Application system the Chinese Embassy and Consulates in the U.S. switched to on September 30, 2025 — shows your application's progress as a short status line under Track the status of my application. Only a handful of those statuses require you to do anything. The one that matters most is "Passport to be submitted": it means your online form passed preliminary review and your physical passport now has to reach the visa office. It does not mean your visa is approved.
This guide lists every status U.S. applicants report seeing, says which ones are confirmed on the Embassy's and Consulates' own pages, and tells you what to do at each one. For the single most important status, we keep a dedicated, deeper page: "Passport to be Submitted" — what it means and what to send us.
Every COVA Status, in Order
How to read the table. "Official" means the exact wording appears on a current U.S. Embassy or Consulate page (linked under Official sources). "Reported" means applicants and visa services describe it, but we have not found the exact label on an official U.S. page — treat the wording as approximate. COVA's labels also differ slightly in capitalization between offices ("Passport to be submitted" vs "Passport to be Submitted"); they mean the same thing.
| Status | Stage | What it means | Visa approved? | Your next step | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draft / saved, not submitted | Before review | You saved progress under Personal Center › My draft but have not clicked "Submit the application form." | Finish and submit. Nothing happens until you do. | No | Official (Embassy guidelines, §II) |
| Preliminary review in progress / Under review | Online review | Submitted and waiting for a consular staff member to review the form and uploads. The normal waiting state. | Wait and check back. Review time is not published and varies by office and season; in our experience about 4–5 business days for a complete, accurate application. Do not file a second application. | No | Reported wording; stage is official |
| Rejected and to be modified | Online review | The reviewer wants a correction or an added upload. Not a visa refusal. | Read the feedback, fix exactly that, resubmit the same application. Core fields (name, passport number, DOB, nationality) can't be edited — cancel and refile instead. | No | Official (Embassy, LA, NY) |
| Supplementary Materials to be provided | Online review | A specific extra document is required before review continues. | Upload it in COVA. LA: do not email documents. | No | Official (SF, LA) |
| Passport to be submitted | Online review passed | Preliminary review approved. Your passport, the printed application-information page with barcode, and any required originals must now be submitted in person at the visa office — by you, another person, or an agency. | No — not yet | SF clients: text or email us. LA, DC and NY clients: email us a screenshot showing your name, barcode and the status. Then mail your passport using the instructions we send. LA cancels applications not submitted within 30 days. This is normally the only status at which you mail your passport; for genuinely urgent Express cases, ChinaVisaMail may agree with you to hold it earlier — a case-by-case exception, see our Express page. | Official (all four offices) |
| Passport submitted / Final review in progress | Final review | The office has your passport and is making the decision. An interview or more documents can still be requested. | Not yet | Wait for the pickup date on the pickup slip. Watch the email and phone you listed in COVA. | Reported wording; stage is official |
| Passport to be collected | Decision made | Processing finished; the passport (normally with the visa) is ready for pickup on or after the pickup-slip date. The fee is paid at collection. | Usually yes — check the visa | Nothing for our clients: we collect, check the visa details, and ship the passport back with tracking. | Official (Embassy, SF, LA, NY) |
| Review Failed | Decision made | Final review did not result in a visa. The passport is returned. | No | See China visa denied or rejected: what to do next. | Official (SF, LA) |
| Finished / Completed | Closed | The passport has been collected and the case is closed in the system. | Nothing. | — | Reported |
| Cancelled | Closed | You cancelled it, or LA's 30-day rule cancelled it. A new application is needed. | File a new application if you still need a visa. The Embassy limits you to two self-cancellations within 90 days. | No | Official rules; label wording reported |
| Interview / appointment statuses | Either stage | The officer requires an in-person interview or appointment. Rare for U.S. tourist and business applications, but the Embassy says it can happen. | Not yet | Follow the office's instructions. Only the applicant can attend. | Interview possibility official; label wording reported |
| Payment statuses ("To be paid", "Payment pending") | — | These belong to overseas Visa Application Service Centers that take online payment. The U.S. offices collect the fee in person at pickup, so U.S. applicants should not normally see them. | — | If you see one, check that you selected a U.S. office, not a visa center abroad. | U.S. payment rule official; labels not applicable |
The Two Statuses People Confuse
"Passport to be submitted" comes first and means send the passport in. "Passport to be collected" comes last and means come and get it. They sound alike and are often mixed up in forum posts. If you mail your passport at "to be collected," it is already at the office; if you wait at "to be submitted," nothing happens — Los Angeles will cancel the application after 30 days.
A second confusion is "Rejected and to be modified" versus a refusal. The first is a correction request during online review; nothing has been decided. A refusal only occurs after the passport is physically submitted. We cover that distinction, fees and reapplying in China visa denied or rejected.
What You Do at Each Stage if You Use ChinaVisaMail
We do not have access to your COVA account and never ask for your login. You own the account; you watch the status. Here is the division of labor:
| Stage | You | ChinaVisaMail |
|---|---|---|
| Filling in COVA | Complete the form, select the office that covers your state, upload documents. | Answers questions, points you to the right office (consulate finder) and guides (COVA form guide). |
| Online review | Check status; respond to any "to be modified" or "supplementary materials" request. | Helps you interpret feedback; cannot see or speed up the queue. |
| "Passport to be submitted" | SF: text or email us. LA/DC/NY: email the screenshot (name + barcode + status). Mail your passport with tracking to the address in our instructions. | Sends mailing instructions, checklist and payment options within 1–2 hours; confirms receipt by email; prints the barcode page for submission. |
| Final review | Keep your phone and email reachable in case the office asks for anything. | Arranges the in-person submission at your Consulate or Embassy; relays any request. |
| "Passport to be collected" | Nothing. | Arranges pickup, pays the government fee (included in our price for U.S. passports), checks the visa, ships the passport back by USPS Priority Mail with tracking. |
Timing: official processing after physical submission is about 4 business days (Regular) or 2–3 at SF and LA and 3 at DC and NY (Express). Our end-to-end estimate from the day we receive your passport is about 11–13 business days Standard or 8–11 Express — see processing times.
Status Says "Passport to be Submitted"?
That is the moment to apply. Mandy replies within 1–2 hours with your mailing instructions, checklist and payment options. $449 Standard · $494 Express, government fee included.
Get My Mailing Instructions →How Long Each Status Takes
- Online preliminary review: not published by any office. Our clients' complete, accurate applications usually clear in about 4–5 business days; corrections add a cycle. Holidays (Chinese National Day, Spring Festival, U.S. federal holidays) slow everything.
- Physical submission to "Passport to be collected": Regular about 4 business days; Express 2–3 at SF and LA, 3 at DC and NY. These are the offices' published averages, "for reference only," counted from the day the passport is submitted. Some cases take longer and no pickup date is given until the office notifies you.
- Return shipping: USPS Priority Mail, typically 2–3 days, tracked.
If the pickup-slip date has passed and the status has not moved, the Embassy's advice is to check the email and phone you entered in COVA for a request, and not to go (or send anyone) to the office until the status actually reads "Passport to be collected."
How to Check Your Status
- Go to consular.mfa.gov.cn/VISA/ and log in with the email you registered.
- Click Track the status of my application on the homepage, or your account name › Personal Center.
- Read any message attached to the status. Requests for corrections or documents are written there, not only emailed.
Only the official site shows your status. ChinaVisaMail does not track COVA on your behalf, and no third-party site can look it up for you. If you applied under the old system before September 30, 2025, the New York Consulate notes the old COVA site can still be opened to view that application's status or download materials.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does "Passport to be submitted" mean in COVA?
Your online application passed preliminary review and the physical passport, the printed application-information page with its barcode, and any required originals must now be submitted at the visa office by you, another person or an agency. It is not visa approval. ChinaVisaMail clients: SF, text or email us; LA, DC and NY, email us a screenshot showing your name, barcode and the status.
Does "Passport to be submitted" mean my China visa is approved?
No. The Chinese Embassy states that online review approval does not guarantee visa issuance; the officer decides after the passport is submitted and may ask for an interview or more documents.
What is the difference between "Passport to be submitted" and "Passport to be collected"?
"To be submitted" is the request to hand in your passport. "To be collected" means processing is finished and the passport is ready for pickup. One is the beginning of the physical stage; the other is the end.
What does "Rejected and to be modified" mean?
The reviewer wants you to correct or add something in your online form. Modify what was asked and resubmit the same application. It is not a refusal.
What does "Supplementary Materials to be provided" mean?
A specific additional document is required. Upload it through COVA; Los Angeles says not to email documents. Review continues after you upload.
What does "Review Failed" mean?
At the San Francisco and Los Angeles Consulates it means the final review, after the passport was submitted, did not result in a visa, and the passport is returned. See our guide on denied and rejected applications for next steps.
How long does COVA preliminary review take?
No office publishes a time. For our clients a complete, accurate application usually clears in about 4–5 business days; a correction request adds another cycle, and holidays slow things down.
My status has not changed for two weeks. Is something wrong?
Not necessarily. Review times vary. Check the email and phone you entered in COVA for any request, confirm you selected the correct office for your state, and wait. Do not file a second application — the system blocks applicants with a pending one.
Can ChinaVisaMail check my COVA status for me?
No. You own the COVA account and we never ask for your login. You check the status and tell us when it reaches "Passport to be submitted."
Can I mail my passport before the status says "Passport to be submitted"?
No. The office will not accept it, and we will not submit it. Wait for the status, then request our mailing instructions.
Why don't I see any payment status in COVA?
The U.S. Embassy and Consulates collect the visa fee in person at pickup (credit card, money order or cashier's check), so there is no online payment step. Payment statuses belong to overseas visa application centers.
Is the status wording the same at every U.S. office?
The stages are the same. Capitalization differs ("Passport to be submitted" vs "Passport to be Submitted"), and "Review Failed" is explicitly named on the San Francisco and Los Angeles pages but not on the Embassy's. Some labels in this guide are reported by applicants rather than printed on an official page, and we label them that way.