Visas and entry

Which rule applies to you

China’s entry rules changed a lot between 2023 and 2025, and they keep changing. There are three ways in, and most visitors now use one of the first two.

1. Unilateral visa-free entry. Citizens of a growing list of countries can enter for tourism, business or family visits without a visa, for a fixed number of days. The list has expanded several times and includes most of Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea and a number of countries in South America and the Gulf.
2. Visa-free transit. Citizens of a wider list of countries can enter without a visa if they are travelling on to a third country or region, for up to a set number of days, through designated ports. Hong Kong and Macau count as onward destinations.
3. A tourist (L) visa from a Chinese embassy, consulate or visa centre. Slower and costs money, but has no onward-ticket condition and allows longer stays.

Visa-free entry

If your country is on the unilateral list, you simply arrive with a valid passport and get stamped in. There is no online registration and no fee. The permitted stay counts from the day after arrival. You must leave by the last day; overstaying is a fine and a record.

Have these ready, printed or on your phone:

• A return or onward ticket. It is rarely asked for, but airlines check at departure.
• Your first hotel booking. Border officers occasionally ask where you are staying.
• Travel insurance details, for your own sake.

Visa-free transit

The transit exemption is for people passing through China on the way somewhere else. The rules that matter:

• Your onward ticket must be to a different country or region from the one you arrived from. Flying in from Bangkok and out to Bangkok does not qualify; in from Bangkok and out to Hong Kong does.
• You enter and leave through designated ports. Most major airports and several rail and sea ports are included.
• Within the allowed days you can travel within the permitted region, which now covers most provinces.

1. 1Book the onward ticket first and keep it accessible; you will show it at check-in and at the border.
2. 2At arrival, follow the signs for the transit visa-free counter rather than the normal immigration line.
3. 3Fill in the arrival card completely, including your onward flight and hotel.
4. 4Keep the stamped card and your boarding passes until you leave.

Applying for a visa

If neither exemption covers you, apply at a Chinese Visa Application Service Centre in your country. The process is straightforward but slow.

• Fill in the online application form and print it.
• Book an appointment; you will give fingerprints.
• Bring your passport, a photo to spec, flight and hotel bookings, and proof of funds if asked.
• Standard processing is around four working days; express is faster and costs more.

Ten-year multiple-entry visas exist for some nationalities and are worth it if you expect to return.

At the border

Immigration is orderly and usually quick. Fingerprints are scanned on arrival. If you are asked questions, they will be about your itinerary and where you are staying. Keep answers simple.

Common mistakes

• Booking hotels that don’t take foreigners. Some budget hotels are not licensed to register foreign guests. Filter for “accepts foreign guests” on booking sites, or stick to international chains and hostels that mention it.
• Assuming Hong Kong counts as China for the exemption. For visa purposes it is a separate region. Entering the mainland from Hong Kong is a fresh entry.
• Forgetting the day count includes weekends and holidays. Thirty days means thirty calendar days.