Visa-free policies for foreign nationals entering China

China has implemented various visa-free policies to facilitate travel for foreign nationals visiting the country. They include transit visa-free arrangements, unilateral and mutual visa-free policies for certain countries, visa-free entry through shipping cruise ports and more.

This article provides an overview of the visa-free policies available for foreign nationals entering China.

Visa-free transit policies

Foreign nationals from 54 countries are currently eligible for the 144-hour transit visa-free policies which are effective in 20 Chinese cities, including Shanghai.

These countries include:

European countries (40)

Albania, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and Ukraine

American countries (6)

Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Mexico, and the United States

Oceanian countries (2)

Australia and New Zealand

Asian countries (6)

Brunei, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Qatar, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates

Passengers from these countries holding valid international travel documents and interline tickets with confirmed dates and seats – who are going to transit to third countries (or regions) via China within specific time frames – can apply for visa-free transit at the entry/exit border inspection authorities in the designated visa-free transit city ports. The authorities will handle all temporary entry procedures, with the duration of stay of each passenger to be calculated from 00:00 on the day following entry.

Click here to check out what to do and where to go during your 144-hour transfer-stay in Shanghai.

List of agreements on mutual visa exemption between the People's Republic of China and foreign countries

China has established mutual visa exemption agreements with over 150 foreign countries, promoting closer ties and facilitating travel.

Check out the list here.

Latest visa-free policy for 16 countries

China implements visa-free entry policy for cruise ship passengers

The National Immigration Administration announced to fully implement on May 15 a visa-free entry policy for foreign tourist groups arriving by cruise ships in coastal provinces of China, and the policy is effective immediately.

Foreign tourist groups, comprising two or more individuals, arriving by cruise ship and organized and received by China's domestic travel agencies can enter China visa-free through any coastal cruise port and stay for up to 15 days.

The tourist groups must travel together on the same cruise ship to the next port when the cruise leaves China. The activity area is limited to the coastal provinces, municipalities, and Beijing.

The visa-free entry ports include 13 national cruise ports located in Tianjin, Dalian in Liaoning province, Shanghai, Lianyungang in Jiangsu province, Wenzhou and Zhoushan in Zhejiang province, Xiamen in Fujian province, Qingdao in Shandong province, Guangzhou and Shenzhen in Guangdong province, Beihai in Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, and Haikou and Sanya in Hainan province.

Additionally, to support the development of cruise tourism, seven cruise ports in Dalian, Lianyungang, Wenzhou, Zhoushan, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Beihai will be added as transit visa-free ports for citizens of 54 countries, facilitating foreign passengers to transfer and depart via cruise ships from these ports, according to the immigration administration.