Entry rules and practical advice for foreign visitors

Check whether you can enter visa-free before booking flights and hotels. Rules vary by date, passport type, purpose and permitted area; this site does not decide admission.

Unilateral visa exemption · 30 days

Ordinary passports from 50 countries for tourism, business, family visits, exchanges or transit. 48 countries through 2026-12-31, Russia through 2027-12-31, Brunei open-ended.

240-hour transit visa exemption · 10 days

Ordinary passports from 57 countries with a dated connecting ticket to a third country or region, staying only in permitted areas.

24-hour transit visa exemption

Available to all nationalities without leaving the designated port area. Apply for a temporary entry permit if you need to leave it.

Port visa

For urgent travel when there is no time for an embassy visa, at 99 ports in 73 cities. Pre-declaration is recommended; this is not unconditional visa-on-arrival.

Which rule applies to your passport?

Country / region30-day exemption240-hour transitHainan 30 days
France法国FranceYesYesYes
Germany德国GermanyYesYesYes
Italy意大利ItalyYesYesYes
Netherlands荷兰NetherlandsYesYesYes
Spain西班牙SpainYesYesYes
Switzerland瑞士SwitzerlandYesYesYes
Ireland爱尔兰IrelandYesYesYes
Hungary匈牙利HungaryYesYesYes
Austria奥地利AustriaYesYesYes
Belgium比利时BelgiumYesYesYes
Luxembourg卢森堡LuxembourgYesYesYes
Poland波兰PolandYesYesYes
Slovenia斯洛文尼亚SloveniaYesYesYes
Portugal葡萄牙PortugalYesYesYes
Greece希腊GreeceYesYesYes
Cyprus塞浦路斯CyprusYesYesYes
Slovakia斯洛伐克SlovakiaYesYesYes
Norway挪威NorwayYesYesYes
Finland芬兰FinlandYesYesYes
Denmark丹麦DenmarkYesYesYes
Iceland冰岛IcelandYesYesYes
Andorra安道尔AndorraYesNoNo
Monaco摩纳哥MonacoYesYesYes
Liechtenstein列支敦士登LiechtensteinYesNoNo
Bulgaria保加利亚BulgariaYesYesYes
Romania罗马尼亚RomaniaYesYesYes
Croatia克罗地亚CroatiaYesYesYes
Montenegro黑山MontenegroYesYesYes
North Macedonia北马其顿North MacedoniaYesYesYes
Malta马耳他MaltaYesYesYes
Estonia爱沙尼亚EstoniaYesYesYes
Latvia拉脱维亚LatviaYesYesYes
Russia俄罗斯RussiaYesYesYes
Sweden瑞典SwedenYesYesYes
United Kingdom英国United KingdomYesYesYes
Czechia捷克CzechiaNoYesYes
Lithuania立陶宛LithuaniaNoYesYes
Ukraine乌克兰UkraineNoYesYes
Serbia塞尔维亚SerbiaNoYesYes
Bosnia and Herzegovina波黑Bosnia and HerzegovinaNoYesYes
Albania阿尔巴尼亚AlbaniaNoYesYes
Belarus白俄罗斯BelarusNoYesYes
United States美国United StatesNoYesYes
Canada加拿大CanadaYesYesYes
Brazil巴西BrazilYesYesYes
Mexico墨西哥MexicoNoYesYes
Argentina阿根廷ArgentinaYesYesYes
Chile智利ChileYesYesYes
Peru秘鲁PeruYesNoNo
Uruguay乌拉圭UruguayYesNoNo
Australia澳大利亚AustraliaYesYesYes
New Zealand新西兰New ZealandYesYesYes
Brunei文莱BruneiYesYesYes
South Korea韩国South KoreaYesYesYes
Japan日本JapanYesYesYes
Saudi Arabia沙特阿拉伯Saudi ArabiaYesNoNo
Oman阿曼OmanYesNoNo
Kuwait科威特KuwaitYesNoNo
Bahrain巴林BahrainYesNoNo
Singapore新加坡SingaporeNoYesYes
United Arab Emirates阿联酋United Arab EmiratesNoYesYes
Qatar卡塔尔QatarNoYesYes
Indonesia印度尼西亚IndonesiaNoYesYes
Vietnam越南VietnamNoYesYes
Kyrgyzstan吉尔吉斯斯坦KyrgyzstanNoYesYes
Malaysia马来西亚MalaysiaNoNoYes
Thailand泰国ThailandNoNoYes
Kazakhstan哈萨克斯坦KazakhstanNoNoYes
Philippines菲律宾PhilippinesNoNoYes

Confirm before departure

  • Use an ordinary passport valid throughout your stay. Travel documents, temporary or emergency documents are not eligible for visa-free entry.
  • Carry a return/connecting ticket, hotel booking and evidence matching your purpose. Work, study and journalism are not visa-free activities.
  • The 30 days start at 00:00 on the day after entry. Apply for a visa before a longer stay, or a stay permit after entry.
  • Regional and group exemptions have area and same-group entry/exit restrictions.

Practical advice after arrival

  • Hotels handle accommodation registration. For a private home or unregistered lodging, confirm the current requirement with 12367.
  • Alipay and WeChat can accept foreign cards, but keep some RMB cash and a card that works at ATMs.
  • Prepare an eSIM or tourist SIM and download offline maps and Chinese language packs.
  • Police 110 · Ambulance 120 · Fire 119 · Traffic 122 · Immigration 12367 · Consular protection +86-10-12308.

Useful apps and download links

微信 WeChat

Payments, chat and mini programs for tickets, rides and food ordering

Link Visa or Mastercard for QR payments; lower limits may apply to foreign cards.

支付宝 Alipay

Payments, Tour Pass top-ups, ride-hailing and ticket mini programs

Supports foreign cards and the Tour Pass prepaid option.

高德地图 AMap Global

Navigation, public transport and ride-hailing

English interface available; comprehensive coverage across China.

滴滴出行 DiDi China

Ride-hailing, taxis and shared rides

Register with an international phone number and link a foreign card; English interface available.

Trip.com 携程国际版

Flights, hotels, trains, attraction tickets and itineraries

Full English service; book high-speed rail without using 12306.

铁路12306

Official China Railway ticketing, with an English interface

No official Google Play package; use 12306.cn or book through Trip.com.

美团 Meituan

Food delivery, hotels, tickets and shared bikes

Chinese interface; a local phone number helps for food delivery.

微软翻译 Microsoft Translator

Offline packs and conversation translation

Download Chinese packs for the most reliable offline use in China.

小红书 Xiaohongshu

Destination guides, restaurants and local recommendations

Primarily Chinese content; useful for shortlisting places.

imeetzjj · Trip planner

Your Zhangjiajie trip

Save places, shape the days, then choose how to travel.

01

Who is travelling?

Start with the people. You can refine everything later.