Learn Hardcore Chinese: nǐ shēnqǐng qiānzhèng le ma?

吗 (ma) is the yes–no question particle. Adding 吗 to the end of a statement turns it into a question.
- Statement: 你申请签证了。 (You applied for a visa.)
- Question: 你申请签证了吗？ (Did you apply for a visa?)
了 (le) here is the aspect particle marking a completed action. It shows that the speaker is asking whether the action of applying has already been done.

So structurally:
你 (you) + 申请签证 (apply for a visa) + 了 (completed) + 吗 (question) → “Have you applied for a visa (already)?”

Why is 了 placed before 吗 and not at the very end of the sentence?

吗 (ma) must be the last element in a yes–no question. It always comes at the very end of the sentence.

了 (le), as a verb‑phase aspect marker, generally comes:

after the verb phrase it modifies,
but before final sentence particles like 吗, 啊, 吧.

So the order is:

Verb phrase + 了
- 吗

Correct:

✅ 你申请签证了 吗？
Wrong:
❌ 你申请签证吗了？
❌ 你申请签证了吗啊？ (if you tried to put another particle after 吗)

So 了吗 is not a single word; it’s 了 + 吗, each with its own function.

What is the difference between 你申请签证了吗？ and 你申请签证吗？?

They are both questions, but the time/aspect meaning is different:

你申请签证了吗？
- With 了, it asks whether the action is already completed.
- Most naturally: “Have you applied for a visa (yet/already)?”
- It implies the application is something that was expected to be done by now.
你申请签证吗？
- Without 了, it’s more like asking about a general plan, habit, or intention:
  - “Do you apply for a visa?” (as in, is that what you do / are you doing that?)
  - “Are you (the one who) applying for a visa?”
- It doesn’t focus on completion; it can sound like clarifying whether this is something you do / will do.

In most practical situations where you want to ask if the person has already done it, 你申请签证了吗？ is the natural choice.

Can I say 你申请了签证吗？ instead? Is there a difference?

Yes, 你申请了签证吗？ is grammatically correct, but there is a slight nuance difference:

你申请签证了吗？
- The object 签证 (visa) and the verb 申请 (apply) stay together; 了 marks the completion of the whole “apply-for-visa” action.
- Feels very natural and neutral.
你申请了签证吗？
- Here 了 is placed right after the verb 申请, slightly highlighting the act of applying itself.
- Still natural, but this pattern often appears more when:
  - you might contrast with some other action, or
  - you want to emphasize did you actually apply (as opposed to just talking about it, preparing documents, etc.).

In everyday conversation, 你申请签证了吗？ is more common and sounds smoother.

Does 了 here mean “past tense”? Is this sentence strictly about the past?

No. Chinese doesn’t have tense the way English does; it has aspect, and 了 marks completion, not past.

In 你申请签证了吗？, 了 indicates that the speaker is asking whether the action is now in a completed state. The time reference is understood from context:

If the deadline is today, it means “Have you applied (by now)?”
If it’s about a trip next month, it’s still “Have you already applied (for that future trip)?”

So 了 does not mean “past tense”; it means “the action is (or is not) completed at this reference point”.

How is 了 (le) different from 过 (guo) in this kind of question?

They mark different aspects:

了 (completion at a specific time)
- 你申请签证了吗？
- Focus: whether the action has been done (completed) for this particular case.
- “Have you applied for the visa (for this trip/situation) yet?”
过 (experiential, “have ever done”)
- 你申请过签证吗？
- Focus: whether the person has ever had the experience of applying for a visa in their life.
- “Have you ever applied for a visa (before)?”

So:

了 → this specific, concrete event: done yet or not?
过 → life experience: ever done it before or not?

Can I drop the object 签证 and just say 你申请了吗？?

Yes, you can omit the object if it is clear from context what you are talking about.

For example, if everyone is currently working on visa applications and someone is slow, you could say:

你申请了吗？
→ “Have you applied?” (It’s obvious you mean “applied for the visa.”)

However:

If the context is unclear, just 你申请了吗？ might be confusing, because 申请 is a general verb (“apply for / request / petition”).
In most neutral, standalone examples (like in a textbook), 你申请签证了吗？ is clearer for learners.

Can I also drop the subject and just say 申请签证了吗？?

Yes, Mandarin often omits the subject when it’s obvious from context.

申请签证了吗？ can mean:

“Have you applied for a visa?” (talking to you, known from situation), or
“Has the visa application been submitted?” (more impersonal / general)

This is natural in spoken Chinese if:

you’re already facing the person you’re talking to, or
the topic “who” is obvious from the situation.

For formal or textbook-style sentences, keeping 你 as in 你申请签证了吗？ is clearer for learners.

What about 你申请签证了没有？ — is that the same meaning?

Yes, 你申请签证了没有？ is another common way to ask essentially the same question:

你申请签证了吗？
你申请签证了没有？

Both mean: “Have you applied for a visa (yet)?”

Nuances:

了吗？ is a bit more neutral and very common.
了没有？ can feel a bit more colloquial and sometimes more pressing, like “So, did you apply or not?” — it emphasizes the contrast between “already” vs “not yet”.

Functionally, they’re interchangeable in most everyday contexts.

In English we say “apply for a visa”. Why is there no word like “for” in 申请签证?

Because in Chinese, many verbs that take prepositions in English simply take a direct object instead.

English: apply for a visa
Chinese: 申请签证 (literally “apply visa”)

Here:

申请 = the verb “to apply (for) / request”
签证 = the direct object “visa”

No extra word like “for” is needed; Chinese doesn’t use prepositions in the same way as English for many verb–object combinations.

Similar patterns:

English: “ask for help” → Chinese: 请求帮助
English: “apply for a job” → Chinese: 申请工作

How is 吗 (ma) pronounced? Is it always neutral tone?

In 你申请签证了吗？, 吗 is:

Pronounced as ma in a neutral tone (轻声 qīngshēng).
It’s short, light, and unstressed.

Key points:

As a question particle, 吗 is almost always in neutral tone, not má or mǎ.
马 (mǎ), 麻 (má), etc., are completely different words and have full tones.
So the sentence has:
- 你 (nǐ) – 3rd tone
- 申 (shēn) – 1st
- 请 (qǐng) – 3rd
- 签 (qiān) – 1st
- 证 (zhèng) – 4th
- 了 (le) – neutral
- 吗 (ma) – neutral

Can I add 已经 (yǐjīng, already), like 你已经申请签证了吗？? Does it change the meaning?

Yes, you can say:

你已经申请签证了吗？

This usually means:

“Have you already applied for a visa?”
It slightly emphasizes the “already” part, maybe because:
- you thought it might be too early, or
- you are checking if it’s already done.

Compare:

你申请签证了吗？
→ neutral: “Have you applied for a visa (yet)?”
你已经申请签证了吗？
→ more like: “Have you already applied for a visa?” (emphasis on already)

As a statement (not a question):

你已经申请签证了。
→ “You’ve already applied for a visa.”

How would I make this sentence more polite or formal?

You can adjust pronoun choice and add softening expressions:

Use 您 (nín) instead of 你 (nǐ) for politeness:
- 您申请签证了吗？
  → polite “Have you applied for a visa?”
Add 请问 (qǐngwèn, may I ask) at the beginning:
- 请问，您申请签证了吗？
  → “May I ask, have you applied for a visa?”
In very formal written or service situations, you might also see:
- 请问，您已经申请签证了吗？
  (with 已经 for “already”)

These keep the same grammar; they just make the tone more respectful.