The short version: nationals of 50 countries can currently enter mainland China without a visa for up to 30 days on an ordinary passport, for tourism, business, family visits, exchange visits or transit. There is no application and no fee. But check the date on this page before you book: the policy is currently in force only until 31 December 2026, and has been extended several times already.
Fifty countries, on ordinary passports. Grouped as the National Immigration Administration publishes them:
Europe (35): Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom.
Oceania (2): Australia, New Zealand.
Asia (7): Bahrain, Brunei, Japan, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, South Korea.
Americas (6): Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Peru, Uruguay.
The NIA list is the one to trust; other official pages still quote an older 45-country version. Count the list above yourself if it matters to your trip — it is 50 entries, and if your passport is not in it, the policy does not apply to you regardless of what a travel blog says.
Travellers who do not meet these conditions still need a visa obtained in advance.
China has two separate arrangements that both get called "visa-free", and mixing them up is how people end up turned away at the airport:
If your passport is on the 50-country list, the first one applies to you and it is the simpler route. If it is not, the transit exemption may still work for a layover.
If your passport is not among the 50, then yes: you need a visa before you travel, including for a short holiday. This is the ordinary China tourist visa, issued as an L visa, and it is applied for in advance at a Chinese embassy or consulate, or through the visa application service centre that handles your country.
Practical points that matter more than the paperwork:
So put together, China entry requirements for a short visit come down to three questions: is your nationality on the visa-free list, is your itinerary a genuine transit, and if neither, do you have a visa. This page answers the first, the transit guide answers the second.
There is no legitimate way to be granted visa-free entry by applying somewhere, paying a fee, or using an agency that claims otherwise. If a service offers to "register" you for visa-free entry, it is not describing anything that exists.
Most visitors never get as far as the country list, so here is the direct version for the passports that make up most of the search traffic to this page.
If your passport is not named here, the list above is the authority: if it is among the 50, you are covered; if not, apply for a visa before you fly.
Entry is the first gate, not the only one. Before you fly, sort out payments and connectivity: almost all spending in mainland China runs through Alipay or WeChat Pay, and a normal roaming plan or hotel wifi reaches only part of the internet once you are inside.
Our payments guide covers binding a foreign card, and the China eSIM guide explains why some travel data plans work there and others do not.
Up to 30 days per entry. The count starts at 00:00 on the day after you arrive, not from the moment you clear immigration, so a late-afternoon arrival effectively gives you slightly more than 30 days.
No. On arrival you present your ordinary passport and the entry is granted. There is no application, no fee and no pre-registration. Nobody selling you a 'visa-free registration' is describing a real service.
It is currently in force until 24:00 on 31 December 2026. The policy has been extended several times, but if you travel after that date you must check the National Immigration Administration before booking, rather than assuming an extension has happened.
No. This is about entering mainland China. Hong Kong and Macau are separate immigration areas with their own entry rules, and this policy does not change them.
No. The permitted purposes are business, tourism, visiting relatives or friends, exchange visits and transit. Paid employment and study are not covered and require the appropriate visa obtained in advance.
Yes. There is no restriction on US passport holders visiting China. The United States simply is not on the current 50-country visa-free list, so you need a tourist (L) visa issued in advance. That is the ordinary route for most passports, not a special case against the US.
Use your own government's advisory rather than a travel blog, including this one: the US State Department, the UK FCDO and Australia's Smartraveller all maintain country pages and update them. They sometimes disagree, so read the date printed on the page before acting on it.
Apply in advance at a Chinese embassy or consulate, or at the visa application service centre that handles your country. A tourist trip is issued as an L visa, usually takes two to four weeks, and cannot be arranged on arrival.
You need the appropriate visa before you travel. Overstaying a visa-free entry is not a way to extend a trip, and whether any extension is possible depends on your local exit-entry administration — ask before you assume either way.
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