China has extended a pilot short-stay visa waiver policy for ordinary passport holders of 28 countries, namely France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Malaysia, Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Australia, Poland, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, Slovenia,Slovakia, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Andorra, Monaco, Liechtenstein, and the ROK. Until December 31, 2025, ordinary passport holders from these countries can enter China visa-free and stay for up to 15 days for business and trade, tourism, family and friends visit and transit purposes. Travelers from the above-mentioned countries who do not meet the conditions for visa exemption still need to apply for a visa before entering China.
The above policy is from:
http://cs.mfa.gov.cn/wgrlh/lhqz/lhqzjjs/202411/t20241114_11526160.shtml
From 30th November 2024, the policy has been further expanded as:
Brunei, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Malaysia, Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Australia, Poland, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, Slovenia, Slovakia, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Andorra, Monaco, Liechtenstein, South Korea, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Malta, Estonia, Latvia, Japan. Citizens holding ordinary passports from these 38 countries can enter China for business, tourism, visiting relatives, exchanges, and transit for up to 30 days without a visa.
In addition, there is 144-hour visa-free transit policy for citizens from 54 countries:
Europe (40 countries): Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Monaco, Russia, United Kingdom, Ireland, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Belarus, Norway.
Americas (6 countries): United States, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile.
Oceania (2 countries): Australia, New Zealand.
Asia (6 countries): South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Brunei, United Arab Emirates, Qatar.
This rule is further expanded on 17th Dec. 2024:
The National Immigration Administration (NIA) announced today that it will fully relax and optimize the visa-free transit policy, which is effective immediately. The stay duration for foreign nationals eligible for visa-free transit has been extended from the previous 72 hours and 144 hours to 240 hours (10 days). Additionally, 21 ports of entry and exit have been added for visa-free transit individuals, further expanding the allowed areas for visa-free transit travelers. Individuals from 54 eligible countries, including Russia, Brazil, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and Canada, traveling from China to a third country (region), can enter visa-free through any of the 60 open ports in 24 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities), and stay within the allowed areas for visa-free transit travelers for no more than 240 hours.
For other countries, please contact us if you need help to apply for a visa:
Zi Yang (ziyang AT sjtu.edu.cn)
Wei Wang (wei.wang AT sjtu.edu.cn)
