Six expats living in Shanghai received their new-version permanent residence identity card from the local exit-entry administration bureau this morning.

The new version of the Permanent Residence Identity Card for Foreigners of the People's Republic of China was officially issued nationwide starting today. Because of the newly-added five-star element, the new ID card is dubbed the "five-star card."

Sinan Yilmaz, general manager at the Pudong Shangri-La, Shanghai, was excited as he received his "five-star card." He thought the name "five-star card" was beautiful and said he felt honored to be in the city's first group of foreigners to get the card.

Rostislav Berezkin, a Russian researcher at the National Institute for Advanced Humanistic Studies of Fudan University, travels a lot for academic exchanges and believes the "five-star card" will make booking transportation and accommodation more convenient.

On the first day of the card's issuance, 50 foreigners across the country who had obtained permanent residence qualifications received the "five-star card."

They come from more than 20 countries, including the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, Sweden, Singapore and South Korea. All have made outstanding contributions to China's economic and social development in many fields, such as the economy, education, science and technology, culture and health.

These include winners of the Chinese Government Friendship Award, foreign high-level managers and professional technicians who have worked in China for a long time, as well as foreign professors and scholars who have been engaged in teaching and research in key universities and scientific research institutions for a long time.

Some foreigners who already have permanent residence permits visited the bureau to consult and apply for replace their identity cards with the new "five-star cards."

Dutch collector Henk Nieuwenhuys, who was awarded Shanghai's Magnolia Silver Award in 2012, already holds a permanent residence permit but still came to the exit-entry administration office to apply for a replacement "five-star card."

He said the new card added the five-star elements that reflect China's national identity and it would be very meaningful to have it.

Cai Baodi, director of the foreigner document management office of the exit-entry administration bureau, said that the "five-star card" is a legal identity document for foreigners approved to permanently reside in China.

The holder can use it alone as a personal identity certificate when it is necessary to prove his or her identity instead of presenting a passport.

According to the National Immigration Administration, the "five-star card" optimizes the storage method of document information, beautifies the layout, adopts more advanced anti-counterfeiting technology, and enhances personal information protection and data security.

The National Immigration Administration, together with relevant departments, is vigorously promoting the card's adaptability and application systems so as to facilitate its use in transportation, daily consumption, financial communications and other public services, government affairs and Internet platforms.

The issuance of the "five-star card" is an important measure to ensure the country's high-level openness and improve the informatization of management services for foreigners in China.

It will better serve foreigners who come to China for investment, to start a business, for innovation, work and to live and make significant contributions to the high-quality economic and social development of the country.